CNBC recasts after-trading programming

Brian Stelter of The New York Times writes for Monday’s paper about how business news network CNBC has made some changes to its after 4 p.m. programming, including the addition of “Biography.”

Stelter writes, “For a decade the ‘Biography’ series had its own home, a spinoff of A&E called the Biography Channel, or ‘Bio.’ for short. CNBC is recycling some business-themed episodes of the series, including those about the McDonald’s founder Ray Kroc and the ice cream company Ben & Jerry’s, as part of a larger emphasis on documentary-style programming.

“For CNBC, the evening hours have been a dilemma for years. Its executives are fond of saying that its prime time is really the daytime, during the trading day in the United States. So what should the channel be after the trading day? It has fitfully tried talk shows and personal finance programs, but it seems to have settled on documentaries as the most effective option.

“‘Business documentaries have performed very well on CNBC, and they continue to do well as we expand into new time periods,’ said Ray Borelli, a vice president who oversees scheduling for CNBC.

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