Friday, June 13, 2008

Much Too Young

I’m sure you’ve heard that NBC Meet The Press host Tim Russert died today, at age 58.

Fifty-eight is much too young for death!

This guy was absolutely my favorite TV journalist. I loved his style. I’ll never be in his league as an interviewer, but I tried to think about his amazing composure while doing my own interviews on the radio. He was prepared, confident and very authentic. If you paid a lot of attention, you might know a little about his personal politics, but he never let the personal stuff show in an interview. He asked the tough questions on all sides and was well respected for it.

A couple of things I didn’t know about him till today: he went to Woodstock; he booked some concerts while in school, including one starring a then unknown Bruce Springsteen; he was the longest-running host of Meet The Press (16 years); he was a lawyer, admitted to the bar in New York and DC; he met his wife at a the Democratic National Convention (in 1976).

He died at work, while in a studio recording voiceovers for this week’s Meet The Press.

1 comment:

Linda V. said...

Tim Russert was a journalist with integrity, a rare commodity these days. My prayers and sympathy go out to his family. He will be missed.