President Barack Obama has chosen NBC News special correspondent and former “Nightly News” anchor Tom Brokaw to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom. The medal is the nation’s highest civilian honor, presented to individuals “who have made especially meritorious contributions to the security or national interests of the United States, to world peace, or to cultural or other significant public or private endeavors.”
Brokaw, along with eighteen other honorees, will receive the award in a ceremony at the White House on November 24:
Tom Brokaw
Tom Brokaw is one of America’s most trusted and respected journalists. Mr. Brokaw served as anchor of NBC Nightly News from 1982 to 2004, and is currently a Special Correspondent for NBC News. For decades, Mr. Brokaw has reached millions of Americans in living rooms across the country to provide depth and analysis to historic moments as they unfold, from the fall of the Berlin Wall to the terrorist attacks of 9-11. His reporting has been recognized by the Edward R. Murrow Lifetime Achievement Award, two Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Awards, eleven Emmys, and two Peabody awards. Mr. Brokaw previously served as anchor of NBC’s Today, and following the death of his close friend Tim Russert, Mr. Brokaw took over Meet the Press during the 2008 campaign season. He has written five books including The Greatest Generation, a title that gave name to those who served in World War II at home and abroad.