News & Current Events Archives - Page 25 of 31

Where to watch the 2012 Democratic National Convention

August 30, 2012 Jeff Pfeiffer 2

With the Republican National Convention winding down, it’s the Democrats’ turn to gather, with the Democratic National Convention taking place in Charlotte Sept. 4-6. There they are expected to formally nominate President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden for a second term as President and Vice President of the United States. While there may be less drama than what transpired at the RNC (which had the threat of a hurricane, outbursts from Ron Paul supporters, etc.) you just never can tell what may happen. Several news outlets will be on hand to cover what does take place, and here’s […]

MSNBC premiering new documentaries on Romney and Obama

August 24, 2012 Jeff Pfeiffer Comments Off

MSNBC’s Long Form unit will be premiering two new documentary specials chronicling the lives and political careers of Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney and President Barack Obama, in advance of their respective parties’ national conventions. The first one, Mitt Romney: The Making of a Candidate, premieres tonight, Aug. 24, on MSNBC at 10pm ET, just days before the Republican National Convention begins on Monday. This one-hour special is hosted by NBC News Chief White House Correspondent and Political Director Chuck Todd, and follows the former Massachusetts governor through the trials and tribulations of a prolonged 2012 presidential primary season as […]

Where to watch the 2012 Republican National Convention

August 24, 2012 Jeff Pfeiffer 2

Updated Aug. 29, 2012, 12:23pm CT Several news outlets will be broadcasting the 2012 Republican National Convention, which runs Aug. 27-30, at which Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan (both pictured above, at an earlier date) are expected to receive the official nomination of their party for President and Vice President of the United States. (Since this event is being held in Tampa, you also might want to keep an eye on The Weather Channel, to see how Tropical Storm Isaac, which is currently heading toward the Gulf of Mexico, may impact the convention.) Among the notable headliners expected to speak […]

Weather Channel’s Isaac coverage to include first-time live reporting from Cuba

August 24, 2012 Jeff Pfeiffer 3

As Tropical Storm Isaac progresses through the Atlantic Ocean and to the Gulf of Mexico (where it may possibly affect the Republican National Convention), The Weather Channel plans to cover the storm with on-camera meteorologists out in the field, including one reporting live from Cuba for the first time ever. Mike Seidel will be live from Varadero, Cuba, on Friday, Aug. 24, beginning at 4pm ET, helping give viewers an eyewitness account of the storm’s effects. Also reporting on TV will be Stephanie Abrams, who hosted an extended version of Wake Up With Al live from the Florida Keys this […]

“The Newsroom” episode 9 recap: Tea (Party) for 2(.0)

August 21, 2012 Matthew Grimm Comments Off

MacKenzie McHale, executive producer of News Night dealing with a blackout that has shut down power to the Atlantis Cable News studios, drops this week’s Capra Moment™ early to muster the troops for a remote broadcast. They have been battered and grumbly in Aaron Sorkin’s The Newsroom because so-called News Night 2.0 has been compromising its 2.0ness because news consumers have been demanding Casey Anthony murder trial coverage even though Tea Party suicide bombers are playing chicken with the U.S. debt ceiling. But the blackout can bring them all together, McHale says, because they are plucky professionals with skills. “I […]

NAACP expresses concern over lack of full diversity in presidential debate moderators

August 14, 2012 Jeff Pfeiffer Comments Off

The dates, venues and moderators have now been set for the three October presidential debates between President Barack Obama and Gov. Mitt Romney, and the one October vice presidential debate between Vice President Joe Biden and Congressman Paul Ryan. Moderators will include Jim Lehrer, host of PBS’ NewsHour (first presidential debate, Oct. 3); ABC News chief foreign correspondent Martha Raddatz (vice presidential debate, Oct. 11); CNN chief political correspondent Candy Crowley (second presidential debate, Oct. 16); and Bob Schieffer, host of CBS’ Face the Nation (third and final presidential debate, Oct. 22). Crowley becomes the first woman to be the […]

TCA: critics indict mishandling of breaking news at ABC News panel

July 26, 2012 Lori Acken Comments Off

While there were a few gracious questions for Good Morning America‘s Robin Roberts regarding her health and who might fill in when she undergoes a bone marrow transplant for myelodysplastic syndrome (Barbara Walters, Katie Couric, Diane Sawyer, Kelly Ripa, and the cast of The View have all reportedly volunteered), Thursday morning’s ABC News panel was largely an indictment of how news outlets handle breaking news. At the forefront of the discussion — with ABC News President Ben Sherwood on hand in person and the GMA crew looking on via satellite — was correspondent Brian Ross’ confusing a Tea Party supporter named James Holmes with […]

“The Newsroom” Episode 5 recap: The Glass(-Steagall) Ceiling

July 23, 2012 Matthew Grimm 6

I found out Olivia Munn’s character’s name (Sloan) on this episode of Aaron Sorkin’s The Newsroom. MacKenzie McHale (Emily Mortimer), producer of a news-show-that-tells-the-truth™ and ex of that show’s once-egomaniacal-but-now-Arthurian anchor Will McAvoy (Jeff Daniels), needs to talk economic stuff for some event but doesn’t know any economic stuff — so she asks Sloan, a hot brainiac economist for some reason working at a cable news station, to tutor her. Sloan tells her about a New Deal law called Glass-Steagall that regulated banks and “helped lead to the longest sustained period of economic growth in U.S. history, 60-year expansion of […]

Gary Cole is “An Officer and a Murderer” in Lifetime’s harrowing true-crime film

July 20, 2012 Lori Acken 1

I got my first — and terrifyingly memorable — look at Gary Cole in 1984, when I was a college girl living in a ramshackle house with a bunch of other college girls, and he starred in Fatal Vision, the chilling NBC miniseries about the case of Capt. Jeffrey MacDonald, a real-life doctor and Green Beret convicted of killing his family. The telefilm was a smash and Cole went on to have one of the most varied and prolific film and television careers in the business, including standout roles in The West Wing, Entourage, Talladega Nights … and, of course, […]

Savannah Guthrie steps into the hot seat on NBC’s “Today”

July 12, 2012 Tom Comi 1

One could argue that the toughest job in all of television news is picking the right person to anchor a very lucrative morning show, and NBC execs are currently praying to the TV gods that they made the right choice to replace Ann Curry with Savannah Guthrie on the Today show. Truth be told, the hardest part of the decision was not replacing Curry. She was and will continue to be a great reporter for NBC, but she was a fish out of water in an environment where hosts have to do everything from grilling politicians to grilling chicken. In one […]