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Cronkite
Goodreads Choice Award
Nominee for Readers' Favorite History & Biography (2012)For decades, Walter Cronkite was known as "the most trusted man in America." Millions across the nation welcomed him into their homes, first as a print reporter for the United Press on the front lines of World War II, and later, in the emerging medium of television, as a host of numerous documentary programs and as anchor of the CBS Evening News, from 1962 until his retirement in 1981. Yet this very public figure, undoubtedly the twentieth century's most revered journalist, was a remarkably private man; few know the full story of his life. Drawing on unprecedented access to Cronkite's private papers as well as interviews with his family and friends, Douglas Brinkley now brings this American icon into focus as never before.
Brinkley traces Cronkite's story from his roots in Missouri and Texas through the Great Depression, during which he began his career, to World War II, when he gained notice reporting with Allied troops from North Africa, D-day, and the Battle of the Bulge. In 1950, Edward R. Murrow recruited him to work for CBS, where he covered presidential elections, the space program, Vietnam, and the first televised broadcasts of the Olympic Games, as both a reporter and later as an anchor for the evening news. Cronkite was also witness to—and the nation's voice for—many of the most profound moments in modern American history, including the Kennedy assassination, Apollos 11 and 13, Watergate, the Vietnam War, and the Iran hostage crisis.
Epic, intimate, and masterfully written, Cronkite is the much-anticipated biography of an extraordinary American life, told by one of our most brilliant and respected historians.
Brinkley traces Cronkite's story from his roots in Missouri and Texas through the Great Depression, during which he began his career, to World War II, when he gained notice reporting with Allied troops from North Africa, D-day, and the Battle of the Bulge. In 1950, Edward R. Murrow recruited him to work for CBS, where he covered presidential elections, the space program, Vietnam, and the first televised broadcasts of the Olympic Games, as both a reporter and later as an anchor for the evening news. Cronkite was also witness to—and the nation's voice for—many of the most profound moments in modern American history, including the Kennedy assassination, Apollos 11 and 13, Watergate, the Vietnam War, and the Iran hostage crisis.
Epic, intimate, and masterfully written, Cronkite is the much-anticipated biography of an extraordinary American life, told by one of our most brilliant and respected historians.
832 pages, Hardcover
First published May 29, 2012
551 people are currently reading
2115 people want to read
About the author
Douglas Brinkley
125 books399 followersDouglas Brinkley is a professor of history at Rice University and a contributing editor at Vanity Fair. The Chicago Tribune has dubbed him “America’s new past master.” His most recent books are The Quiet World, The Wilderness Warrior, and The Great Deluge. Six of his books have been selected as New York Times Notable Books of the Year. He lives in Texas with his wife and three children.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 277 reviews
July 16, 2013
To begin, I did not live through (most of) the Cronkite era on The CBS Evening News, so my recollection of many of these events is null and void, filled only by patchwork notes in history texts and clips of newscasts on YouTube and the like. The most trusted man in America comes to life in his biography by Douglas Brinkley. Brinkley weaves many wonderful tales, pulling on numerous books, interviews, and documented video/audio to complete this book and does so in an effortless manner. Weaving together a most thorough history of Cronkite’s life, Brinkley tells stories that flesh out the detailed adventures on which Cronkite embarked. From his early years as the son of a dentist, Cronkite forged many interesting stories that led him to find his passion, journalism, at a young age. Carving out his niche as a UP reporter (and filing news stories from Europe during WWII), then moving to the seemingly fad-filled world of radio reporting, Cronkite discovers his ability to communicate with the public in 'real time'. When opportunities arise for him to move to television, a true schism arises between the radio press and this new fad of electronic journalism. It is there that Cronkite carves out his greatest niche and forges ahead where, quite literally, no man had gone before.
