Emmy-winning actor Donald Sutherland and Rolling Stone columnist Matt Taibbi highlight a new list of familiar voices who will be joining Keith Olbermann's "Countdown" as contributors when it debuts June 20 at 8 p.m. ET, Current TV announced Friday.
Other previously announced heavy hitters involved with the program — which will follow a similar format to Olbermann's recent MSNBC program of the same name –include documentary filmmakers Michael Moore and Ken Burns, and comedian Richard Lewis.
Olbermann appeared on "The Colbert Report" on Wednesday and "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon" on Thursday to promote his new show, easily the biggest in the short history of Al Gore's Current TV.
The still obscure network also released a new ad for its now-flagship program. The release announcing Sutherland and Taibbi's involvement starts below the clip.
NEW YORK – June 17, 2011– “Countdown With Keith Olbermann,” the highly-anticipated weeknight commentary show slated to launch on independently owned Current TV on June 20th at 8PM ET(replayed at 11 p.m. and 2 a.m. ET) announced today that veteran television anchor David Shuster will serve as the primary guest host for occasions when Keith Olbermann is unable to be in-studio, as well as an additional number of regular contributors, which include notable policy-makers, thought leaders, journalists, comedians, activists and other progressive voices. Lending their views and voices to “Countdown” on a regular basis will be Rolling Stone journalist Matt Taibbi; John Dean, Former White House counsel to President Richard Nixon; Heather McGhee, Director of the Washington office of Demos, a non-partisan policy center; Jonathan Turley, law professor at The George Washington University School of Law; comedian and activist Maysoon Zayid; Kate Sheppard, Mother Jones energy and environmental reporter and investigative journalist and author Jeremy Scahill. Actor Donald Sutherland and Derrick Pitts, Chief Astronomer and Planetarium Director for the Franklin Institute will also regularly appear on the program. Mr. Pitts, like previously announced Countdown contributor Ken Burns, will be contributing non-political elements to the show.
