It turns out Olivia Nuzzi has a complicated romantic history.
Before her recent emotional and digital affair with Robert F. Kennedy Jr., she had a brief fling with the former MSNBC and ESPN host Keith Olbermann over a decade ago.
Just this past Tuesday, Olbermann opened up about their relationship on social media.
He revealed that a reporter was preparing to share details of their affair after Nuzzi was put on leave due to her connection with Kennedy.
Olbermann candidly noted, “We didn’t do much to keep it quiet,” reflecting on their romance when he was 55 and she was only 21.
A Casual Connection
Olbermann shared that he assumed their relationship was not a big deal, saying, “I just assumed nobody cared.”
He also indicated that he thought the story had circulated online already.
Looking back, he described their time together as “pretty boring” but “really nice and (god help me) wholesome.”
Interestingly, he credited Nuzzi with being there when he adopted his first dog, a cause he passionately promotes on Twitter.
“For that, I’ll always be grateful to her,” he added.
When the New York Post reached out to Olbermann for his thoughts on the affair, he mentioned he hadn’t spoken to Nuzzi in ten years, reiterating that he believed the details were already known to the public.
“It’s public knowledge; I keep my personal relationships close to the vest,” he said.
The Timeline of Events
Their relationship coincided with Nuzzi’s internship under the now-disgraced Congressman Anthony Weiner.
Meanwhile, Olbermann, who has had relationships with notable figures like Senator Kyrsten Sinema and Fox News host Laura Ingraham, took to social media to criticize both Nuzzi and Kennedy after the news broke.
He slammed Kennedy’s attempts to investigate Nuzzi, labeling them “reprehensible,” while also admitting that he felt her actions were wrong.
Olbermann didn’t hold back, calling Kennedy an “utterly irresponsible pile of s***,” emphasizing that the focus should shift from Nuzzi’s actions to how Kennedy should be dealt with regarding the situation.
Kennedy’s Capitol Hill Appearance
On the same day Olbermann spoke out, Kennedy was making headlines himself, appearing at a Capitol Hill event with notable Republican lawmakers.
GOP Rep. Thomas Massie shared photos with Kennedy, and he even dined with him the night before. Other Republican figures, including Sen. Ted Cruz, also posed for photos with Kennedy during the event, highlighting his rising profile in political circles.
Rumors suggest that Kennedy is contemplating a lawsuit against Nuzzi over explicit content she allegedly sent him.
Jessica Read Kraus, who writes for House Inhabit, reported that Kennedy feels bombarded by “increasingly pornographic photos and videos” from Nuzzi.
Kraus observed that Nuzzi’s inquiries about Kennedy began to feel obsessive, crossing the line from journalistic curiosity to something more personal.
A Flirtatious Exchange
Kraus noted that Nuzzi had made a flirtatious remark during a phone call with Kennedy, which led him to block her.
Despite this, Nuzzi reached out again, asking him to unblock her, but later sent him a provocative photo that resulted in him blocking her again.
Security expert Gavin de Becker is reportedly looking into whether Kennedy can pursue legal action against Nuzzi, emphasizing that “this has nothing to do with romance,” but rather that he was being pursued by explicit content.
The Daily Beast reported that the sexting scandal came to light after Kennedy bragged to friends about having intimate photos of Nuzzi, which eventually reached the ears of the editor-in-chief at her magazine.
Nuzzi’s Response
Nuzzi has not publicly addressed the allegations, but sources close to her denied that she was aggressively pursuing Kennedy.
They stated, “It’s absolutely untrue that she was the aggressor,” adding that both parties were aware of the high-pressure situation, resulting in their communication being sporadic.
Following a confrontation from her editor, David Haskell, about her relationship with Kennedy, Nuzzi initially denied the affair but later admitted to it.
This revelation comes amid rumors that her engagement to Politico reporter Ryan Lizza has ended.
Kennedy, who is still married to actress Cheryl Hines, previously claimed he only met Nuzzi once for an interview that turned out to be unfavorable.
Yet, a source insisted that their relationship involved multiple meetings, although it did not become physical.
Moving Forward
As Nuzzi is now on leave from her magazine, a statement acknowledged her relationship with Kennedy, emphasizing that it occurred while she was reporting on his campaign, violating the magazine’s conflict of interest policies.
The statement reassured readers that an internal review found no inaccuracies in her work.
In light of these developments, it seems that the fallout from this tangled web of relationships and revelations is far from over.
What lies ahead for Nuzzi and Kennedy remains uncertain, but one thing is clear: the story continues to unfold.