As exit polls and electoral results rolled in from across the nation, Americans tuned in to find out who would be their President for the next four years, and just like the election itself, the news networks covering the election were full of winners and losers.  From needlessly exuberant anchors  to one well-known Republican analyst that challenged his network's journalistic decisions, let's take a look at who succeeded and who struggled on Election Day 2012.

Biggest Winner - Brian Williams: There was no one on the news that handled the election better than the NBC Nightly News anchor.  NBC News was first to many of the projections, including the big one that declared Obama the winner, and Williams handled each of these projections smoothly.  When the polls closed, Williams calmly listed the projections one by one, read the electoral college tally, and then sent it over to the analysts to explain what the results meant for each candidate.  If the NBC number-crunchers made a projection in a state that was too close to call earlier in the night, Williams would quickly interrupt whomever he was interview, announce the new result in ten seconds, and pick back up his interview without a hitch.

Along with this, Williams was incredibly witty and charming throughout the night.  He traded jokes with his fellow analysts and kept them loose and relaxed throughout the night.  One common joke was about the Rockefeller ice rink outside the studio, which had been transformed into an election map.  Another memorable moment was when Williams was discussing the marijuana legalization initiatives in Colorado and Washington, to which he noted, "in plain English, there's a whole lot of weed on the ballot tonight."

Williams was funny, informative, and fast, which easily makes him the top star in the media on election night.

Loser - Wolf Blitzer: The word that best describes Blitzer's coverage of election night is 'exasperating.' Every single time a new projection came in, CNN subjected its viewers to a graphic and sound effect, followed by Blitzer's breathless reporting of projections in front of a giant screen covered with all the latest results.  Instead of showing each state's result on the screen one by one like NBC did, CNN's giant screen tried to cram it all in, making all the results overwhelming.  And if a state race was tied and too close to call, then get ready to reach for that mute button. Blitzer's voice reached a fever pitch when reporting on the swing states as he stammered about how close the race was,  we all knew those states were going to be close and were going to take longer to decide a winner.

Another problem with CNN's coverage is that because they insisted on reporting the projections in bulk, they didn't provide up-to-the-minute updates like the other networks did.  CNN revealed their projections for states like Pennsylvania and Wisconsin a good 30-45 minutes after all the other networks had announced theirs.  Results were not up-to-the-minute, and constantly shown in the graphic-sound-Blitzer-going-nuts format.  On the bright side, when Obama's victory was finally revealed, viewers only got a few seconds of Blitzer's attempt to inject drama before CNN had him cut over to the sights and sounds of Obama supporters celebrating.

Winner - John King: On the other hand, the parts of CNN's coverage in between the projection announcements were top-notch, with the best part being the analysis from the master of the touch screens, John King.  King used the screen as a tool for analysis rather than a gimmick, explaining quickly how the projections and swing state updates changed the outlook of the election and charting out the ever-narrowing path that Romney needed to pull out the victory.  King's precise analysis made it pretty clear to CNN viewers who was going to win this election long before the final projection made it official, and the touch screen, once considered a flashy gimmick, became invaluable in King's hands instead of a distraction.

Winner/Loser -- Rachel Maddow: Over on MSNBC, Rachel Maddow was called upon to anchor her first presidential election, replacing Keith Olbermann from four years ago.  Thanks in part to the experience she gained from the 2010 midterm vote, Maddow did a good job and was a winner for much of the night, providing even-toned updates, solid interviews, and a good dose of charm.  For a while, she looked like the cable version of Brian Williams…until the winner was announced.

Once Obama's victory was in hand, all the even tone at MSNBC flew out the window, and instead letting the celebration do the talking like CNN did, Maddow and her compatriots began editorializing en masse.  All of the talk about how "historic" and "important" this election was just felt like a victory parade for the left-leaning network, especially when Maddow commented with a degree of relief that had Obama lost, his policies and legacy would have been "clawed back."  There's a time for editorializing and a time for reporting.  CNN did reporting after the outcome was clear.  MSNBC did not do the same and their coverage took a hit because of it, and Maddow was one of the people that indulged the most in the liberal triumph.

Winner - Megyn Kelly / Biggest Loser -- Karl Rove: Finally, we come to the biggest media coverage moment of Election 2012, and of course it comes from Fox News.  Karl Rove, one of the most controversial analysts out there, had spent the entire night spinning the situation in Romney's favor, assuring viewers that swing states were going to go the Republican candidate's way.  It got so ridiculous that eventually anchor Megyn Kelly had to ask Rove point blank, "Are you just saying this to make yourself feel better?"

But it got much, much worse once Fox News declared Obama the winner of Ohio and the winner of the election.  Once the announcement was made, Rove immediately protested Fox News' decision and demanded that they rescind it, leaving the other analysts and anchors shocked that Rove was challenging their journalistic decisions and unsure how to respond.  Taking matters into her own hands, Kelly took a camera crew with her out of the studio and down the hall to a conference room where the network's number-crunchers were located.  She asked one of the analysts in the room to explain their reasoning behind giving Ohio to Obama, and they said they were confident in the decision they had made.

For making the best out of a very bizarre and uncomfortable situation and for calling out Rove on his antics, Kelly gets a nod as one of the top stars of the election coverage.  Rove, on the other hand, should have been nowhere near the studio on election night, especially considering that he's the co-founder of a Super PAC, American Crossroads, that has spent tens of millions on Obama attack ads.  His outburst put Fox News in a tough spot and made him look like a sore loser, and for that he gets the biggest thumbs down of all the people that covered this very divided election.

Reach Staff Reporter Jeremy Fuster here. Follow him on Twitter here.