Does Evening News Have Time For Opinion?

In today’s Inquirer, Gail Shister follows up on yesterday’s story about Bob Schieffer‘s possible commentating.

Alex Jones, director of Harvard’s Shorenstein Center on the Press, Politics and Public Policy, says it’s a superb idea. “Commentary has always been part of good journalism, as long as it’s labeled as commentary,” he says.

But NBC Nightly News EP John Reiss is not a fan. “I’m uncomfortable with airing one person’s opinion. We want to play it straight down the middle. Our time is better spent reporting. As far as I’m concerned, the broadcast should be sacrosanct,” he says…