Louis Rukeyser will join CNBC
And: Koppel to remain with 'Nightline, ABC says
By Jon Friedman, CBS.MarketWatch.com
Last Update: 9:45 AM ET April 9, 2002
NEW YORK (CBS.MW) -- Louis Rukeyser, forced out of television last month after 32 years, is returning -- on CNBC, the cable network said Tuesday. The announcement ended speculation about Rukeyser's future on TV.
It's turning out to be a good time for broadcasting seniors, as it was also announced that Ted Koppel will remain with "Nightline" on ABC, part of the Walt Disney Co. (DIS: news, chart, profile) media and entertainment empire.
CNBC, owned by General Electric (GE: news, chart, profile), said Tuesday that the new show, "Louis Rukeyser's Wall Street" will begin airing April 19, competing directly against his old show, the long-running "Wall Street Week."
Maryland Public Television, Rukeyser's former employer, removed him from his familiar perch on Friday nights after he criticized its move to replace him during his program.
His former show has been renamed "Wall Street Week with Fortune." The AOL Time Warner magazine (AOL: news, chart, profile) is helping to shape and recast the new program.
Rukeyser's show ran on Maryland Public Television, part of the Public Broadcasting System. He was pushed out largely because the company wanted to change the format of the program.
Rukeyser appeared on "Larry King Live" on CNN last week and could barely contain his bitterness over his ouster or his desire to defeat his former employer with a new program.
For CNBC, the move is a coup. Rukeyser has historically had a strong appeal among viewers who are approximately 55 years old. CNBC has been reaching out to this coveted demographic segment. In the past year, it has been airing tournaments of the Senior PGA, for example.
Further, adding Rukeyser gives CNBC a stronger prime-time presence, long a goal of the network. It enables CNBC to promote its other prime-time offerings, such as a new opinion-oriented talk show anchored by economist Lawrence Kudlow and former hedge-fund manager James Cramer.
Meanwhile, the new show that will be appearing on Maryland Public Television may have a tough time matching the record established by the popular Rukeyser, whose trademarks were his pithy proclamations, his silver hair and his investor-oriented interviews with guests from Wall Street and the world of investing. |
