I've seen the advertisements that are the subject of this WJS article, and I didn't think that they were all that bad. Yeah, they sort of "tout" an eventual economic recovery, but they don't say when, or even how. I took the ads at face value, which to me was an attempt to bolster and retain viewers. Perhaps I've overlooked something?
online.wsj.com
MEDIA & MARKETING
CNBC Taps Its Reporters to Predict Better Days Ahead in Series of Ads
By BRIAN STEINBERG
DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
NEW YORK -- Fans of CNBC call Maria Bartiromo "The Money Honey." Thanks to one of her recent appearances, they could dub her "The Business Booster."
In a new promotional spot for CNBC now airing on the business news cable channel, Ms. Bartiromo informs viewers that, despite current trends, "People are battling back." And that's not all. "Business is coming back," she adds, "slowly, but surely."
Can Maria be entirely certain?
In its quest to keep viewers interested in the ups -- and more recently -- the downs of the economy, CNBC may be placing some of its best-known on-air journalists in a precarious position. Rather than analyze the stock markets and the economy, or report on them, CNBC's anchors and reporters now predict better days ahead in a series of recently launched advertisements.
"Even if you dismiss the question of whether a newsgatherer should be offering opinions of that sort, they could well be wrong," says Bud Carey, a professor who specializes in TV and radio management at Syracuse University's Newhouse School of Communications. "If the intent of the spot is to create some optimism or buoyancy about the market, then that's probably dangerous."
Knowing Our Enemy
Some of Ms. Bartiromo's colleagues also appear in the campaign, delivering upbeat projections about the financial future. Popular anchor Ron Insana tells us, "Most people don't realize that by the time you figure out you're in a recession, it's almost over." Elsewhere, in a spot laced with patriotic fervor, reporter David Faber tells viewers "We know who our enemies are. We've identified them, and we're going after them." As a result, he suggests that the world is "less risky" in the aftermath of Sept. 11, not more.
"There's a difference between having people who have the experience and expertise to provide perspective and commentary, and those who are limited to straight reporting," says Bruno Cohen, CNBC's executive vice president of business news. "Where we're breaking the ice is by doing it in a promotional context."
CNBC, part of General Electric Co.'s NBC television business, has a relationship with Dow Jones & Co., publisher of Dow Jones Newswires and of The Wall Street Journal and its online edition. Dow Jones co-owns CNBC Europe and CNBC Asia and contributes content to and derives revenue from CNBC's U.S. operations.
News rivals often trot out what Mr. Cohen calls "anonymous voice-overs" to tout anchors like Brian Williams, Neil Cavuto, or Paula Zahn. "It's kind of an overused technique," he says. "It's like selling the anchors like they are used cars or something." CNBC believes that its reporters deliver an edge unavailable elsewhere, Mr. Cohen says, and the ads reflect that.
It's no secret that CNBC's viewers tend to be more enthusiastic about watching the channel when business is good. According to Nielsen Media Research, CNBC's viewership waned after hitting a high point in October. The 258,000 viewers it notched in December is below the 265,000 it captured in August, before the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and the markets' pronounced decline. Figures provided by CNBC show that the number of viewers for its business programming -- not paid programming overnight -- had risen to 324,000 as of Jan. 18 -- in line with the stock market's recovery -- from October's 296,000.
The spots hit the air days before CNBC unveils a new programming schedule designed to focus more on global events. The thinking: As foreign news and a war on terrorism take priority in many consumers' minds, they may desire less financial news and more information about the world at large. This shift also comes at the height of a spate of cable-news wars that have channels like CNN and Fox News grabbing name-brand anchors and new programs.
Ratings Talk
"CNBC's ratings certainly have faltered as of late. That's reflective of the general viewer's more conservative feelings about how they should invest or if they should invest," says Bob Flood, a senior vice president and director of national broadcast at Optimedia International, a media-buying firm owned by Publicis Groupe SA. While the new ads may highlight the network's desire to become "more personality driven," he adds, "if they are making the sort of point that things are starting to stabilize, that's yet to be proven."
While many TV news outlets feature their top talent in promotions and commercials -- think Larry King bragging about a new interview with an actress like Julia Roberts -- some journalism ethicists see problems in CNBC's approach.
There's nothing wrong with touting the experience of a stable of journalists, says Conrad Fink, a professor of newspaper management at the University of Georgia's College of Journalism and Mass Communication and the author of a book on media ethics. Saying "Watch us, read us, listen to us is fairly accepted in the business and part of a bona fide role as a journalist," he says. Still, he adds, "this business of predicting in advertisements as compared to news commentary, I think that's bad magic, and I would restrict my analysis and interpretation to the news programming itself."
CNBC's new efforts also make use of one Wall Street Journal employee who serves as an on-air anchor. Carl Quintanilla, a Wall Street Journal reporter whose profile has risen significantly since he started to appear on CNBC, is seen on one of the ads saying, "I think the biggest mistake anyone could make would be to count out the American investor."
At Dow Jones, "We were aware and approved of his participation in the commercial," says Steven Goldstein, a company spokesman. "What he said was actually quite innocuous," Mr. Goldstein adds. Indeed, no specific company or product is mentioned by name.
Should the economy improve, perhaps CNBC won't have to push so hard to make things seem more rosy. "Once the overall stabilization of the economy takes hold, they'll begin to experience a resurgence in ratings," says Optimedia's Mr. Flood. When will that happen? "I don't necessarily believe that's in the near term."
So try to hold on, CNBC. After all, business is coming back -- slowly but surely. By the time you figure out you're in a recession, it's almost over. And the biggest mistake you could make would be to count out the American investor. It's true. We heard it on TV.
Write to Brian Steinberg at brian.steinberg@dowjones.com
Updated January 25, 2002 5:28 p.m. EST
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