OLBERMANN SLAMS NBC AS SUSPENSION IS LIFTED

Conan O’Brien was not the only TV personality administering a verbal pasting to the much pasted NBC Universal on Monday. On the second day of his suspension from MSNBC, Keith Olbermann insisted that he had been punished by the powers-that-be at the news network because “I mistakenly violated an inconsistently applied rule that I previously knew nothing about.” In fact, he said, he learned about his suspension from news reports and had been given no hearing by corporate executives, who said that they had acted after learning that Olbermann had contributed to the campaigns of three Democratic candidates in violation of NBC policy. Olbermann is due to return to the air today (Tuesday) — and will no doubt have more to say about his treatment.