The newbies manning Bloomberg TV

Felix Gillette of the New York Observer takes a look at who’s in front of the camera at Bloomberg Television after the company laid off 100 employees, primarily in its TV and radio operations, last month.

Gillette writes, “According to sources with knowledge of the situation, the list of freshly minted reporters culled from the ranks of segment producers and assignment desk staffers includes Andy Cinko, Lydia Thew, Zahra Burton, and Courtney Donohoe.

“So does the trial-by-fire approach to talent creation make for good television?

“The move has induced some snickers among former Bloomberg veterans. Why, they wonder, in the midst of arguably the most complex financial crisis in the nation’s history, would you want to put inexperienced — and potentially nervous — newborn reporters front and center?

“Unlike most TV news operations, Bloomberg TV over the years has never put much of an emphasis on cranking up the wattage of its top anchors and reporters. Along the way, financial graphs have often appeared to upstage the people presenting them.”

Read more here.