Lindsay Campbell: The Maria Bartiromo of Web 2.0

Last week, enthralled by the short squeeze on Jones Soda (Nasdaq: JSDA), I came across a clip on Wallstrip where its host, Lindsay Campbell, conducted a taste test of the company's carbonated beverages on the streets of New York.

Lindsay looked exquisite and her dalliance enhanced a poignant piece. It seems the producers of Wallstrip took a page from CNBC by casting an alluring brunette to sex up content which can often be convoluted and boring much the way Maria Bartiromo has done throughout her career. Bartiromo's stardom has CNBC committed to replicating her success with the likes of Erin Burnett and Rebecca Jarvis, while other innovators eagerly seek to do the same.

Makes sense. Casting attractive women to relay business news plays to the primal lust associated with Gordon Gekko's idea of greed being good. And what better way to placate the ego of the rich and powerful and often hideously unattractive financiers, who dance among these beauties like marionettes with their emotions in check, which may be why the Naked News format hasn't taken over, yet.

Maria Bartiromo is in a class by herself with an impressive background in business and financial journalism. In fact, New York Magazine once described her as the doyenne of the New York Stock Exchange. Haughty praise, but well earned and validated by her continued eloquence.

Enter Lindsay Campbell, an accomplished actress and dancer with no financial background, who brings a theatrical quality to Wallstrip that is sorely missing from CNBC, FOX and Bloomberg. Her platform, a three minute video often shot in front of a green screen, allows for more creativity, is cheaper to produce, and has a greater shelf life.

As news seekers jump the pond of traditional print and broadcast media to the Googlicious ocean of the InterWeb, they are less inclined to come back. And why should they? They get what they want, when they want it and the content magnates can monetize it a click at a time. In this period of expansion, new media personalities such as Lindsay will continue to emerge, but there will be plenty of room for our old favorites, too.