14 LONGISLANDPRESS.COM • MARCH 2018 14 LONGISLANDPRESS.COM • SEPTEMBER 2017 14 LONGISLANDPRESS.CO M • SEPTEMBER 201-----------TUTU111
COVER STORY
Melissa Lee: A financial force in
the world of television news
By RUTH BASHINSKY
Don’t be surprised if you see CNBC
anchor Melissa Lee descending down
to the financial news network’s studios
on a parachute one of these days.
The award-winning journalist and
television host flies from one show
to another as host of Fast Money,
an hour-long show that recaps the
day on Wall Street decisions and
Options Action, a half-hour show
that explains the advantages of
option trading, both airing daily on
weekdays. She is also a cast member
of Power Lunch, a two-hour show
airing Monday through Friday that
focuses on business, breaking news,
market and stock coverage.
In between her hosting and
contributing duties, Lee travels
all over the world filming
documentaries for the network.
She’s currently abroad shooting
a CNBC documentary about the
growth of bitcoin in emerging global
markets. Some people may need to
catch their breath managing the
day-to-day, but not Lee.
Lee, who just got back to New
York from her honeymoon after
getting married in August, spoke
with the Press about growing up on
Long Island, her days at Harvard
University, her recent safari
adventure and her second love: the
stock market.
Long Island Press: Any surprises
on your honeymoon safari?
Melissa Lee: Everybody watches
National Geographic, right? Lions
eating other animals, but when you
see it in person, it is a completely
different experience. I was
completely unplugged, which was
unusual. The WiFi was so spotty,
I couldn’t even be connected if I
wanted to. Sometimes you need
a little nudge in that direction. I
am such a city person. I was really
surprised that you can see animals
living together.
LIP: Your schedule is so hectic
with all the shows you host, all the
documentaries you are filming.
How do you manage?
ML: Whether I was doing one show
at the end of the day or three shows
a day, which has been my typical
schedule of late, it is all a process
of constantly being ready. I am
constantly reading and constantly
talking to people when I have time
in close space shows. You are not
just getting ready for that day’s
news, but you have to build up that
foundation of knowledge so that
anything can happen at any time...I
may never talk about a company on
a daily basis, but in that breaking
news moment, you’ve got nothing
but yourself to rely on and that
information and knowledge.
LIP: Is there a particular show you
are partial to?
ML: I love every show that I do
and have done in the past for many
different reasons, but I think Fast
Money is the show that will always
be part of my fiber. I have been on
that show the longest. It is almost
like it has become a part of me and
I have become a part of it. And,
it is a trading show. I like talking
about movements of stocks, why
stocks trade the way they do, the
psychology of the markets. To me,
it is just a fascinating puzzle. I love
trying to figure that out because
there is not any one answer as to
why a stock moves up and down.
It is also the challenge of trying to
decipher all those given factors on
how a stock will trade the next day
on the news.
LIP: There has been so much up
and down with the market. Can
you tell us why it has been so
volatile?
ML: The markets have lacked
volatility for such a long time
that this is a bit of a shock to
investors. But, it’s normal action
and investors are working through
how rising rates will impact their
investments. We’ve lived with
low-interest rates for so long, and
Melissa Lee, who hosts multiple CNBC financial shows, is a Great Neck native. (Photo courtesy of CNBC)