“I believe having all the information that’s now available to us is a good thing,” Walter Cronkite said in 2007, reflecting on the state of round-the-clock news. On the emergence of opinionated program hosts, he added, “And I believe there is a place for most of those opinion and shout shows.”
Cronkite shared these thoughts for a TVNewser profile of him, one of a number of stories over the past couple of years in which we were honored to hear directly from the legendary broadcaster.
Here’s a look back at more from Walter Cronkite:
• His favorite memory of growing up in Texas (December, 2007): “When I was ten years old, we had just moved to Houston from Kansas City. My father defied and walked out on the well-established dentist with whom he was to go into practice when he unveiled to my father his deep-rooted racism. It was the first time I realized how much I admired my dad for having the courage of his principles and for standing up to those Texans who challenged his beliefs in equality.”
• Why he felt the Big 3 nightly news programs are here to stay (September, 2008): “I don’t think cable news will ever replace the networks’ evening newscasts…far from becoming outdated, I believe the evening news broadcasts are and will remain vital for a healthy democracy.”
• His thoughts on Edward R. Murrow, who recruited Cronkite to CBS News in 1950 (April, 2008): “A friend whom I greatly admired…[he] became the gold standard of journalism.”
• For his 92nd birthday last November 4 — Election Day 2008 — Cronkite’s chief of staff, Marlene Adler, told TVNewser that Cronkite would begin his day “with a trip to the voting booth” and that “given his long political news career…it seems quite fitting that for his birthday this year he will be getting a new president!”