The book addresses, on numerous occasions, the strain on his real family and ever-changing side of his work family. Brinkley chooses Cronkite’s stories wisely, expanding on some of the areas that America has made synonymous with Cronkite (JFK’s Assassination and the Moon Landing) and adds some of the background that may not be known to those who know Cronkite for his news broadcasts (the Report from Vietnam that helped shed light on the stalemate nature of the War, the vilification he suffered from Goldwater in ’64 and Nixon in the early 70’s). Brinkley personifies this great American icon for those who may not have lived through his reign on television and, in so doing, helps resurrect this recently deceased giant. A great story for the curious reader who wants to know more about one of the most important people in America’s 20th Century.
Choosing not to rush through Cronkite's post-1981 life, Brinkley illustrates just how strong a tie Cronkite had with journalism and media, even when he was not an integral part of the supper hour newscast. From his special assignments to his strong dislike (loathing?) of Dan Rather, his successor, addressing even how CBS left him hanging and eventually disowned him, Cronkite's life was full of interest and intrigue until his death. Bedrock of television news, Cronkite vowed not to be seen as 'the old curmudgeon' who would not adopt to change. Cronkite embraced it, where he could, and became a strong and feisty opponent of the dreaded Right in his later years.
I cannot leave this book without some degree of critique. The book, a massive 800+ page door stopper, is both intricately detailed, yet also highly superficial, sometimes in the same chapter. This is not to say that Brinkley does not have his work cut out for him, but in dealing with such a prominent figure in history, there will be sections that touch the cutting room floor and others that stay nestled between other anecdotes. I found it highly odd that the Cuban Missile Crisis garnered no more than a brief mention in the entire story. True, I was not there, so it is hard to know if Cronkite played a role in its delivery to the American public, but it surely is a formidable part of US history, particularly as it ties in with the not too far off assassination of Kennedy. The Ford Administration was also but a blip on the radar in the book. I would have liked to see a little more about the only person ever to be POTUS without ever running on an Executive ticket.
I enjoyed the book and learned a great deal throughout. The chapters were laid out in a simple fashion and dealt with some important issues in history. I found Brinkley’s multi-faceted source usage to prop up his points to be thorough and well designed. There was little included that really did not further the argument about Cronkite’s place at the helm of CBS News. Brinkley does not gloss over Cronkite’s human qualities: enjoyment of a good pipe, lewd jokes at the office, and even covertly scouring the magazine racks for girlie magazines in Crete. While many of us called Cronkite our father figure, he was a human like all the rest of us and this sobering truth cannot be ignored or forgotten. I cannot say there was a point where I stopped learning. The book is highly entertaining for the amateur reader and journalistic nut alike. Not to be passed over, though also best not read for those seeking a superficial look at a television persona or US history. That, and now I *have* to go out and read Dan Rather's memoirs to see how much mud came back in the opposite direction.
Kudos, Mr. Brinkley for introducing me to this icon and to your wonderful style of writing. I am sure to look out for some of your other work, hoping it is as impressive as this.
And that’s the way it is, this July 16, 2013!
The book addresses, on numerous occasions, the strain on his real family and ever-changing side of his work family. Brinkley chooses Cronkite’s stories wisely, expanding on some of the areas that America has made synonymous with Cronkite (JFK’s Assassination and the Moon Landing) and adds some of the background that may not be known to those who know Cronkite for his news broadcasts (the Report from Vietnam that helped shed light on the stalemate nature of the War, the vilification he suffered from Goldwater in ’64 and Nixon in the early 70’s). Brinkley personifies this great American icon for those who may not have lived through his reign on television and, in so doing, helps resurrect this recently deceased giant. A great story for the curious reader who wants to know more about one of the most important people in America’s 20th Century.
Choosing not to rush through Cronkite's post-1981 life, Brinkley illustrates just how strong a tie Cronkite had with journalism and media, even when he was not an integral part of the supper hour newscast. From his special assignments to his strong dislike (loathing?) of Dan Rather, his successor, addressing even how CBS left him hanging and eventually disowned him, Cronkite's life was full of interest and intrigue until his death. Bedrock of television news, Cronkite vowed not to be seen as 'the old curmudgeon' who would not adopt to change. Cronkite embraced it, where he could, and became a strong and feisty opponent of the dreaded Right in his later years.
