Despite lower ratings, MSNBC isn't missing Olbermann

MSNBC's ratings are on a downward trend and could soon dip below those of CNN, according to the New York Times. Just about all of the network's star anchors are suffering, but don't ask about Keith Olbermann.

On MSNBC, meanwhile, Lawrence O’Donnell has lost 100,000 viewers from the numbers Mr. Olbermann posted last September, with 185,000 viewers in the 25-to-54 age group, a drop of 35 percent. (Bill O’Reilly on Fox, as always, dwarfs his competitors with about three times as many viewers, 611,000.)

More ominously, the falloff for Mr. O’Donnell seems to be affecting MSNBC’s biggest name, Rachel Maddow. Her audience dropped 15 percent this year, to 245,000 from 289,000. She still beats Piers Morgan on CNN in the 9 p.m. hour, but his show has improved 18 percent over Larry King’s ratings last year, with 193,000 viewers to Mr. King’s 164,000.

When MSNBC President Phil Griffin was asked about whether the dive in ratings has anything to do with Olbermann's departure at the beginning of this year he simply said "no."