Tag Archives: Maria Bartiromo
Bartiromo, Burnett rank among most influential women in media
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CNBC anchor Maria Bartiromo ranked No. 27 and fellow CNBC anchor Erin Burnett ranked No. 28 in Forbes magazine’s list of the most influential women in media.
The magazine stated, “Bartiromo’s job took on especial significance during the economic crisis, and she has interviewed figures in the thick of it, such as Bank of America’s CEO Ken Lewis, national economic council director Larry Summers and former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan.”
On Burnett, the magazine stated, “The blue-eyed brunette’s good looks certainly haven’t hurt her career, she’s been nicknamed ‘Sweet Sweetie’ and been called a ‘knockout,’ on air by Chris Matthews.”
Suze Orman, who has a personal finance show on CNBC, is No. 18 on the list.
See the entire list here.
Bartiromo's weak interview with Summers
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Ryan Chittum of Columbia Journalism Review lets Maria Bartiromo have it over her poor interview with White House economic advisor Larry Summers.
Chittum writes, “Bartiromo — again — doesn’t ask Summers about his being ‘bought and paid for’ by Wall Street, as Portfolio’s Ryan Avent put it — pointing to a Felix Salmon rundown of Summers’ earnings from DE Shaw — after the last Bartiromo-Summers faceoff just two months ago.
“As Avent said then:
But at least he’s smart enough to pick an interviewer who won’t ask him the really tough questions, like whether his actions as Treasury secretary helped to pump up the financial-services bubble whose implosion we’re all now suffering through, and whether he owes the American people an apology.
“Right. And here are some other questions she doesn’t ask:
“Hey, Larry, why did you fight so hard against your own administration for Wall Street to keep derivatives unregulated back in the 1990s? Do you want to apologize to Brooksley Born? Why should anyone listen to what you say after you’ve gotten so much so wrong? Why and how have you pushed aside Paul Volcker in the Obama administration? Why not put a cap on the size of Too Big to Fail institutions and break them up? Why do you still get F’s in ‘plays well with others.’”
Read more here.
Why CNBC and Maria Bartiromo are better than NYT's Floyd Norris
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Evan Cooper, deputy editor of Investment News, argues that the attraction for many who watch CNBC and other business news on television is that it’s more real than reality.
Cooper writes, “There’s a drugged quality to the feeling we get as we stare at the moving pictures and are drawn into the TV world of clear beginnings, middles and ends. Who cares if it’s real or worthwhile, it’s exciting!
“In print, financial news can be dull to those who have not developed a taste for the subject. On TV, by contrast, financial news is like sports — it’s up, it’s down, there’s graphics, winners, losers. There’s also good hair, gleaming white teeth and sex. Come on, Floyd Norris, the esteemed 
financial columnist of the New York Times, is brilliant and insightful and much better informed than Maria Bartiromo, but Floyd has as much TV wow as Ben Stein.
“We all want to watch Maria. But let’s remember that Maria has more in common with the lovely Vanna White than she does with Floyd Norris.”
Read more here.
How Bloomberg TV must change
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Marketwatch media columnist Jon Friedman, a former Bloomberg News employee, writes Friday about how Bloomberg Television could change to attract a wider audience.
Friedman writes, “To compete effectively with CNBC and Fox Business, Lack’s focus likely will be to upgrade Bloomberg’s performance during the critical early-morning hours leading up to the opening bell.
“But it’s unclear whether Lack will elect to concentrate on building or buying talent at Bloomberg. He could go the cheaper route of trying to find a diamond in the rough and praying that he or she can attract a sizable audience. (When I was a reporter at Bloomberg, the company sent out a ‘blast’ email to its print-journalism employees, inviting them to try out for on-air positions on Bloomberg Television).
Or, Lack can attempt to recruit the best and the brightest at rival networks, a process that will be very expensive — and possibly impractical — during a recession. Bloomberg will have a challenge of showing growth in the terminal-leasing business at a time when the spending by the ever-shrinking Wall Street community is contracting dramatically.
Read more here.
Wald's pending exit from CNBC surprises insiders
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Jon Friedman of Marketwatch writes Tuesday that the impending departure of Jonathan Wald, the senior vice president at CNBC, means that the network will lose the staunchest advocate of its on-air talent.
