Worst piece I've ever seen on CNBC. 1. The title was deceiving; scope was too geographically limited. 2. They made it political vs. financial and 3. The investigative reporting was about as in depth as the ghetto local news station.
Before I bash the piece, I need to point out that I love CNBC. I watch CNBC from the minute I wake up until Jim Cramer's Mad Money. I have really valued their insight, inside information (e.g. Charlie Gasporino and David Faber) and well rounded debates. All of their specials have been done very well too (e.g. American Greed mini-series, McDonalds, China)...until now. This piece made ESPN's made for TV movies: 3, The Junction Boys and Hustle look like Academy stallwarts.
"Marijuana Inc." - that sends chills down my spine. I was expecting Marijuana Inc to, at least, cover the econonmic impact in the US. Not a portion of northern California. This would be akin to covering the porn industry and only going to Van Nuys; or covering gambling and only go to Vegas; or covering investment banking and only going to New York City. Other sources have stated that West Virgina Appalachain Mountains and foothills grow more weed than anywhere else in the US. This may or may not be true, but if that is being reported on other documentaries, shouldn't have CNBC at least mentioned it? Nope, guess not; only focusing on NorCal.
On point two, CNBC really didn't dig into $ figures. I would have expected to talk more about tax revenue from the California dispensaries, more about the income tax figures (e.g. Trish could have followed up the point about the one guy paying $500k per year in income tax to extrapolate to all of California, then to a "what-if" if they were throughout the US). I would have also liked to get more details on the exact players involved and how much they make. I would have like to have seen more dollar figures on what other agencies spend on fighting marijuana vs. other drugs. Less of the administration's policy, less of the mayor of the town, less of the family that moved, less of the guy's ring 20+ years ago. More of current, economic data. Maybe compare weed today to alcohol during prohibition.
Lastly, I love Trish Regan. Her and Erin Burnette are very easy on the eyes. However, she was so dumb. Did she ever think of doing some investigation on her own before stepping into the piece? You would never see Bob Passanie down on the floor asking the traders exactly what the screens are. Or Rick Santelli asking the traders why they where different colored coats. Know what you're reporting on Trish - instead of looking stupid, state the point, then ask for details from your guest. She also rarely followed up on any of the questions. The helicopter driver at the end - how long have you been doing this? How much money do you think your department spends on fighting marijuana? How many have you stopped (how much revenue did that equate to with a voice over). Trish, ask the guy that writes Grow how much money he makes with that magazine, how many subscribers, what other publications are there (she said simply it's the porn of the pot industry).
That was one hour of my life I will never get back. Better luck next time CNBC.