Howard David Fineman is an American journalist and television commentator. In a career that spanned nearly five decades, Fineman has covered nine presidential campaigns as a reporter, writer, and analyst. For 30 years, he drove Newsweek magazine's political coverage. At the height of the publication's influence, Fineman was its chief political correspondent, senior editor and deputy Washington bureau chief. His "Living Politics" column was posted weekly on Newsweek.com. Following Newsweek,he was named global editorial director of the AOL Huffington Post Media Group.

Hardball with Chris Matthews is an American television talk show that was hosted by Chris Matthews. The program premiered on the now-defunct America's Talking network in 1994 before moving on CNBC, and then to MSNBC, where it remained until its end in 2020. The show took its name from Matthews' 1988 book: Hardball: How Politics Is Played Told by One Who Knows the Game. The program primarily featured coverage of political issues and headlines, along with discussion from a panel of analysts and political figures.