Wednesday, February 28, 2007

Anderson Cooper & Walter Cronkite
Old Fashion Journalists

The best interviews—like the best biographies—should sing the strangeness and variety of the human race.
Lynn Barber. British journalist

I suppose it’s another sign of aging when I enjoy a public lecture series as much as any concert. The other night On The Mark and I went to see Anderson Cooper interview Walter Cronkite.


Despite Cronkite’s difficulty hearing (he is 90 years old after all), the show was very interesting. I have even higher regard for Cooper’s journalistic skills and integrity than I did prior to the interview. Until Cooper came out and provided a brief introduction to the evening and about himself and Cronkite, I wasn’t aware of Cooper’s depth. He is among the first television reporters to a major battle or catastrophe, he doesn’t have to go, he can send other reporters and question them about what is going, but he goes himself. He has seen the dark choler and rancor of human behavior as well as its caring and consider side. He expects more from politicians than just canned answers. He says that no one has truly accepted the blame for inactivity in New Orleans.

Here are a few of Cronkite’s observations:

  • Anna Nicole Smith? (I don’t believe for one second he wasn’t aware of who she was)

  • Anderson Cooper is the best newsman/anchor out there, because he is not afraid to go where the action is and report what is really happening.

  • People don’t realize how dangerous the situation is in the Middle East. Anyone can be killed at anytime, anywhere. During WWII there was a clear enemy and a frontline for battles.

  • We never should have been in Iraq. We should not be there now.

  • He does not watch Fox News since it is a biased organization, beginning with the ownership.

  • Bobby Kennedy asked Cronkite to run for Senate, but Cronkite did take him seriously, since Kennedy didn’t even know what state he lived in.

  • The one person he would have loved to interview was Hitler.

  • The most significant event of the 20th Century was an American walking on the moon.

  • Cooper asked Cronkite if was ever left speechless, “Often, I would momentarily forgot the date as I was signing off on some nights."
Cronkite and Cooper made for a nice evening and one that made people long for a day when news was more than just ratings and salacious headlines.

5 comments:

B2 said...

I was privileged to hear Cronkite speak at a small local venue a few years back and was impressed that his increasing years had not dulled his sense of right and wrong which, though absent from broadcasts, has [apparently] guided him through life. He was older but not old, and willing to speak up and against the tide as necessary.

Pirate said...

Hey, it's nice to be back at your site again. Misanthrope, I noticed you popped by today. I missed you guys. I'll try to stop in regularly.

alice, uptown said...

I always felt there was something right with the world when Walter gave his send-off, despite the news he was reporting.

And I remember how choked up he got when the astronauts landed on the moon. But I don't think there is a Cronkite, alas, for our century.

The Misanthrope said...

B2, you nailed exactly what Cronkite is still like, but he is showing some signs of aging, naturally.

Pirate, It's nice to see again (so to speak), it's been a while.

Alice, true, I think there are good TV journalists (granted rare), but someone like Cronkite will not return.

Anonymous said...

Walter Cronkite was the voice of my youth. I remember the day Kennedy was assasinated, and for the next four days Cronkite was a fixture in my family's liviing room. I'm looking forward to the tribute tonight. I still miss his newscasts. Nobody has matched his presence. Here's a really nice piece that aired earlier, http://www.thenewsroom.com/details/315759/Entertainment?c=20191