I cannot leave this book without some degree of critique. The book, a massive 800+ page door stopper, is both intricately detailed, yet also highly superficial, sometimes in the same chapter. This is not to say that Brinkley does not have his work cut out for him, but in dealing with such a prominent figure in history, there will be sections that touch the cutting room floor and others that stay nestled between other anecdotes. I found it highly odd that the Cuban Missile Crisis garnered no more than a brief mention in the entire story. True, I was not there, so it is hard to know if Cronkite played a role in its delivery to the American public, but it surely is a formidable part of US history, particularly as it ties in with the not too far off assassination of Kennedy. The Ford Administration was also but a blip on the radar in the book. I would have liked to see a little more about the only person ever to be POTUS without ever running on an Executive ticket.
I enjoyed the book and learned a great deal throughout. The chapters were laid out in a simple fashion and dealt with some important issues in history. I found Brinkley’s multi-faceted source usage to prop up his points to be thorough and well designed. There was little included that really did not further the argument about Cronkite’s place at the helm of CBS News. Brinkley does not gloss over Cronkite’s human qualities: enjoyment of a good pipe, lewd jokes at the office, and even covertly scouring the magazine racks for girlie magazines in Crete. While many of us called Cronkite our father figure, he was a human like all the rest of us and this sobering truth cannot be ignored or forgotten. I cannot say there was a point where I stopped learning. The book is highly entertaining for the amateur reader and journalistic nut alike. Not to be passed over, though also best not read for those seeking a superficial look at a television persona or US history. That, and now I *have* to go out and read Dan Rather's memoirs to see how much mud came back in the opposite direction.
Kudos, Mr. Brinkley for introducing me to this icon and to your wonderful style of writing. I am sure to look out for some of your other work, hoping it is as impressive as this.
And that’s the way it is, this July 16, 2013!
December 27, 2024
The subject of this biography was a man that I knew much more about, and trusted more deeply than any president I'd ever pledged allegiance to up to . . . .?Carter? Obama? maybe. . .a rather clumsy way of saying Walter Cronkite was a trusted presence in the home I grew up in, and until cable took away "regular" TV, he continued in that role in the home I moved away into on my own two feet. Now so many years and technologies later, news in my world is not watched, nor since 2016 is it listened to in my home. . .News went away with Walter, and analog TV really.
Thanks to Douglas Brinkley, who has provided this biography of Walter Cronkite, we get to have some of his backstory and his career before we got to see him occupy his desk as if it was a protective satellite watching over us all, and today's latest happenings brought to us with a sober yet neutral Good Evening, this is the CBS Evening News . He'd give us what our government wouldn't, and often what our local authorities wouldn't either. . .what was REALLY happening out there. Then his sign off given in the same way from 1962 to his very last one: And that's the way it is: Friday, March 6, 1981. I'll be away on assignment, and Dan Rather will be sitting in here for the next few years. Good Night.
Brinkley has provided a very thorough narrative of Cronkite's life, but he does pick and choose on the dicey bits. WC was known to be sensitive and have issues with some of the journalists he worked with. Brinkley acknowledges but doesn't explore or go further - and frankly, I didn't mind. It's not my area of interest and my indifference might be replaced with a deeper curiosity if that interest leaned in different directions.
Walter Cronkite was a family member to me in a way. . .as he probably is with many of a certain age. My own children and grands? Sadly there is no one even slightly like WC in their lives. No one voice helping to focus the world's daily happenings into an evening together in the living room. Their lives are informed by a million voices from the apps on their phones in their hands in their rooms or wherever they are. We learn of things immediately rather than at the usual TV news time or news breaking headlines in emergencies. The many voices dilute, shatter and disseminate messages that may or may not be true. . .but then, that has always been the case, I suppose I'm missing the "trusted voice" aspect of Walter Cronkite.
