CNBC scored a big get today with an interview of former NYSE Chairman Dick Grasso on camera with CNBC’s Scott Cohn that was aired on Squawk Box and Morning Call. The subject of the interview was Grasso’s legal issues involving both New York Attorney General Elliot Spitzer and the NYSE itself. A transcript of the interview has been released….

CJR Online’s Liz Cox Barrett and Samantha Henig take a look at yesterday’s cable coverage in the hours preceding last night’s announcement….

Step 1: Blame someone else for all the Clement chatter. In this case, it was clearly the fault of that villain, “Speculation.”

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Step 2: While continuing to anthropomorphize “Speculation,” slowly back away from earlier assertions that Clement will be the nominee.

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Step 3: Once the nominee is officially announced, feign surprise — even though the nominee was on many media “shortlists” prior to the misbegotten mob rush to Clement.

TVNewser blogged about it this morning. Now WHAC has screen grabs and the transcript of the incident…

Here are some year to year numbers contrasting last night’s audience with the audience of a year ago…
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Tuesday’s numbers are out. The Presidential Address about Supreme Court Nominee Judge John Roberts caused a huge uptick in the ratings for all three networks.
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Howard Kurtz in the Washington Post breaks some fresh ground on Bill Hemmer’s signing with FOX News…

Hemmer is the biggest name to jump from the Time Warner network to Rupert Murdoch’s operation since Greta Van Susteren did so in 2002. The three-year deal is said to be worth more than $1 million a year at the outset.

There were some rumblings at Fox about signing an ex-CNN staffer, but Fox News Chairman Roger Ailes praised Hemmer’s “strong reporting and anchoring skills.” Hemmer, who was courted by several networks, said Ailes was a “significant part” of his decision because “he has a proven track record of winning and has a vision.”

The New York Daily News’ Richard Huff has another take… (via Romenesko)

“I’ve watched the success of Fox News for the past nine years,” he said. “Cable news is vibrant and ever-changing. I’ve always been under the impression that you better keep the viewers engaged, or they’ll vote with their remotes.”

As for the constant, and difficult-to-prove, criticisms that FNC has a conservative bent, Hemmer said to look at his past.

“I think my track record at CNN helps answer that question,” he said. “Based on my own history, my own record, I’m comfortable with what they do. I clearly have watched the product.”

Matea Gold of the LA Times has a profile of On The Record’s Greta Van Susteren…

At a time when the television news networks are cautiously experimenting with ways to pull back the curtain on the news-making process, the former criminal defense attorney has embraced a warts-and-all transparency as a hallmark of her 3-year-old Fox show, “On the Record w/ Greta Van Susteren.”

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Van Susteren’s online postings are remarkably forthcoming about the inner workings of a channel known for zealously guarding its image. On Monday, she wrote in detail about the scramble that ensued Friday when a power outage at her Aruban hotel cut off communication with the New York studio a minute before airtime, forcing another anchor to open the show. On Tuesday, she included a slew of e-mails from viewers critical of her Holloway coverage, including one who wrote: “You, your tabloid tactics and your staff are nothing but a joke!”