Olbernann's Serendipity

Keith Olbermann expected gladhanding, and got some sweet reality from Elizabeth Edwards.

They told me that the wife of Democratic Vice Presidential nominee John Edwards had seen a story we'd done about her.

Since she was a Countdown viewer, I was further told, she wanted to let me know that my information was outdated. She wasn't upset - just a fan who'd spotted something wrong on the show, something that happened to be about her. Otherwise she thought everything had been pretty good that night.

Even with my comparatively limited exposure to the means of politics, I could smell this from a million miles away. Oh, Elizabeth Edwards is a viewer? Who are we kidding here? I've been wined-and-dined before, symbolically and literally. If it hadn't happened since I switched to news, it had already happened while I was in sports.

Big fan, Keith. Love the show. Big favor if you covered this story. Hugely appreciated if you covered it from this viewpoint.

Oops.

You probably know that the Edwards lost their first-born son, Wade, in a freakish automobile accident in 1996, when he was 16.

You probably didn't know they watched SportsCenter together.

I sure didn't.

"I have to just say that on a completely personal note, and not kissing up to you in any way, I said before this interview started what a great treat my son would have thought this was for me to be spending any time talking to you after he was a devoted watcher of you while you were on ESPN with Dan Patrick and Chris Berman."

Hadn't felt too good lately about having being on that program.

Mrs. Edwards kind of changed that.

Right now I'm very proud to be part of one of her warm memories about her son.