'I'm Terribly Sorry, But David Gregory Had a Fit'

Looks like the pressure of following in Tim Russert's footsteps is getting to David Gregory. I guess Keith Olbermann and Chris Matthews aren't the only egomaniacs at NBC.

MSNBC host Joe Scarborough was all set to appear this Sunday on ABC's "This Week" with George Stephanopoulos until yesterday, when Scarborough canceled because David Gregory, the host of NBC's "Meet the Press," allegedly threw a fit.

"What is David Gregory so afraid of?" asked one network insider.

Stephanopoulos was first pitched to have Scarborough as a guest by Scarborough's "Morning Joe" co-host on MSNBC, Mika Brzezinski.

"About three weeks ago, George got a handwritten note in the mail and a copy of Scarborough's book, 'The Last Best Hope,' " said our source. "The note said, 'Would you consider putting Joe on your show?' "

Last week, the booking was finalized. "She [Brzezinski] said she checked with all the high-ups at NBC," said our source.

But on Wednesday night, Stephanopoulos was alerted there might be a problem. Scarborough is said to have informed him, "I'm terribly sorry, but David Gregory had a fit." Yesterday morning, Scarborough canceled his appearance, leaving Stephanopoulos scrambling to find a replacement guest.

Stephanopoulos declined to comment, but an ABC source said, " 'Meet the Press' has lost more than half a million viewers on David Gregory's watch. That explains his tantrum, but it does not excuse it."

Since Gregory took over on "Meet the Press" last December after Tim Russert's death, viewership of the still top-rated Sunday morning show has plummeted. "Meet" topped "This Week" by 2.2 million a year ago, compared to 240,000 this past Sunday.

More Conflicts of Interest at NBC

As anyone with a pulse knows, NBC News has tilted so far to the left this election season they've done everything but dress up their on-air news "talent" in cheerleader outfits with an Obama logo on them.

Now comes word that with the current economic crisis, a couple more glaring conflicts are causing concern.

NBC is under fire for having correspondent Andrea Mitchell cover the economic crisis because she's married to former Federal Reserve chief Alan Greenspan - but some people are also wondering about David Gregory, who has a show, "Race for the White House" on MSNBC. Gregory is married to Beth Wilkinson - who until a month ago was general counsel, executive vice president and corporate secretary for mortgage giant Fannie Mae, which is now being investigated by the FBI.

Everyone knows Mitchell is married to Greenspan, but he's no longer Fed chair and you can probably cut her some slack. But as for Gregory, his obvious conflict of interest should preclude him from reporting on any matters related to Fannie Mae. When the time comes, as it should, that former Fannie Mae officials are indicted or brought forth to testify before Congress, will NBC even mention Wilkinson is married to one of their star reporters?

More questions here.

By the way, when it comes to being in the tank, how on earth did someone who's clearly rooting for Obama wind up moderating a debate?

Could you envision a John McCain supporter with a book due to be published on Inauguration Day being allowed to moderate a debate?

Of course not. No shock she also used to be employed by ... NBC.

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Shocker: Olbermann Coming Unraveled

Apparently, all that "success" is going to his oversized head. Hero of the moonbats and MSNBC celebutard Keith Olbermann seems to be on the verge of another professional meltdown. Of course, this would not be a shock to anyone who's seen him come unhinged numerous times over the years.

Considering his insane rants of late, perhaps a nice stay in a rubber room would help the unhinged, low-rated anchor get his bearings together.

I'd recommend a permanent stay at Bellevue, but I'll leave it up to the professionals.

IS Keith Olbermann, MSNBC's top-rated anchor, on the verge of yet another professional meltdown? His feuding with "Hardball" host Chris Matthews is nothing new. But now we're told notoriously odd Olbermann is lashing out at the rest of his network's talking heads. During West Virginia primary coverage the other night, Olbermann began pounding the table when lead White House reporter David Gregory didn't wrap his segment quickly enough to satisfy him. Olbermann recently encouraged management to oust the cable channel's lone conservative, Tucker Carlson, and it's also no secret among producers that Olbermann refuses to introduce Dan Abrams' show, which follows his own. Olbermann walked out of MSNBC years ago in a huff after also blowing up at ESPN, so TV insiders are curious if this recent behavior is a sign that history will repeat itself.

We can only hope it's a on-air meltdown, not that many people will see it.

You can be sure the Worst Person in the World will soon be the Page Six editors.