The 60-second interview: ‘Outnumbered’ co-host and Fox Business Correspondent Sandra Smith

Sandra Smith. | Twitter

The 60-second interview: ‘Outnumbered’ co-host and Fox Business Correspondent Sandra Smith

CAPITAL: “Outnumbered” is turning one. When you first heard the concept for the show, what did you think?

SMITH: When I first heard the concept I thought it was genius. Roger Ailes is a genius, he came up with the concept. Listen, he took an hour in the middle of the news day, where people had been reading the news all day, taking it in on television and all sorts of mediums, and all of a sudden at noon eastern time, you have an hour, a conversation that helps viewers digest the news. The whole concept has proven to be the right thing to do at noon eastern.

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CAPITAL: The panel is interesting in that it is not just a group of women and “One Lucky Guy,” it is a mix of journalists and commentators.

SMITH: I couldn’t have said it better, though of course I’ve got my news background. There is money behind every story, so I always try to bring the money into the conversation. Andrea [Tantaros] has such a hard-hitting political background, Harris [Faulkner] and her breaking news background. I think that collection of reporters and correspondents that we have on the rotating end of the couch, and the one lucky guy, it just brings so much perspective to the conversation.

CAPITAL: You say want to bring financial perspective to these stories, what do you do to try and do that? If there is a story like ISIS, or the earthquake in Nepal…

SMITH: You bring up ISIS, that is a great example. ISIS isn’t getting around and gaining strength without money. What was the money angle behind ISIS? Selling oil on the black market. Who is buying that oil?

CAPITAL: Correct me if I’m wrong here, but you were a trader before you went into the media business, is that right?

SMITH: That is right, I grew up in a financial-driven family, a family of traders. My dad brought me down to the trading floor as a little kid. I always took to finance, I always took to money, I always took to business. I studied it in college. It wasn’t always my intention to be on television, but it sort of happened that way. I started trading, started going on television, and it was just a natural progression into what I am doing now. I still report for Fox Business Network, so I am still up on the business stories that break that morning.

CAPITAL: Do you or the other panelists talk to the guy that will be on the panel that day? Or do you want to leave it for when they are actually on the couch and see what happens on-air?

SMITH: I definitely decide that based on who the guy is. Sometimes we will have a few minutes to chat in the green room beforehand, and I might not know him very well or his background very well. Those things can help with various conversations. And some guys, we know exactly who they are, so we wait until we are in the moment on television, and react live.