Thanks to Douglas Brinkley, who has provided this biography of Walter Cronkite, we get to have some of his backstory and his career before we got to see him occupy his desk as if it was a protective satellite watching over us all, and today's latest happenings brought to us with a sober yet neutral Good Evening, this is the CBS Evening News . He'd give us what our government wouldn't, and often what our local authorities wouldn't either. . .what was REALLY happening out there. Then his sign off given in the same way from 1962 to his very last one: And that's the way it is: Friday, March 6, 1981. I'll be away on assignment, and Dan Rather will be sitting in here for the next few years. Good Night.
Brinkley has provided a very thorough narrative of Cronkite's life, but he does pick and choose on the dicey bits. WC was known to be sensitive and have issues with some of the journalists he worked with. Brinkley acknowledges but doesn't explore or go further - and frankly, I didn't mind. It's not my area of interest and my indifference might be replaced with a deeper curiosity if that interest leaned in different directions.
Walter Cronkite was a family member to me in a way. . .as he probably is with many of a certain age. My own children and grands? Sadly there is no one even slightly like WC in their lives. No one voice helping to focus the world's daily happenings into an evening together in the living room. Their lives are informed by a million voices from the apps on their phones in their hands in their rooms or wherever they are. We learn of things immediately rather than at the usual TV news time or news breaking headlines in emergencies. The many voices dilute, shatter and disseminate messages that may or may not be true. . .but then, that has always been the case, I suppose I'm missing the "trusted voice" aspect of Walter Cronkite.
July 13, 2012
“You don’t know what you’ve got, ‘til it’s gone.”
In reflecting on Walter Cronkite and his era, this 1970’s Joni Mitchell refrain from “Big Yellow Taxi” kept spinning through my mind. Not only is it a way of processing the diminution of the art of news and information for which Cronkite was the high water mark – “they paved paradise and put up a parking lot” – but it is a way of doing so without sounding (or feeling) crotchety and out of touch with today’s wolf-pack incarnation.
“You don’t know what you’ve got, ‘til it’s gone.”
Cronkite’s era was my coming of age era. I don’t go back to his WWII UPI reporting start, and was barely aware of his early NASA Mercury work, but I do vividly recall him as being there, with his profound sense of comity, as I pecked out of the introverted shell of adolescence, beginning with Cronkite’s coverage of the JFK assassination to the ‘68 assassinations to countless political conventions and election nights to Armstrong on the moon to Viet Nam to Watergate and through the Iran hostages. In college, I remember nightly finishing my dining hall meal and running off to the media room of the Dahlgren Memorial Library to get my headset and watch the CBS Evening News.
“You don’t know what you’ve got, ‘til it’s gone.”
At first glance, I was surprised that a historian of Brinkley’s erudition would tackle such a recent biography. Cronkite only just passed away in 2009. And weren’t most of Brinkley’s other subjects past presidents? (As a TR acolyte, I’ll particularly point to Brinkley’s wonderful 2009 The Wilderness Warrior: Theodore Roosevelt and the Crusade for America). But in reading “Cronkite,” you quickly see how apt Brinkley’s choice of subject truly is. For it is through this subject – the television anchorman – that Brinkley gains the unique lens of a medium at its height to reflect a history ever changed by its presence.
“You don’t know what you’ve got, ‘til it’s gone.”
Though Brinkley isn’t above painting broadly the corrosive effect that profit/cable/reality television is having on our national conversation and politics, he does, by not providing a proscriptive list of things to do, for the most part, leave it to us to reflect on the implications.
“You don’t know what you’ve got, ‘til it’s gone.”
Two quotes from eulogies for Cronkite back in 2009 help further this introspection of how to capture our better angels in our quest for information and truth: “he invited us to believe in him, and NEVER let us down.” And, if ever anyone could recapture the “most trusted man in America” high ground, they would need to possess three things: “accuracy, timeliness and trust of the audience.”
