On Tuesday, for the first time in more than 20 years, Jim Acosta, a former CNN stalwart, will not be working for a mainstream television network on election night.
asserted
Acosta → work → night
Acosta, who left CNN last year after nearly 18 years at the network, is putting on his own live broadcast at the University of Virginia that will air on YouTube and his Substack platform.
asserted
that → leave → YouTube
And in a sign of the times, Acosta will be joined for the broadcast, hosted by the university’s Center for Politics, by another star of linear television – Katie Couric, a former Today show co-host.
asserted
Acosta → join → television
(Don Lemon, another CNN alum and converted new media player, may also drop by, Acosta said.)
uncertain
Acosta → convert → ?
“If folks are looking for fresh faces and a different way of doing this kind of coverage, I think it’s going to deliver that,” Acosta said.
asserted
Acosta → look → that
Acosta said he will be doing his best Steve Kornacki impression, giving analysis using an interactive, touch screen battleground map just like the NBC News data guru.
asserted
he → say → guru
“Yeah, I’m going to have to go to J Crew and get some new khakis.”
asserted
I → go → khakis
Rashida Jones, who serves as chief executive of Piers Morgan’s media company Uncensored, predicted that Tuesday’s midterms will come to be remembered as “the content creator election”, when independent journalists hosting streaming broadcasts give traditional networks a run for their money.
asserted
journalists → serve → money
Jones was running one of those television networks, MSNBC (now called MS Now), during the 2024 presidential election, a role she held for four years.
asserted
she → run → years
She is working to expand Morgan’s company by launching new shows and verticals beyond the “Piers Morgan Uncensored” streaming broadcast, which has about 4.5 million subscribers on YouTube.
asserted
which → work → YouTube
The plan for election night is a several-hour-long live show hosted by Morgan from Washington DC, part of a three-day stint broadcasting from the US capital city.
asserted
plan → host → city
“Our focus is going to be making sense of what’s happening in real time,” she said in an interview.
asserted
she → go → interview
“People aren’t coming to us because they’re looking for how this part of Michigan voted.
asserted
part → come → Michigan
It’s more the big picture themes and takeaways.
asserted
It → ’ → ?
Ultimately by the end of the night, people care about where did we land, less about the individual races.”
asserted
we → care → races
Jones said that traditional television networks will be facing more competition than past election cycles.
asserted
networks → say → cycles
“If I’m a network that’s got a guy at a board and a ticker at the bottom, and I just assume people are going to come, I don’t know that that’s baked in and that’s a given this cycle.
asserted
that → ’m → bottom
And I think what we see [on Tuesday] will be on a smaller scale what we see for the general election …
asserted
we → think → election
I think it’ll be the content creator election.”
asserted
it → think → ?
Scott MacFarlane, a veteran reporter who resigned from CBS News in March seeking “some independence”, joined the progressive MeidasTouch network as its chief Washington correspondent and will be co-hosting its live election broadcast.
asserted
who → resign → broadcast
MacFarlane says the streaming show will lack the bells and whistles of a traditional television election broadcast, which is the point.
asserted
which → say → broadcast
“There will be no teleprompters and no scripts,” he said.
asserted
he → say → ?
“It’s straight to the point, direct, conversational and heavy on original reporting.”
asserted
It → ’ → reporting
He added that “dramatic theme music and theatrical presentations would miss the moment”.
asserted
music → add → moment
Still, many millions of Americans will be watching a traditional television network – or their streaming off-shoot – to keep tabs on the elections.
asserted
millions → watch → elections
On election night 2024, an estimated 42.3 million viewers watched television coverage – though viewership is obviously lower for non-presidential years.
asserted
viewership → estimate → years
“There are more places than ever for people to get their news and information, but there’s no place that has the depth, the scope, and the breadth that NBC News has,” said Hallie Jackson, an NBC News anchor, who is penciled in for nine hours of live coverage as part of the network’s election team, along with Savannah Guthrie, Tom Llamas and Kristen Welker behind the desk (along with Kornacki).
asserted
who → be → Kornacki
Jackson said the key to election night is hydration, and a regimen of healthy eating that she began last week.
asserted
she → say → that
“You have to pace yourself.
asserted
You → have → yourself
You have to stay hydrated.
asserted
You → have → ?
You have to have a secret pack of M&Ms for your blood sugar that you can come back to every hour.”
asserted
you → have → that
Seni Tienabeso, vice-president of ABC News Live and Specialized Units, said the network has planned for a seven-hour-long broadcast, but could go much longer if a key call – perhaps for control of the US Senate or House – is on the horizon.
uncertain
call → say → horizon
Asked how much effort is put toward the traditional television broadcast compared with digital and social media offerings, ABC News executives said the network is fully integrated.
asserted
network → ask → offerings
“For us, it’s about reaching the audience where they are,” Tienabeso said.
asserted
Tienabeso → ’ → audience
“We don’t leave any of those arenas as secondary.”
asserted
We → leave → arenas
(The network’s coverage will also be aired on its ABC News Live digital channel, on Hulu, and on the Disney+ streaming service.)
asserted
coverage → air → service
Like most major networks and news organizations, ABC News relies on election results from the Associated Press – as well as a new voter survey conducted by the polling firm SSRS – to help make projections about key elections.
asserted
News → rely → elections
Those decisions are made by a desk that is “holed off” from the rest of the newsroom, Tienabeso said, and is not primarily focused on beating rival networks.
asserted
Tienabeso → make → networks
“We don’t pay attention to what competitors are doing,” he said.
asserted
he → pay → what
“Our decision desk makes the decision when they feel comfortable with their analysis of the race that they’re covering.”
asserted
they → make → that
…and 13 more, not listed.
The Aporia
