Roger Mudd, one of the last of the "old school" TV newsmen, died yesterday (Tuesday March 9th). Mudd was a longtime reporter and substitute anchor on CBS. He would eventually anchor the Saturday news report. He was often considered the heir to the legendary anchor Walter Cronkite. The job instead went to Dan Rather.
Mudd was famous for his interview in 1980 with Senator Ted Kennedy, who at the time was challenging a sitting president, Jimmy Carter for the Democratic nomination. Mudd asked Kennedy directly why he wanted to be president, the senator, known for his eloquence, gave an awkward rambling answer. It stopped the senator's momentum and pretty much halted his campaign. He would go on to lose to Carter, who would lose to Ronald Reagan in a landslide.
Mudd joined CBS in 1961 as a congressional correspondent. After losing the spot to anchor the CBS Evening News, Mudd would to NBC where he would co-anchor the NBC Nightly News with Tom Brokaw.
Roger Mudd was 93.
1 comment:
Good post Mike. Mudd was a real journalist and not the kind with bought opinions like we have these days.
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