“You don’t know what you’ve got, ‘til it’s gone.”
August 30, 2012
Brinkley is America's Historian and certainly has the resources to get us both the overall story and the inside scoop. The book is full of fascinating info on Walter Cronkite from archival sources and the subject's family, professional associates, and friends. It offers particularly juicy gossip about Cronkite's last years and his disdain for CBS and Dan Rather. It is worth reading for the information it provides about Uncle Walter's life and his opinions about newsmakers and the news.
But beware: this is not the quality of book one ever would expect to have been produced by a professional historian and writer, especially one with Brinkley's reputation. It is jarring and disappointing to think that Brinkley; his publisher; his associates; and Cronkite's family and influential admirers would let this extraordinarily sloppy book be published in its current state. Brinkley and his publisher have made a terrible mistake by releasing this book prematurely. That respected reviewers lead the book-buying public to believe the book is ready for prime time is an insult to both Cronkite and the reader.
This book is the most poorly edited biography I ever have read. It smacks of having been thrown together to meet a deadline. Opinion routinely is stated as fact (eg, "Brokaw of NBC News, as always, cut to the core of Cronkite adeptly"). Writing is sloppy (eg, "No television correspondent had covered civil rights or went after Nixon with more doggedness."). Nonsensical assertions abound (eg, "Cronkite's death was a national embarrassment because of how badly TV journalism had fared in his absence.") Proofreading is haphazard (eg, "Silver Seas" instead of Silversea). Non-sequitors are littered throughout (eg, "With an extra-high regard for scientists and professors, he visited the far reaches of the planet, trying to learn about the historic world..."). Wording is sometimes nonsensical ("and a colorful look at Mars photographs taken by Viking spacecraft in the 1970s"). Extraneous information unnecessarily diverts the reader (eg, "To Amanpour, just back in New York from Afghanistan [where she filmed the documentary Generation Islam about the lives of young Muslims]. Cronkite's life wasn't about anchoring the CBS News..." )
The book screams for a final edit. Until and unless it gets one, I give it an F for publication quality.
But beware: this is not the quality of book one ever would expect to have been produced by a professional historian and writer, especially one with Brinkley's reputation. It is jarring and disappointing to think that Brinkley; his publisher; his associates; and Cronkite's family and influential admirers would let this extraordinarily sloppy book be published in its current state. Brinkley and his publisher have made a terrible mistake by releasing this book prematurely. That respected reviewers lead the book-buying public to believe the book is ready for prime time is an insult to both Cronkite and the reader.
This book is the most poorly edited biography I ever have read. It smacks of having been thrown together to meet a deadline. Opinion routinely is stated as fact (eg, "Brokaw of NBC News, as always, cut to the core of Cronkite adeptly"). Writing is sloppy (eg, "No television correspondent had covered civil rights or went after Nixon with more doggedness."). Nonsensical assertions abound (eg, "Cronkite's death was a national embarrassment because of how badly TV journalism had fared in his absence.") Proofreading is haphazard (eg, "Silver Seas" instead of Silversea). Non-sequitors are littered throughout (eg, "With an extra-high regard for scientists and professors, he visited the far reaches of the planet, trying to learn about the historic world..."). Wording is sometimes nonsensical ("and a colorful look at Mars photographs taken by Viking spacecraft in the 1970s"). Extraneous information unnecessarily diverts the reader (eg, "To Amanpour, just back in New York from Afghanistan [where she filmed the documentary Generation Islam about the lives of young Muslims]. Cronkite's life wasn't about anchoring the CBS News..." )
The book screams for a final edit. Until and unless it gets one, I give it an F for publication quality.
January 20, 2013
When Walter Cronkite was 90 years old, he was dining out with friends Nick, Nina and son George Clooney (Nick was a newsman). Restaurant patrons recognized Cronkite, but didn’t bother him. But when he left, they rose. George said, "They didn't applaud, they just stood up, because that's what you do when a gentleman is leaving the room."
