7 Things CNN's New Morning Show Needs To Do ASAP

The all-important chemistry between the talent on the set of CNN's New Day seems to be there, but the show will need to do more if it wants to stand out in the crowded field of established morning talk shows.

1. Book a big star, STAT.

Despite the show's reluctance to do a celebrity interview except when it's for "the right reasons,” passing up an opportunity for a big sit-down is a huge waste for potential brand awareness on social media — like those subtitled GIF sets that get reblogged forever on Tumblr.

Also, think twice about giving the interviewing responsibilities to just one host. The inevitable cross talk during a roundtable discussion has the potential to produce sound bite nuggets you can never, ever get out of a one-on-one.

2. More Michaela Pereira, please.

New Day's news reader is a natural in the mornings and could wind up being the show's secret weapon. Every once in a while the producers should give hosts Chris Cuomo and Kate Bolduan a breather and let Pereria hold down the fort just to see what happens.

3. Nancy Grace must be used sparingly.

The temptation to bring HLN's Nancy Grace on is something New Day producers need to abstain from as much as possible. A guest spot from the hashtag master always holds promise for a big headline, but live transmission from the naturally caffeinated Grace too early in the morning could very easily turn off viewers who haven't had their first cup of coffee just yet.

4. Force Jake Tapper to get up earlier than usual.

After the universally beloved Anderson Cooper, Tapper is CNN's greatest asset, and his talents should be featured all over the network, especially in the morning. Cuomo and Bolduan are perfectly capable of basic political analysis, but nothing compares to Tapper's experience and knowledge, and using him in the way MSNBC's Morning Joe uses Chuck Todd is something that can only add to the New Day's intended newsiness.

5. Make a BFF who doesn't work for CNN.

It's always nice to see recurring characters on your favorite talk show. Fox & Friends has Donald Trump. Morning Joe has Chris Christie. New Day should make a best friend too. My vote is for Regis, but let's hope Jeff Zucker can aim a little higher than that.

6. #realtalk: Your Twitter needs some help.

We know, Twitter is hard. That said, @NewDay is going to have to do a lot better than this. Take notes from @tacobell and @wendys and allow the handle to have a personality.

7. Get Alicia Keys on to perform her theme song for the show.

vimeo.com

Um, why didn't this happen on day one? Seriously, smdh.