On election night, NewsNation will showcase a number of newer technologies and upgrades, including an Election Pulse tool to better visualize election results and a relatively new Washington studio that debuted this summer.
The Election Pulse visual tool will provide real-time updates on the projected outcome of the presidential race nationally and in key states. Throughout the night, an on-screen “probability needle” will move based on voting results, patterns, and remaining uncounted ballots, Paige Lobdell, executive producer of special projects and events at NewsNation, said in an interview.
“This is our first election as a 24/7 news organization,” Lobdell said, adding that Election Pulse is part of a wider array of new technologies and infrastructure the relatively new cable network will use in its election coverage.
As part of its coverage, NewsNation anchors will spearhead coverage from its New York studios. Throughout the night, the network will draw the newsrooms of local Nexstar Media Group stations and showcase a relatively new Washington studio that went live in the last few months.
“NewsNation will be drawing on the power of the Nexstar stations,” Lobdell said, allowing it to draw on the expertise of 110 local newsrooms at Nexstar stations across the country. “A lot of times, the national media just flies in and reports on what’s happening, but our newsrooms have people who live and work there,” she said. “They have great insights into things that are going to be very important as the night goes on.”
For Election Pulse, NewsNation partnered with Decision Desk HQ (DDHQ). On election night, NewsNation will have cameras on DDHQ staff based at Georgetown Law School throughout the evening so viewers can see exactly what’s happening.
“On TV, you’re going to get what’s the most important to the viewers at the moment, which is who has the greatest chance of winning this race at a particular time,” Lobdell said. DDHQ is providing the data and the analytics while NewsNation will rely on its internal graphics systems to visualize the information. NewsNation’s New York and Chicago newsrooms and its New York studios use Ross Video’s Xpression, Tessera and DataLinq solutions. In Washington, NewsNation augments Tessera with a homegrown video system called Optic, which is based on OBS software.
The Washington studio has windows on two sides that offer a live view of the nation’s capital as well as Union Station, Lobdell said. “One wall with windows features a track with an additional LED wall that maximizes our presentation space if we choose to not shoot against outside glass,” she said. “The other two walls are made up of LED panels. One is a large curved screen, the other is a flat wall that complements an alternative view from the main set usually focusing on scenic landmarks from Washington. The graphics for that set also come from Ross—mainly Tessera graphics.”
The JHD Group-designed set has four robotic cameras and a Steadicam, Lobdell said. Cameras are from Sony and use Ross robotics. “Our entire studio has multiple gels that allow us to electronically raise and lower them to compensate for different lighting temperatures when shooting against the windows,” she said.
“As our first big election as a 24-hour news network this is a big milestone for us,” Lobdell said. “On the tech side, I’m really excited about all the different ways we are going to be able to bring information to views through different graphics,” from the Election Pulse to the big board graphics.
On election night, Nov. 5, “NewsNation Decision Desk 2024” will be co-anchored by Chris Cuomo, Elizabeth Vargas and Leland Vittert and air from 6 p.m. to 1 a.m. ET. Host of “The Hill Sunday” and political editor Chris Stirewalt will contribute from Washington.
Throughout the evening, “NewsNation Now’s” Connell McShane will breakdown voting results and provide up-to-the-minute reporting from the big board and primetime host Dan Abrams will offer insight and analysis.
The CW will provide a simulcast of NewsNation’s election night coverage from 8 p.m. to 12 a.m. (ET). McShane and NewsNation Live’s Anna Kooiman will anchor overnight coverage from the network’s New York studio.