Friedman writes, “CNBC’s on-air journalists have a reason to dread Wald’s departure. He was a prominent cheerleader for their work inside and outside CNBC.
“I’ve found in doing research for CNBC stories over the years that Wald’s celebrity colleagues greatly appreciated the encouragement and support he gave them. In fact, I can’t remember the last time a news executive gushed so much about any of his or her charges. They repaid his affection for their work by letting it be known how much they relied on him during tough times.
“For instance, Wald helped shield Maria Bartiromo, CNBC’s biggest star, from my interview requests a few years ago when Bartiromo received a dose of unwanted publicity for reportedly taking trips on a Citigroup jet. While I was furious at Wald for deflecting my questions, I grudgingly respected his loyalty to Bartiromo.”
Read more here.
Folkenflik admires Bartiromo interview of ousted Merrill CEO
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David Folkenflik of National Public Radio says he thought that CNBC anchor Maria Bartiromo did an excellent job of interviewing former Merrill Lynch CEO John Thain about the company’s problems and his spending to redecorate his office.
Bartiromo writes, “She strips him bare.
“Bartiromo has been accused at times of being too cozy with the financial giants she interviews — a charge that has also been leveled more generally at CNBC and at TV financial news shows. A column in the New York Post, a corporate sibling of the rival Fox Business Network, insinuates that Bartiromo only got the interview because she shares a publicity agent with Thain. If so, Thain was mistaken if he thought this appearance would buff his image.
“He speaks calmly, and presents as a capable and reasonable executive. But it’s worth watching the interview carefully. I find a few of the following excerpts awfully revealing.”
Read more here.
Bartiromo's Thain interview causing questions
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Earlier this week, CNBC anchor Maria Bartiromo interviewed ousted Merrill Lynch CEO John Thain on the air about his departure.
But what wasn’t disclosed was that Bartiromo and Thain share the same public relations professional Ken Sunshine. And that’s leading some to question whether that relationship should have been disclosed before the interview.
Richard Johnson of the New York Post writes, “Sunshine admitted to us he represents both Bartiromo and Thain, the latter having hired him just recently. ‘The relationship between John and Maria long precedes our relationship with him,’ Sunshine insisted. But he had no comment on whether he had a hand in lining up the interview. CNBC didn’t get back to us.”
Read more here. A CNBC spokesman stated, “There is no conflict, and there is no surprise. Of course John Thain appeared first on CNBC.”
Bartiromo has been no stranger to controversy with past interviews either. She was criticized for disclosing right before an on-air interview with Citigroup CEO Sandy Weill that she was a shareholder in the company.
And she has been criticized for commenting about Blackrock CEO Stephen Schwarzman, a personal friend, on the air.
Bartiromo staying at CNBC
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Don Kaplan of the New York Post reports that CNBC anchor Maria Bartiromo is about to sign a new contract with the business news network.
Kaplan writes, “Bartiromo’s current seven-figure deal reportedly expires in March.
“There has been buzz that Bartiromo has reached out to [CNBC founder] and current Fox Business Channel boss Roger Ailes – as she has in the past when it came time to renegotiate her deal.
“A CNBC spokesman said cryptically that Bartiromo ‘is under contract, period.’
“Bartiromo is the anchor of CNBC’s daily ‘Closing Bell with Maria Bartiromo’ and host and managing editor of the nationally-syndicated ‘Wall Street Journal Report with Maria Bartiromo.’”
Read more here.
Who will be No. 1 at CNBC?
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Marketwatch media columnist Jon Friedman writes Friday that the biggest decision for new CNBC senior vice president Jeremy Pink is to determine who will be its No. 1 anchor — Maria Bartiromo or Erin Burnett.
“The question boils down to this: Who will be the face of CNBC? Will it be the no-frills, iconic Bartiromo, who has been the top anchor there for many years? Or, can the younger, breezier, fast-charging Burnett overtake her? CNBC prefers to believe that there is enough airtime and turf to accommodate both of its talented anchors.
“Bartiromo first achieved prominence in the media a decade ago as ‘The Money Honey.’ Owing to her perkiness, Burnett originally carved out a niche as a Bartiromo-lite entry before attracting an audience that likes her chatty approach.
“If Burnett became the No. 1 anchor at CNBC, it would send a signal to advertisers, staffers and viewers that the network favored her lighter style.”
Read more here.