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USA Edition | Today Is Thursday, March 11, 2010 |
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USA Edition | Today Is Thursday, March 11, 2010 |
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Was Tim Russert NBC's Last Legitimate Journalist?
When it came to politics, Tim Russert seldom asked a question for which he did not already know the answer.
Robert Butche, Publisher Newsroom Magazine
Washington — It’s been six months since the untimely passing of Tim Russert, NBC News’ Washington Bureau Chief and arguably the most credible and beloved journalist in America. Russert earned credibility and acclaim by way of hard work, focus and scholarly due-diligence. The beat he worked was the most difficult of them all — covering Washington politics.
The politicians, bureaucrats, journalists, authors, historians and ordinary Americans who accepted invitations to appear on Meet The Press understood that the friendly man from Buffalo would challenge everything they said — or had ever said. Anyone having a paper trail understood that Russert would have examined essentially all of it. When needed, the most salient evidence — news clippings, news interviews, congressional speeches, books, and other documents, could be instantly available. According to some who underwent Tim’s intensive questioning style, Russert was always tough, always prepared and always fair.
What separated Tim Russert from everyone else in television news were his contacts, private and public, his preparation and fairness befitting his Catholic faith and education. Russert’s approach to interviewing was relevatory in the sense that his subjects knew they had to be prepared to own up to who they were, what they said, what they did and what they stood for. Those who mattered in Washington largely believed that surviving baptism by Russert was essential to having a successful career in national politics.
Executive Produce Betsy Fischer and Tim Russert Preparing For MTP Broadcast
Tim Russert, his former colleague and friend Tom Brokaw reminded Meet The Press viewers, was preparing to cover the 2008 Democrat and Republican conventions. Those who knew him best understood that he and NBC News Washington were an essential part of American politics. We can only imagine how he might have relished being part of election night history.
What Tom Brokaw has not said, but likely believes, is that had he lived, Tim Russert would have impacted the post-nomination election process. How we will never know, but among broadcast journalists, no one understood the world of politics as well, as passionately, or as deeply as Tim Russert.
Tim Russert was a newsman — an equal opportunity inquisitor who used the most powerful tool in a journalist arsenal, research, to cut through spin and obfuscation. Imagine, for a moment Sarah Palin, or Joe Biden on Russert’s Meet The Press. For many, the word skewered may come to mind.
Or an hour-long exchange with John McCain after suspending his campaign to oversee the Wall Street bail-out package. Or a similar conversation with Barack Obama when he reversed his stand on public financing. We are all poorer as a nation for none of these conversations having taken place.
Among those who labor in a profession held in low esteem by the vast majority of Americans, Tim Russert was an enigma — a tough and competent reporter who took his job and his profession seriously. Unlike many who work in television news, Tim Russert made of himself a role model by way of being responsible and accountable before being prepared and inquisitive. Being responsible demands critical thinking and independence — qualities Russert had in abundance but which are not rewarded in broadcasting the same ways as star power and showmanship. Being accountable is practically unheard of in television news today — even at the network level where it was long ago driven out by cost cutting and pandering to viewer preferences.
Tim Russert Discussing Politics With NBC Colleagues
If Tim Russert was the most respected television newsman in America, as was made evident by the praise and attention he garnered for weeks after his death, is it unreasonable to ask what those who so praised him have done to elevate their own work? And what, if anything, have the nation’s faltering network news operations done to project Tim Russert’s standards throughout their news gathering and reporting activities? The answers to such questions are not at all reassuring, for while so many respected Tim Russert, honored his values, his character, his skill and his credibility, broadcast news six months after his passing remains unchanged. In the end, Tim Russert’s values and standards were simply not entertaining enough, or profitable enough to warrant emulation.
There is a lesson here, for all who live and work in The House Of The Fourth Estate. A lesson we best not forget.
Words are cheap — actions are the only thing that matters.
And what were his actions? His values? His legacy? Being the very best at what he did. Standing up for his profession. Honoring his nation. Respecting the honesty and integrity of those who earned his confidence. And treating his viewers as responsible adults.
Tim Russert lived a purposeful life, worked hard to achieve excellence, and stood for ideas and ideals bigger then himself.
Not bad for a kid from Buffalo who loved his family and respected his dad.
Among Those Who Knew Him Best: James Carville, Mary Matlin, Mike Barnicle, Tom Brokaw, Betsy Fischer, Doris Kearns Goodwin, Gwen Ifill
