GoKawiilDeveloper details building NBC's touchscreen election night 'Big Board' tool
A developer recounts building the interactive county-level election results tool used by Steve Kornacki on NBC and MSNBC, starting as a January prototype that grew into a live broadcast system after approval from network executives. He and colleague Michael Small built it with NBC News Digital's product and tech teams, and described managing real-time code updates and server deployments during live election night broadcasts watched by roughly 10 million viewers.
GoKawiil's interpretation of the reporting above, not reported fact.
The account offers a rare behind-the-scenes look at how data visualization tools are engineered and maintained under live broadcast pressure, where coding errors could be seen instantly on national television. It suggests that small internal engineering teams, rather than large vendors, can directly shape how major news events are visually presented to millions of viewers in real time.
- The 'Big Board' began as a January prototype before becoming a full NBC/MSNBC broadcast tool.
- Developers made live code changes during election night, pushed directly to the on-air system.
- The tool reportedly improved the on-air experience for anchors like Steve Kornacki and producers like Chuck Todd's team.
Source: ejfox.com — Ej Fox, 2026-11-04
Published there as: “Building the NBC News Big Board”
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