Balancing Time and Politeness on Live TV

One of the more notable interviews this week was between our own Brian Sullivan and Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass.

As many folks know Frank is one of the architects of a major set of banking regulations following the financial crisis of 2008, the so-called Dodd-Frank Act. Those new rules are currently under fire in Congress and moves are underway to roll back some of them. Naturally he is a vocal defender. And his arguments and reasoning can be quite captivating and impassioned.

And sometimes he can go on a little long in his defense. That can be an issue for a live news channel trying to juggle a schedule. It makes for interesting exchanges in an interview. Despite some awkward moments, Rep. Frank gets his points in.

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Allen Wastler is managing editor of CNBC.com. Follow him on Twitter @AWastler. You can catch his commentary on CNBC Radio. And check out his fiction.