We stopped in to CNBC Global Headquarters in Englewood Cliffs, NJ this afternoon as crews prepare to cover tonight’s election returns.
We chatted with CNBC anchor Erin Burnett as she prepped for Street Signs. Correspondent Hampton Pearson is up from Washington, DC and John Harwood will be on hand tonight as well.
“In an election where the economy is a big story, if not the big story, we are a logical place turn turn, because that’s all we do,” says CNBC senior VP Jonathan Wald.
CNBC’s Election Night programming begins at 7pmET with anchors Mark Haines and Burnett. Dylan Ratigan and Maria Bartiromo pick up coverage at 8pm followed by Carl Quintanilla and Bartiromo at 9, with Michelle Caruso-Cabrera picking up at 10.
So, what about after the election? How will CNBC hold on to those viewers? Wald talks about that, after the jump. First, Sandy Cannold, EP of Squawk on the Street as well as the prime time election special, gives us a tour of the studio.
And while cable news viewership is expected to drop off somewhat from election fatigue, CNBC is well-placed to maintain its momentum. “The economy isn’t going anywhere and this story isn’t going away,” Wald tells TVNewser. “It won’t be difficult for us, because so many of the problems are still being worked out.”
And CNBC’s post-election plans are in high gear. We caught up with anchor Melissa Francis who is working on a CNBC documentary on high priced escort services (think Eliot Spitzer) and David Faber who’s working on a new book which will coincide with another CNBC documentary about the origins of the current economic crisis.
Wald, as executive producer of NBC Nightly News, experienced InDecision 2000 first-hand. Being on the business side of things eight years later has its advantages. “Part of me misses being in that part of the action,” says Wald, “but there’s so much action here that fortunately for us there’s plenty to go around.”