TVSquad

So we've had the first Presidential debate, and the Vice Presidential debate takes place tonight at 9pm ET (on ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, FOX News, MSNBC, PBS, CSPAN, probably The Weather Channel and Noggin too). While newspeople involved in the debates range from good (Jim Lehrer, Anderson Cooper, Bob Schieffer) to bad (Charles Gibson and George Stephanopoulos), there are several journalists who never seem to be involved in the debates for one reason or another. Maybe the debate committees and the campaigns don't want them, or maybe the anchors don't want to do a debate, but I can think of a few people I'd like to see moderate these things.

After the jump, my top five.

Who would have thought that there would be on television this category, this trend of personality known as the "money honey?" They're the beautiful girls who give us the financial news and stock numbers on the cable news networks.

It all started with CNBC's Maria Bartiromo (who actually trademarked the "money honey" title a while back) and now it has extended to others as well. There's ABC's Bianna Golodryga (that's her in the pic), who is being touted as the big new money gal, MSNBC's Erin Burnett, Fox Business Network's Alexis Glick, and...well...the entire on-air staff at the Fox Business Network, actually.

Looks like a lot more celebs are lining up to be on Donald Trump's Celebrity Apprentice than I thought.

So far, the Donald has signed Joan Rivers, Carmen Electra, Jim Cramer of CNBC, Naomi Judd, George Foreman, Pete Rose, Tony Hawk, Danica Patrick, and Jeff Gordon. That's quite a mixture of sports figures, comics, and really loud financial analysts. I wonder if Foreman will try to punch Trump if he tries to tell him how to sell things.

Trump says that there are over one hundred celebrities who wanted to be on the show (guess they'll have to wait until Celebrity Apprentice 2). Trump also reveals that Britney Spears and Paris Hilton have some interest in being on the show, and he's going to try to get Lindsay Lohan too. Oh, that would be great if they could be on the same team, wouldn't it? What could their team name be?

Ever since Don Imus made his little, um, faux pas a while back, viewers have been wondering who will eventually take over his morning slot on MSNBC. Right now they have a rotating group of hosts, including Joe Scarborough, David Gregory, and Jim Cramer, but several execs (including network GM Dan Abrams) have been impressed by Scarborough.

Right now Scarborough hosts a nightly show, Scarborough Country, at 9pm after Countdown with Keith Olbermann. Scarborough will again host the morning program next week, and a decision about a permanent host should be made very soon.

What is CNBC? Is it a business news channel, or a comedy channel, or a talking-head channel? I have a hard time keeping it all straight. Confusing me even more is that the cable network is developing an animated show based on the comic strip CEO Dad which could turn into a 30-minute series.

What?

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the network with an identity crisis will air one-minute shorts cut from the show's pilot episode. It could then return as a 30-minute show in the fall, although there is no definite answer on that as of yet.

For all you CNBC fans who can't get enough breaking news about Wall Street, money, stocks, bonds, and corporate deals have a new place to hang out: CNBC.com has re-launched.

A quick look around the site and you'll see lots and lots of numbers and lots and lots of colors. You get a live stock chart, exclusive online-only content (for example, this morning they had an interview with Chicago Federal Reserve Bank President Michael Moskow), a video player, daily schedules and diaries, and a ton more. It's all very busy and the layout out could be a bit better, but it will be a good resource.

There was a time - in the mid to late 90s - when I was sort of addicted to watching CNBC. Those days have gone, but it's good that the info is still there at the click of your remote control (and mouse).

(Note: the main CNBC.com page is for financial info. If you're looking for the page for the TV network CNBC specifically (show info, schedules, pictures of Maria Bartiromo), then you should go here.)

[via TV Newser]

There was about a year and a half when I was completely addicted to CNBC. It was the mid to late 90s, around 97 or 98, when I was starting to write more online and became fascinated by how technology was driving the economy and stock market to new heights. I remember having CNBC on all day along (along with CNN and MSNBC), and I loved seeing all the numbers fly by the bottom of the screen. Sure, I had no idea what any of it meant, but CNBC also had a lighter, pop culture bent to it that made it entertaining. I watched Power Lunch every afternoon, I waited for interviews with the CEOs of companies I was intererested in (like Steve Jobs from Apple - that was a big comeback story), and I even got to know the anchors and reporters (oh, Maria Bartiromo!).

Then the bubble burst and people didn't really enjoy watching CNBC anymore. And now it's really a shadow of what it used to be. But now two guys are trying to make it good again. Ex-Today producer Jonathan Wald and ex-60 Minutes producer Josh Howard have been brought on to pump new life into the business network. The duo plans more documentaries, as well as other big changes for the network.

What do you think needs to be done to CNBC to make it better?