Erin Burnett is CNBC's secret weapon

Caroline Palmer of Broadcasting & Cable writes Monday about CNBC anchor Erin Burnett, whose appearance on the business news cable network has boosted its ratings and makes it more likely to withstand the competition from the new Fox Business Channel.

Palmer wrote, “Burnett rises every morning at 5 a.m. and hops in a car bound for the NYSE. Once there, she makes calls, checks e-mail, sets up potential guests and reads the papers—all while getting her hair blown-out and her makeup applied. ‘She’s a natural,’ says Jonathan Wald, senior VP of business news for CNBC. ‘She’s both energetic and solicitous, but she never appears fawning.’

“Perhaps her strongest asset, he adds, is how quickly she finds the spine of a good business story. ‘She can translate arcane business news to a vast general audience, or she can keep it narrow for those in the know. And she knows the difference.’

Burnett’s rapid rise has drawn endless speculation in the media and on Websites that she is being groomed by the network to ascend the ‘Money Honey’ throne currently occupied by CNBC anchor Maria Bartiromo. Some fans call her Maria 2.0.

“Does it matter that some critics see her as just another pretty anchor? ‘Let’s be honest,’ Burnett says. ‘It is a factor. Initially. But if you want to be good and if you want to be at the top of your game, you have to know the material, and you have to love it. Otherwise, regardless of your looks or your age or whatever, you won’t have any staying power. And look at how many women television journalists there are of all ages. It’s a really exciting time.'”

Read more here.