This biography tells how Walter Cronkite came to earn that silent standing ovation. It was difficult to finish because the final pages meant saying goodbye not only to him, an extraordinary individual, but to an entire way of seeing and reporting on the world that is so rare (non-existent?) today. Cronkite was admired - revered – for his deep integrity and discipline in reporting the news – but also for his joyous enthusiasm for life and storytelling.
He believed in facts, in witnessing events and reporting faithfully on what he discovered. He guided the country through its soaring achievements - men landing on moon - and heartbreak; Kennedy assassination, Vietnam War (it was his decision - after visiting Vietnam during the Tet Offensive - to report that the war was best a "stalemate," that is credited with turning the anti-war movement mainstream).
Read this book if you are a fan of journalism, if you want to understand why we were lucky to have Edward R. Murrow for the first half of the 20th century and Cronkite for the second. Read it for a thrilling sweep of twentieth century history or for a chronicle of a lost world, where newsmen (okay, and it was male-dominated, but Cronkite was not a chauvinist) smoked and drank and worked all hours to get the story. Imagine television reporters not rushing to be first without double-sourcing the facts. Remember in 2012 when CNN reported live that Congress had stuck down Obama’s healthcare law, without bothering to read past the first paragraph of the judicial ruling? Cronkite wouldn't report on Kennedy's death until he got confirmation from the hospital in Dallas.
While I was growing up, I watched Cronkite deliver The CBS Evening News and when Dan Rather replaced him, I remember feeling that we had lost something, but at the time couldn’t articulate just what.
President Obama, who attended the entire two-and-a-half-hour memorial for Walter Cronkite captured the “just what" about him, echoing the sentiment of so many others; “He was family. He invited us to believe in him and he never let us down.”
This biography tells how Walter Cronkite came to earn that silent standing ovation. It was difficult to finish because the final pages meant saying goodbye not only to him, an extraordinary individual, but to an entire way of seeing and reporting on the world that is so rare (non-existent?) today. Cronkite was admired - revered – for his deep integrity and discipline in reporting the news – but also for his joyous enthusiasm for life and storytelling.
He believed in facts, in witnessing events and reporting faithfully on what he discovered. He guided the country through its soaring achievements - men landing on moon - and heartbreak; Kennedy assassination, Vietnam War (it was his decision - after visiting Vietnam during the Tet Offensive - to report that the war was best a "stalemate," that is credited with turning the anti-war movement mainstream).
Read this book if you are a fan of journalism, if you want to understand why we were lucky to have Edward R. Murrow for the first half of the 20th century and Cronkite for the second. Read it for a thrilling sweep of twentieth century history or for a chronicle of a lost world, where newsmen (okay, and it was male-dominated, but Cronkite was not a chauvinist) smoked and drank and worked all hours to get the story. Imagine television reporters not rushing to be first without double-sourcing the facts. Remember in 2012 when CNN reported live that Congress had stuck down Obama’s healthcare law, without bothering to read past the first paragraph of the judicial ruling? Cronkite wouldn't report on Kennedy's death until he got confirmation from the hospital in Dallas.
While I was growing up, I watched Cronkite deliver The CBS Evening News and when Dan Rather replaced him, I remember feeling that we had lost something, but at the time couldn’t articulate just what.
President Obama, who attended the entire two-and-a-half-hour memorial for Walter Cronkite captured the “just what" about him, echoing the sentiment of so many others; “He was family. He invited us to believe in him and he never let us down.”
July 16, 2012
I was initially attracted to this bio because I love reading history (thanks to my 8th grade teacher, one of the best ever Pat Cahill!). So I was fascinated by the thought of all the history Cronkite was witness to. As I read the reader reviews on various sites, there were many that were very critical with comment about all the typos in the book to the complaint that the author made Cronkite out to be an alcoholic, to only offering scant details on the historical events covered in the book.
