Tim Russert died today

[iNow]

I have watched Meet the Press every Sunday for a few years now, and Tim Russert was an amazing man who quickly earned my respect. He will be missed.

 

 

 

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25145431/

Tim Russert, NBC News’ Washington bureau chief and the moderator of “Meet the Press,” died Friday after being stricken at the bureau, NBC News said Friday. He was 58.

 

Russert was recording voiceovers for Sunday’s “Meet the Press” broadcast when he collapsed. He was rushed to Sibley Memorial Hospital in Washington, where resuscitation efforts were unsuccessful, said Russert’s physician, Michael Newman, who said the cause of death was not immediately known.

 

Russert had returned from Italy, where his family was celebrating the graduation of his son, Luke, from Boston College.

 

“Meet the Press,” which he began hosting in 1991, was considered an essential proving ground in the career of any national politician.

 

 

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5i47acW1Zt9ukocOXy9JlL412h3SAD919FQV81

Public figures brought their talking points to "Meet the Press." Tim Russert brought his laser intensity, a skeptical gaze and facts they'd rather forget.

 

"Let's watch," Russert would say week after week, the Sunday morning chef about to make the powerful eat their words. "Let's listen."

 

Out would come the videotape, the audiotape, the old quotes.

 

You could almost feel the guest squirm.

 

For the political class, perhaps nothing was more challenging — yet unavoidable — than a Sunday morning in the "Meet the Press" hot seat facing its tenacious host, who died Friday.

 

 

Edited June 14, 2008 by iNow
Added vid link

[Pangloss]

I'm actually in Washington at the moment, and more or less away from the boards, but I just popped in because of this story. Everyone here's been talking about it all day. I picked quite an eventful week to come here; I was in the House of Representatives on Monday when Kucinich was reading in his impeachment bill, and then I was in the Supreme Court when the decision on Guantanamo Bay came in. Then just to cap off the Irony Troika I was in the Newseum today when the word on Russert came in. Bizarre, eh?

 

Anyway, it's awful about Russert, and my first reaction was that the election this fall just won't be the same without him.

 

(I'll be back on the boards around Monday or Tuesday. See you guys then.)

[john5746]

Yeah, Meet the Press was my favorite politics show, really the only one I watched with any regularity. I really liked and respected Russert. He was a unique mixture of old-school professionalism and respectabilty with new age flare and wit. He could switch between Iraq, the election, springsteen and BC football and not miss a beat.

[Rev Blair]

I'm going to miss Russert. He was one of the bright spots of American political journalism. He never fell into the spin machine much, instead he just asked questions. The best thing was that those questions often made a lot of people uncomfortable.

 

I think he understood the role of the fourth estate pretty well.

[ParanoiA]

I second that Rev. Quite a respected and admirable man. I'm kind of shocked, I really didn't expect to be discussing his passing for another 30 years.

 

I don't think I'm out of line in saying american politics will suffer from this. In terms of journalism, he was the real McCoy.

 

What in the world are they going to do this Sunday? Perhaps they'll run some kind of tribute?

[doG]

I'm still shocked and can't believe he's gone. I've never cared much for TV News but Tim was one of the most objective reporters I can remember and one of very few I cared to watch. He'll be greatly missed.

[iNow]

I sincerely hope that "journalists" honor his memory by picking up the torch and themselves becoming better at their craft, using him as a guide, mentor, and sign post on their progress.

[Sisyphus]

A shocking blow to American journalism. Russert was always tough, always fair, and somehow very likable. He was rightfully the most respected in his field, and will be irreplaceable. What struck me in the various tributes I've seen is how genuinely upset the journalism community seems about this, as Russert was apparently friend and mentor to many of the most prominent voices in news, and respected even more within the community itself than by the public.