Bloomberg TV’s Trish Regan  and Adam Johnson are anchoring “Street Smart” from Ohio today as the Presidential candidates enter their final weekend campaigning.  The show originates from the American Sign Museum in Cincinnati and will focus on taking the pulse of the local economy in the battleground state.

Regan was interviewed by the Cincinnati Business Courier:

I really think it’s the epicenter of this election because Ohio is so important and because jobs matter so much in this economy. It’s also neck and neck right now, which makes it an interesting place to be as a journalist…

We wanted to be on the front lines of this election, and this is really where it’s at. Ohio is it.

The three business networks have turned their focus to severe weather coverage today as Hurricane Sandy forced the close of the stock markets. Bloomberg TV, Fox Business and CNBC have all set special coverage plans for today that focus on the economic impact of the storm, expected to make landfall later today.

Bloomberg TV will shift into special Hurricane Sandy coverage at 1pmET, which is when the storm’s intensity is supposed to increase on the East Coast. Stephanie Ruhle and Erik Schatzker anchor the 1pmET hour, Betty Liu anchors the 2pmET hour and Trish Regan and Adam Johnson anchor from 3-6pmET. Meteorologist Bonnie Schneider is handling weather forecasts.

Fox Business broadcast a special report in place of “Imus in the Morning” this morning, anchored by Dagen McDowell and Connell McShane. FBN’s Robert Gray is in Battery Park and Sandra Smith is at the CME throughout the day. Neil Cavuto will host primetime coverage of the storm tonight beginning at 7pmET.

CNBC will have regular programming until 7pmET. The network is replacing “The Kudlow Report” with a live two-hour special report anchored by Bill Griffeth and Michelle Caruso-Cabrera.

• Former House Speaker Dennis Hastert and former House Democratic leader Dick Gephardt are co-hosting Bloomberg TV’s “Street Smart” today. The two politicians will join Trish Regan and Adam Johnson from 4-5pmET as part of the network’s “Economy Election” coverage.

• Univision has set the dates for its Presidential election forums, which will be moderated by Jorge Ramos and Maria Elena Salinas. Mitt Romney‘s one-on-one is on September 19; President Barack Obama‘s is on September 20. Both events will take place at 10pmET on Univision and will be streamed online in English.

• As if Anderson Cooper didn’t have quite enough on his plate, the CNN anchor and syndicated talk show host has launched a daily Spreecast that will take place on weekday mornings. Cooper will discuss the day’s top headlines and take viewer questions.

• Ever wonder how Bloomberg TV’s Adam Johnson got his start in the business? By approaching Dylan Ratigan, who was an anchor on CNBC at the time, while he was jogging in Central Park. “I said, ‘You should have me on your show.’ I told him, ‘I’ll make you look good and make your viewers money,’” Johnson told WAG Magazine.

• Anthony Bourdain talks to AdWeek about his move to CNN, where he will host a weekend show. “There are a lot of places where me and my team have been wanting to make television for a long time and haven’t been able to,” he said. “And CNN has the infrastructure and inclination to make those places doable.”

• CNN is publishing a five-part series on virtual gaming’s impact on society this week. “Gaming Reality” will be featured on Brooke Baldwin‘s 2pmET show on CNN, as well as on CNN International.

Bloomberg TV and “Street Smart” anchor Lisa Murphy parted ways last week, TVNewser has learned.

“Given some of the recent changes in Lisa’s personal life and the recent changes here at Bloomberg, we mutually decided this would be an appropriate time to part ways,” a Bloomberg spokesperson said. “We wish Lisa all the best.”

Bloomberg TV cut 30 staffers last month in preparation for the network’s shift to a digital newsroom, although the spokesperson said Murphy’s departure was unrelated to those layoffs.

There is no word on future plans for Murphy, who joined Bloomberg in October 2010 from the Fox-owned local station in New York. Going forward, a rotation of Bloomberg anchors will join Trish Regan and Adam Johnson on “Street Smart,” which airs daily from 3-5pmET.

In the wake of a 391-point market slide today, all three business networks are planning live primetime coverage tonight.

CNBC will be live from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. with a special report, “Markets in Turmoil,” anchored by Brian Sullivan and Amanda Drury.

Fox Business Network is live until 10 p.m. tonight. The network will air a special two-hour edition of “Lou Dobbs Tonight” from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.; that program will be bookended by “Cavuto” (anchored tonight by Charles Payne) at 6 p.m. and “America’s Nightly Scoreboard” with David Asman at 9 p.m. FBN will also be live at 5 a.m. tomorrow morning for an hour-long market special anchored by Ashley Webster and simulcast on Fox News Channel.

Bloomberg TV’s Adam Johnson and Lisa Murphy will co-host a special report at 8 p.m. called “Crisis of Confidence,” which will focus on the Fed’s actions this week and their impact on the global markets.

The Dow tumbled 419 points today, and that means the business networks are back at it tonight and into the morning with special coverage.

CNBC will have two hours of live coverage from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. anchored by Amanda Drury and Brian Sullivan. Suze Orman will contribute to the “Special Report: Markets in Turmoil” broadcast.

Bloomberg TV will also be live at 8 p.m. with “Markets on the Brink,” anchored by Adam Johnson and Lisa Murphy. The network will follow the special report with live coverage of the Asian markets opening from Bloomberg TV’s Hong Kong studios.

Fox Business Network will be live until 11 p.m. tonight, and back on the air at 5 a.m. tomorrow morning. Fox News Channel will simulcast the FBN programming from 5 a.m. – 6 a.m.

After a day of Saturday specials on the cablers, the networks are gearing up for the Asian markets opening later today and the opening of Wall Street tomorrow following Friday’s S&P downgrade of the U.S. CNN’s special coverage continues tonight with a 9pmET special hosted by Christine Romans. Fox Business will produce a 2-hour special tonight at 9pmET hosted by Gerri Willis. Also, at 8pmET Bloomberg Television presents a two-hour live report anchored by Tom Keene and Adam Johnson.

CNBC’s also got a special on at 8pmET called “Markets in Turmoil.” As part of it, CNBC’s Chief Washington Correspondent John Harwood will speak with Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner who announced today he’s staying with the Obama Administration through the election.

This morning on “Meet the Press” former Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan said, “What I think the S&P thing did was to hit a nerve that there’s something basically bad going on and it’s hit the self esteem of the United States. The psyche. And it’s having a much profounder effect than I conceived could happen, because the economics of what they’re talking about is very clear.”