The big four broadcasters and cable news networks will keep us waiting a bit longer before they reveal what’s in store on election night. As one insider told TVNewser last week, “you think we want to give our play book to the other guys?” “No,” was our answer.
Anyway, we do have the plans for PBS and BBC.
• Jim Lehrer anchors PBS’ election coverage with political analysis from Mark Shields & David Brooks. Senior Correspondents Gwen Ifill, Judy Woodruff, Ray Suarez, Jeffrey Brown, and Margaret Warner contribute. Coverage begins at 9pmET and will continue until midnight or until a winner is announced.
• BBC has tapped British-born but red-blooded American Ted Koppel to join them on the set of the Washington Bureau. Coverage begins at 6pmET and will be anchored by David Dimbleby along with Matt Frei, anchor of BBC World News America.
The press releases are after the jump…
PBS and The NewsHour to provide complete coverage and analysis of the 2008 National Election – Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Jim Lehrer anchors, with analysis from Mark Shields and David Brooks
as well as Amy Walter and Stu Rothenberg
A tightly contested presidential campaign that has lasted two years finally draws to a close when Americans go the polls on Tuesday, November 4, 2008. Jim Lehrer anchors PBS’ election coverage with The NewsHour’s trademark in-depth and balanced reporting, as well as political analysis from Mark Shields & David Brooks among others and historical context from The NewsHour’s panel of historians all at 9pm ET, Tuesday, November, 4, 2008. Coverage will continue until midnight or until a winner is announced.
Joining Lehrer will be NewsHour Senior Correspondents Gwen Ifill, Judy Woodruff, Ray Suarez, Jeffrey Brown, and Margaret Warner plus NewsHour Correspondent Kwame Holman. The NewsHour’s coverage will feature:
-live reports from the candidates’ election night headquarters in Phoenix, AZ and Chicago, IL
-historical context from The NewsHour’s panel of historians
-political analysis of the election results
-reports from NPR correspondents on the ground in key battleground states
-voter videos submitted via YouTube “Video Your Voteâ€
Lehrer will be joined in the studio by the NewsHour’s regular analysts:
-Mark Shields, syndicated columnist
-David Brooks, New York Times columnist
Additional election analysis will be provided by:
-Amy Walter, editor-in-chief of the Hotline, National Journal’s political daily
-Stuart Rothenberg, editor and publisher of the Rothenberg Political Report
-Michael Beschloss, presidential historian
-Richard Norton Smith, scholar-in-residence at George Mason University
-Peniel Joseph, professor history and African-American studies at Brandeis University.
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BBC BROADCASTS AROUND THE WORLD ON U.S. ELECTION NIGHT
-Big picture and global analysis from Ted Koppel
-A unique perspective and instant reaction from BBC correspondents around the world
The BBC will air the same global newscast on the night of the U.S. presidential election to more than 200 countries across the world. Broadcast live from the BBC’s bureau in Washington D.C., the program will air in the U.S. exclusively on BBC AMERICA and BBC World News, with limited commercial breaks, and will be streamed live throughout the evening on bbc.com.
U.S. Election Night will be anchored by David Dimbleby, one of the BBC’s most experienced and highly respected presenters of news and major live events, with Matt Frei, anchor of BBC World News America. They’ll be joined in the studio by veteran newsman Ted Koppel for big picture perspective and global analysis. U.S. Election Night airs from 6:00 p.m. ET/3:00 p.m PT, Tuesday, November 4 2008.
Bringing together the depth and breadth of the BBC’s world-renowned, award-winning reporting, U.S. Election Night, will be broadcast across the world, including the UK, to over 280 million television households. There will be global reaction from the BBC’s reporters and contributors as well as the University of Virginia’s Professor Larry Sabato in studio. Reporting from the key campaign headquarters will be Washington Correspondent Katty Kay, with the McCain team in Phoenix, and Gavin Hewitt, with the Obama team in Chicago.
The BBC will be gauging reaction from a diverse cross-section of New Yorkers live from the studio in Times Square and Laura Kuenssberg will report news as it breaks in the blogosphere. Philippa Thomas, Richard Lister and Rajesh Mirchandani will be reporting from crucial swing states and Jeremy Vine will analyze results as they come in, using the latest touchscreen graphics to show who is winning the race to the White House.
In addition to streaming U.S. Election Night, bbc.com will carry live blogs from BBC North America Editor Justin Webb throughout the evening as well as reporting results as they happen. The site will also offer full analysis of the U.S. political system, video highlights of the day’s events, a running text commentary on the latest developments and a chance to share opinions with other bbc.com users.