Well, I don't know what those readers were talking about or where they were coming from. There were some typos, but no more than I see in any other books. Cronkite came from a generation that enjoyed an evening cocktail, and while the book did touch on some episodes where he went on a bender with a colleague, there were literally only a couple of them. He was never presented as an alcoholic in my reading of the story - I mean if I was meeting up with a friend in London, I'd probably go on a pub crawl too. And the limited details on the events he covered - it the author did provide deep details about all of them the book would be a 4 volume 10,000 page behemoth.
I found this bio extremely readable, entertaining and, I believe, very balanced in it's presentation of the man. Cronkite had an ego, he was human - not a god, and he had some quirks. It was an excellent read and I highly recommend it to anyone interested in history or Walter Cronkite.
Well, I don't know what those readers were talking about or where they were coming from. There were some typos, but no more than I see in any other books. Cronkite came from a generation that enjoyed an evening cocktail, and while the book did touch on some episodes where he went on a bender with a colleague, there were literally only a couple of them. He was never presented as an alcoholic in my reading of the story - I mean if I was meeting up with a friend in London, I'd probably go on a pub crawl too. And the limited details on the events he covered - it the author did provide deep details about all of them the book would be a 4 volume 10,000 page behemoth.
I found this bio extremely readable, entertaining and, I believe, very balanced in it's presentation of the man. Cronkite had an ego, he was human - not a god, and he had some quirks. It was an excellent read and I highly recommend it to anyone interested in history or Walter Cronkite.
September 17, 2019
This is a fat biography about the pioneering broadcasting icon, Walter Cronkite, written by Douglas Brinkley, a history professor at Rice University. I read his new book, “American Moonshot,” to celebrate the recent 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing, and loved it. I then realized that I had owned his biography of Cronkite for several years so thought I’d read that as well.
Walter Cronkite was born in St. Joseph, Missouri; spent his young childhood in Kansas City; then went to high school in Houston, and two years of college at the University of Texas. . His grandfather was a pharmacist in St. Joe and his Dad was in the business as well. So: I already love Walter Cronkite: I’m from KC; I love journalism and considered it as a career, but ended up a Pharmacist. Score on all three!
Anyway, like many great news men, Cronkite started out writing for his high school newspaper and majored in journalism at UT, until he figured out that he was wasting tuition money, b/c all good journalists learned their crafts “on the job.” He moved around for a few newspaper jobs and even a couple of radio gigs, one as a color announcer for Oklahoma Sooner football broadcasts—w/o being at the actual game! In one job back home in KC, he met a newspaper woman named Betsy, who had attended the quite-new journalism school at the University of Missouri. They married, and Betsy was every bit as funny, smart, witty and talented as Walter. They were married for nearly 65 years and had three children, just a stereotypical American family w/ the children even rebelling stereotypically in the 60’s. Walter was away from home for two years reporting on WWII for United Press, and met the legendary Edward R. Murrow. Both he and Murrow went to work for CBS, first radio and especially for Walter, on to TV news reporting.
Reading about the early years in television was my favorite part of the book. The broadcasters just read the news off the wires back then, not really packaging the news at all. So Cronkite had multiple jobs at CBS, including a morning show w/ a puppet for a sidekick. He eventually became the trusted CBS Evening News anchorman by his knowledge of NASA, reporting on every development and being present at all the Mercury and Gemini launches. This was how he became well-acquainted w/ the Kennedy and Johnson families, to the point where he was accused of being TOO friendly w/ LBJ to give unbiased news broadcasts. His respect for the military colored his first several years of reporting on Vietnam, also. He went to Vietnam in ‘68 to see for himself how the war was going. He came back disillusioned and called the war a “stalemate” on the air—changing America’s perception of the Vietnam War and cementing his spot in broadcast journalism forever by having the courage to do so—although this slowly ushered in more and more opinions and outright bias being presented as facts in our media.
