John King was phoning from Maine, but his most important calls won’t take place until Tuesday night.When King takes up his regular position at CNN’s “Magic Wall” during Election Night coverage, he will do so with a new layer of digital bell s and whistles at his command. He has a floating “Key Race Leaderboard” that shows how the closest races are tracking in real time. And he will be able to show viewers whether costs of gas, rent and groceries have gone up or down in every county and precinct, so viewers can see whether rising costs appear to play a role in how voters from each party cast ballots.
\n\n“It’s a powerful visual,” says King, who has manned CNN’s signature voting-data board since 2008, when a former CNN Washingotn bureau chief, David Bohrman,discovered the technology on display at a military-intelligence trade show. The system was originally designed to help Pentagon analysts utilize a touch-sensitive screen to map out their work in real time.
\n\nSuch technology isn’t just there to dazzle the eye. For the nation’s big TV-news networks, the feature has become increasingly critical to business as well.
\n\nViewers have long been accustomed to seeing King and others…
Original source: https://variety.com/v/tv/