As TVNewser first heard back in April, CNBC has named Kelly Evans as a new co-anchor on “Squawk on the Street,” the business channel’s 9 AM-12 PM program. Evans will effectively be replacing Melissa Lee, who cut back her hours on the morning program last month. She will be joining the current “Squawk” team, which includes Carl Quintanilla, Jim Cramer, David Faber and Simon Hobbs.

Evans is moving to CNBC’s headquarters in New Jersey from London, where she has been the co-host of ‘Worldwide Exchange,” which airs from 4-6 AM on the east coast. She joined CNBC in February, 2012 from the Wall Street Journal, adding co-anchor duties to “Worldwide Exchange” in May of that year.

CNBC senior VP Nik Deogun made the Evans announcement in a note to staff this morning. Read it below.
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• “Nightly Business Report,” now owned and produced by CNBC, has its first sponsor: The Street Inc., which was co-founded by CNBC host Jim Cramer, gets two 30-second credits at the beginning and end of NBR.

• Vice President Joe Biden will be a guest as part of a gun control roundtable on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.” The segment will air on Thursday’s show.

• CBS’s Bob Schieffer is part of the opening session at the annual NAB show happening right now. But the big story in Las Vegas is, it’s raining.

• “Sea Rescue,” a weekly syndicated show hosted by “Good Morning America’s” Sam Champion, has won a Parents Choice “Recommended” award for its “dramatic stories, educational content, and happy endings.”

• CNBC’s Jim Cramer is hitting the road again taking his “Mad Money Back to School Tour” in front of a live studio audience at Villanova University, Thursday, April 25 at 6pm & 11pmET .

• “Today’s” Natalie Morales is the cover girl of April’s Siempre Mujer. On her career path, Morales says, “I remember the day I fell in love with my profession. I didn’t even know what journalism was, but I knew I wanted to be like those reporters.”

First on TVNewser: Melissa Lee (left) is cutting back her anchoring duties at CNBC. Lee is moving off the 9amET show “Squawk on the Street” which he has co-anchored since Erin Burnett‘s departure almost two years ago.

“Melissa is an integral part of the network and wanted to focus on ‘Fast Money’ the 5PM show she has hosted since 2009 as well as work on other projects including her upcoming documentary on the industrial Internet,” a CNBC spokesperson tells TVNewser.

TVNewser hears Kelly Evans who joined CNBC from the Wall Street Journal last year and who currently anchors “Worldwide Exchange” from London, will be returning to CNBC HQ in the coming weeks and could land at “Squawk” alongside Carl Quintanilla, David Faber, Simon Hobbs and Jim Cramer. But no definitive plans are in place, insiders say.

• CNBC has released a new app for Apple and Android devices. The app, the CNBC Alarm Clock, lets users wake up to the voice of CNBC anchors or hosts (like the soothing Jim Cramer), and immediately get the latest financial information. More info on the app after the jump.

• On Sunday evening, CNN will air a special edition of “Fareed Zakaria GPS” dubbed “Memo to the President.” The special will feature a number of prominent officials, like Mayor Michael Bloomberg, James Baker and Kay Bailey Huthinson offering advice and guidance to the President in advance of his second term.

• Bob Costas is getting a new show, “Costas at the Movies,” on MLB Network. The series will feature Costas hosting in-depth interviews with actors and directors about baseball in film. After each episode, MLB network will air the film discussed. Tommy Lee Jones and Penny Marshall are among those appearing.

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Once again the Fox News and Fox Business media relations folks have served up some holiday cheer but taking jabs at their competitors in holiday cards. Yes, the war on Christmas the competition is alive and well at Fox. In the Fox Biz card, below, FBN anchors make the nice list, while a few CNBC anchors make the “naughty” list

Meanwhile, Fox News conjures up an image of the network ratings horse race in their card, showing Fox News ahead of the broadcast competition, while one network stumbles and two others remain in the “Grooming Center.” See it after the jump.

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• CNBC is dedicating its programming today to coverage of the fiscal cliff from Washington, D.C. as part of its “Rise Above” campaign. Just about every program will originate from DC. Jim Cramer and Becky Quick will report from Congress, while Maria Bartiromo will anchor from the White House.

• NBC Publishing is releasing an “enhanced e-book” that looks at 65 years of “Meet the Press.” Author Terry Golway looks at the history of the program, as well as its hosts and notable guests. The e-book also includes a substantial amount of video and audio content from throughout the program’s run.

• NBCUniversal parent company Comcast is getting a new logo, and it features the very-familiar NBC peacock. Take a look after the jump.

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The big business news today is the departure of Citigroup CEO Vikram Pandit. CNBC went into high gear when the news came via a press release just after 8am.

Jim Cramer, in the 10am hour of “Squawk on the Street” reported what sources told him: “From a very high level source, he was forced out last night. Board didn’t want him anymore. Board felt that he had done everything that they’d wanted him to do. He was forced out, is my understanding.”

But two hours later, Maria Bartiromo called in to “Power Lunch” to report on a conversation she’d just had with Pandit. And, naturally, his reasoning is different:

“First of all, he’s saying this was his decision,” Bartiromo said. “He said it was time after five years of accomplishing what he set out to do. He said he’s been thinking about this for some time and the board was always ready for this eventuality.”

Two of CNBC’s biggest personalities, reporting two very different versions of the same story.

NBC News and CNBC will present special programming on the quest for energy independence on October 18. The “Invest in America” reports will air across all of NBC’s platforms Thursday.

CNBC’s Jim Cramer and Phil LeBeau will travel to the Utica Shale region in Ohio. Cramer will broadcast “Mad Money” from a steel plant in Canton and LeBeau will report from Youngstown. LeBeau will appear on “Nightly News” and on MSNBC’s daytime programming, while Cramer will appear on “Today.”

More information in the press release after the jump. Read more

CNBC’s Vice Presidential debate coverage kicks off tonight at 7pmET with Larry Kudlow‘s “The Kudlow Report.” Becky Quick and Carl Quintanilla take over from 8pm to 11pmET with live pre- and post-debate analysis.

Quick and Quintanilla will anchor will be joined by Jim Cramer in the studio and CNBC Washington correspondent John Harwood, who will be live from the debate site in Kentucky.