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How TV works

I am occasionally asked to comment for Business TV channels on aspects of my work in emerging markets. Today, as I walked to get my lunch, I saw a TV crew- as you often do around the streets of London. The only difference was that I know the journalist and stopped to say hello.

As you do with journalists, we had a chat and arranged a drink. Five minutes later he called me.

The US Fed had just made an emergency rate cut and all the stuff he had been doing was now out of date.

Could I help?

Well, my specialism is quite specifically emerging markets, but for such a big story it was not hard to come up with the three lines that the news story called for. So I gave my views to camera on the street outside my office. When it was over I asked my friend which obscure business channel we were on.

BBC News at 10, apparently- so "Hello Mum!"

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