On the February 2 edition of MSNBC's Countdown, host Keith Olbermann awarded Fox Broadcasting Co.'s series 24 the “bronze” in his nightly “Worst Person in the World” segment. Olbermann cited a January 16 segment of Countdown in which he discussed “the possibility that the show [24] was in part a device to get people thinking we were living in a country where a car bomb could go off at any moment.” He stated that his concern “was pooh-poohed in some corners” by people who told him that 24 is “just entertainment.” Olbermann then observed that, as Media Matters for America documented, syndicated columnist Cal Thomas “has pretty much underscored this point in his latest newspaper column, quoting: 'Watch the TV drama 24 for what could be our prophetic and imminent future with a nuclear device exploding in major cities.' ”

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

OLBERMANN: But first, time for Countdown's latest list of nominees for “Worst Person in the World.”

The bronze to the Fox TV series 24. We explored here a few weeks ago the possibility that the show was in part a device to get people thinking we were living in a country where a car bomb could go off at any moment. This was pooh-poohed in some corners. “Of course not,” I was told. “It's just entertainment.”

But now our esteemed colleague Cal Thomas of Fox Noise has pretty much underscored this point in his latest newspaper column. Quoting, “Watch the TV drama 24 for what could be our prophetic and imminent future, with a nuclear device exploding in major cities.”