Will Ratigan’s Show Be “News” or “Opinion”?

New host of MSNBC’s 9-11amET program Dylan Ratigan made his first appearance as an MSNBC host last night on Countdown with Keith Olbermann.

“Welcome to the family, we are delighted,” said Olbermann at the end of the segment.

But what can viewers expect from the new member of the family? On the other cablers, Heidi Collins of CNN and Bill Hemmer and Megyn Kelly of FNC anchor news-focused programs, and currently MSNBC does as well. But Ratigan told the New York Times “that viewers would ‘be aware of my opinions’ but they would not necessarily hew to a single ideology.”

During his Countdown appearance viewers got a taste of those opinions. The segment focused on Bristol Palin’s appearances on the network morning shows yesterday. “What’s lost on me is why the Republicans, who own the platform for wasteful spending in America, instead hearken back three, four, five years ago for some polarizing social issue that they think they can create some sort of momentum around, when it is clear to the folks in Kansas who want to be with the Republicans, that the Republicans, beyond perhaps gay marriage or an advocacy against teen pregnancy, which last I checked is a 90-10 issue, they have yet to step up to the obvious, which is, our systems in America are failing,” he said.

Click continued to see Ratigan’s Countdown appearance last night, in which he discusses the new program as well…