Olbermann awarded "Worst Person" honors to Gibson for his religious "intolerance"; Coulter named runner-up for "Nazi block watchers" comment

On the December 2 edition of MSNBC's Countdown, host Keith Olbermann named Fox News host John Gibson that day's "Worst Person in the World" for comments he made on November 17 about the so-called "war on Christmas." Gibson suggested that people "following the wrong religion" were not reciprocating the tolerance afforded them by "the majority religion -- Christianity." In crowning Gibson, Olbermann commented that "John revealed a very ugly side to himself. He is one of those people who think all religions but his are mistaken. You know, the way a lot of these religious nutbag terrorists think. ... I'd tell you which religion John thinks is the only one that's right, but what's the difference? It's not the faith that's the issue; it's the intolerance."

In addition, Olbermann named right-wing pundit Ann Coulter the runner-up for that day's "Worst Person" award, citing her December 1 O'Reilly Factor attack on websites such as Media Matters for America as "little Nazi block watchers." As Olbermann noted, her explanation was: "[t]hey tattle on their parents, turn them in to the Nazis."

From the December 2 edition of MSNBC's Countdown with Keith Olbermann:

OLBERMANN: But first, time for Countdown's list of today's three nominees of the coveted title of "Worst Person in the World."

The bronze winner is Ferrell White. F-e-r-r-e-l-l. Not Feral, F-e-r-a-l. He's the building official for Spring Hill, Tennessee. He has ordered a hair salon to remove lewd language from an advertisement in town. The ad is for products called "sexy hair concepts." The lewd language, Mr. White says, is the word "sexy."

There's an issue that never arises for our runner-up tonight: Ann Coulter. A two-fer. She posted the personal phone number and email of a blogger who was critical of her. And she called other groups which disagree with her "Nazi block watchers." "You know," she explained, "They tattle on their parents, turn them in to the Nazis."

But the winner, and this one comes with great personal pain because we were friends when he worked here and thereafter: John Gibson. Selling his new book about this phony-baloney war on Christmas, John revealed a very ugly side to himself. He is one of those people who think all religions but his are mistaken. You know, the way a lot of these religious nutbag terrorists think. "I would think," Gibbie said on a syndicated radio show, "if somebody is going to be -- have to answer for following the wrong religion, they are not going to have to answer to me. We know who they're going to have to answer to."

I'd tell you which religion John thinks is the only one that's right, but what's the difference? It's not the faith that's the issue; it's the intolerance. John Gibson, today's "Worst Person in the World."

—R.S.K.