Keith Olbermann has been given a one-week suspension from his ESPN show Olbermann after getting into a heated exchange on Twitter with Penn State students on Monday. The spat began when one Penn State student tweeted at Olbermann with a link to an article that highlighted the school’s efforts in fundraising for pediatric cancer. The tweet included the Penn State rallying cry, “We Are…,” to which Olbermann replied “Pitiful.”
@lisaadeleon …Pitiful
— Keith Olbermann⌚️ (@KeithOlbermann) February 23, 2015
The conversation devolved from there with other Penn State students taking offense to Olbermann’s tweet, especially considering the context in which he was responding.
.@dave_seidel No, Son. I said PSU students were pitiful. Had nothing to do with fundraising #AlsoPSUReadingComprehensionAppearsToBeWeak
— Keith Olbermann⌚️ (@KeithOlbermann) February 23, 2015
.@dave_seidel Again – get your $ back – you didn't learn how to read. PSU students are pitiful because they're PSU students – period.
— Keith Olbermann⌚️ (@KeithOlbermann) February 23, 2015
He then had some fun with students confusing “your” with “you’re,” which is always a solid use of one’s time. On Tuesday morning, ESPN dropped the hammer on Olbermann, handing him a one-week suspension.
“We are aware of the exchange Keith Olbermann had on Twitter last night regarding Penn State. It was completely inappropriate and does not reflect the views of ESPN,” the network said in a statement to TheWrap. “ESPN and Keith have agreed that he will not host his show for the remainder of this week and will return on Monday.”
Afterwards, Olbermann apologized on Twitter.
I apologize for the PSU tweets. I was stupid and childish and way less mature than the students there who did such a great fundraising job.
— Keith Olbermann⌚️ (@KeithOlbermann) February 24, 2015
[The Wrap]