Morning Meeting Review…

Marketwatch’s Jon Friedman reviews MSNBC’s Morning Meeting…

Ratigan had a legion of both followers and critics when he anchored shows for CNBC, which he left after his contract expired in March. Understandably, Ratigan’s detractors dismiss him as a poster child for the breed of in-your-face cable news stars, who are always “on” and can distract viewers by inevitably talking too fast, too loud and too much.

But there is a notable asterisk here: Ratigan actually knows what he is talking about. Plus, he is at his best when he is moving at a breakneck speed. What impresses me the most about him is that he is so comfortable improvising.

And that is my biggest gripe with this new show. By locking Ratigan into a typical talk-show format, MSNBC isn’t totally utilizing Ratigan’s ability to speak his mind effectively without a script.

Ratigan isn’t a cookie-cutter news anchor — even on MSNBC, which sometimes has all the discipline of John Belushi’s fraternity in “Animal House.” It would go a long way if Ratigan opened the show by standing up and moving around the studio, not simply sitting at a desk.

Yes, Ratigan is smart and charismatic enough to make “Morning Meeting” a success just the way it is. My point is that the show could be much more riveting.

I expected Ratigan’s program to be a departure from the usual talk-show fare. But I was a little disappointed to see that one of his early guests was none other than former New York governor Eliot Spitzer, who was driven from office last year by a sex scandal.

Why did MSNBC think it was a good idea to have this disgraced politician as an expert panelist on a brand new show? What message did it send to viewers? How could someone with Spitzer’s reputation give “Morning Meeting” any credibility?

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