Bartiromo interview of prince an SNL skit waiting to happen

Mark Finkelstein of NewsBusters writes Monday that CNBC anchor Maria Bartiromo‘s interview with Prince Alwaleed, the largest investor in Citigroup, has the makings of a future Saturday Night Live skit.

Finkelstein writes, “CNBC’s Bartiromo conducted the interview by remote this afternoon. When the camera went to the prince, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, you might have expected to find him in a TV studio, or perhaps in his business office, maybe even in one of his palace rooms.Â

“But no, there he was sitting outdoors, apparently by his stables, with seated camels and sleek horses very visible in the background.   And rather than being attired in business or traditional Saudi dress, the Prince was duded up with an open collar, tinted glasses and a scarf warding off the desert’s cool night air.  He could be seen occasionally fingering what appeared to be golden worry beads.

“The conversation began with the prince expressing his views on current and past Citi management: Alaweed expressed great faith in current CEO Vikram Pandit and put much of the blame for the company’s woes on former CEO Charles Prince. He was optimistic that the current moves by the US government to shore up Citi would restore confidence in the company.  Although he is not an investor in the auto industry, Bartiromo elicited his views on the potential Detroit bailout. Alwaleed said this would be up to ‘President-elect Barack Obama,’ emphasizing the need for strict standards for any bailout.”

Read more here.