CSUN GRADUATE RISES AT CNBC; HERERA UPS BUSINESS-NEWS PROFILE AT NETWORK AIMING TO CATCH CNN.

Byline: Jerry Rice 

Like a high-flying Internet company, Sue Herera's stock is soaring. Of course, as a veteran market watcher for the cable business news channel CNBC, she already knows a thing or two about rising fortunes.

``Business news has grown in leaps and bounds over the last several years, says the 41-year-old California State University, Northridge, graduate. ``There are so many people now in the market, saving for retirement or whatever.''

All of those investors represent potential viewers to Herera, who co-anchors with Ron Insana CNBC's 3:30 p.m. daily news wrap, ``Business Center.'' On June 21, the network doubled the length of the nearly 2-year-old show to an hour, a move hastened by the June 8 departure of Lou Dobbs, the Walter Cronkite of business news, from CNN's ``Moneyline News Hour.''

Dobbs left to join Internet start-up Space.com, which will offer news, entertainment and educational information relating to space. ``We wanted to take advantage of what in essence was a vacuum in that particular time period,'' Herera says.

The change is already paying dividends for CNBC, which dominates the business news ratings during much of the day but finds itself the runner-up when ``Moneyline'' airs. In its first week, the expanded ``Business Center'' drew a nightly average of 238,000 households, a 14 percent increase over its second quarter numbers. ``Moneyline News Hour,'' which enjoys the advantage of being on both CNN and CNNfn, suffered a 22 percent decline to 293,000 households.

Herera got her start in business news right out of school in 1981, working with fellow Northridge grads Insana and ``Power Lunch'' anchor Bill Griffeth at the old Financial News Network. She started reporting on futures, and, by the end of the decade, all three made the jump to CNBC. For the three of them to work that long together works to their advantage, Herera says.

``I know it sounds cliched, but we are kind of like a family,'' she says. ``We know each other so well, it allows you to relax and have a good time while you're communicating information to viewers.''

One of the ways those viewers respond is by stopping Herera at the store to talk about her dogs, which she often mentions on the air and once brought to the studio for a segment on pet products.

``Because I'm on so often, you really create a special bond with viewers,'' says Herera, who also splits ``Market Wrap'' hosting duties with Griffeth from 1 to 3 p.m. ``When you do a half-hour of local news, you don't have that chance. They don't get to know you that well.''

Plus, there are those letters she receives from viewers who have put information they learned on CNBC to work and made money off it. But if you want a personal hot stock tip, don't bother asking. Herera and the network's other anchors are forbidden from discussing non-public information. And if they own stocks, it's generally through a mutual fund to avoid conflicts of interest.

Still, Herera understands she covers something near and dear to just about everybody. ``It's a very personal thing,'' she says. When you're talking about somebody's money, you're talking about their retirement, their kids' college education, their house, their ability to live the way they want. That's a very personal thing.''

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Photo: CSUN alumni Ron Insana and Sue Herera co-host CNBC's ``Business Center,'' which is positioning itself to grab viewers in the wake of Lou Dobbs' departure from CNN's ``Moneyline.''