My favorite chapter was about his reporting on the JFK assassination, and this is where we start to see Dan Rather’s rise at CBS also. Cronkite enjoyed 30 years as the CBS evening news anchorman and decided to go out “on top,” retiring before he was ready in early 1981. CBS didn’t know what to do w/ its elder statesmen journalists, so treated them shabbily, including Edwards, Severeid, and Cronkite. Other networks and the fledgling cable networks treated them
better. Cronkite’s many reports on “Universe,” and nature documentaries found a place on the Discovery Channel.
Betsy died in 2005, and mere weeks later, Cronkite started dating their realtor, Joanna Simon, 24 years his junior. Ewww. The book starts really suffering from more bias and terrible editing in this section, w/ even whole paragraphs being unnecessary or out of place. When I start editing in my head as I’m reading, I know the editors have missed the mark. Anyway, Cronkite died in 2009 and the final chapter about his cognitive issues, his death, and funeral were sad and touching.
I am one of the few baby boomers who did NOT grow up watching Walter Cronkite; we watched ABC instead, so I saw the “six o’clock war” and the moon landing broadcast by Frank Reynolds, not Cronkite’s masterful broadcast, but I have seen snippets of it many times since.
I respect Walter Cronkite’s contributions to broadcast journalism, and love that he was from KC, but as is often the case w/ an icon, I was disappointed that he was a typical man’s man of his time, paternalistic towards women, and a real hard partier. Again, I enjoyed the book but have to knock the biography as poorly edited with more editorializing and bias than normal in a typical biography.
Walter Cronkite was born in St. Joseph, Missouri; spent his young childhood in Kansas City; then went to high school in Houston, and two years of college at the University of Texas. . His grandfather was a pharmacist in St. Joe and his Dad was in the business as well. So: I already love Walter Cronkite: I’m from KC; I love journalism and considered it as a career, but ended up a Pharmacist. Score on all three!
Anyway, like many great news men, Cronkite started out writing for his high school newspaper and majored in journalism at UT, until he figured out that he was wasting tuition money, b/c all good journalists learned their crafts “on the job.” He moved around for a few newspaper jobs and even a couple of radio gigs, one as a color announcer for Oklahoma Sooner football broadcasts—w/o being at the actual game! In one job back home in KC, he met a newspaper woman named Betsy, who had attended the quite-new journalism school at the University of Missouri. They married, and Betsy was every bit as funny, smart, witty and talented as Walter. They were married for nearly 65 years and had three children, just a stereotypical American family w/ the children even rebelling stereotypically in the 60’s. Walter was away from home for two years reporting on WWII for United Press, and met the legendary Edward R. Murrow. Both he and Murrow went to work for CBS, first radio and especially for Walter, on to TV news reporting.
Reading about the early years in television was my favorite part of the book. The broadcasters just read the news off the wires back then, not really packaging the news at all. So Cronkite had multiple jobs at CBS, including a morning show w/ a puppet for a sidekick. He eventually became the trusted CBS Evening News anchorman by his knowledge of NASA, reporting on every development and being present at all the Mercury and Gemini launches. This was how he became well-acquainted w/ the Kennedy and Johnson families, to the point where he was accused of being TOO friendly w/ LBJ to give unbiased news broadcasts. His respect for the military colored his first several years of reporting on Vietnam, also. He went to Vietnam in ‘68 to see for himself how the war was going. He came back disillusioned and called the war a “stalemate” on the air—changing America’s perception of the Vietnam War and cementing his spot in broadcast journalism forever by having the courage to do so—although this slowly ushered in more and more opinions and outright bias being presented as facts in our media.
My favorite chapter was about his reporting on the JFK assassination, and this is where we start to see Dan Rather’s rise at CBS also. Cronkite enjoyed 30 years as the CBS evening news anchorman and decided to go out “on top,” retiring before he was ready in early 1981. CBS didn’t know what to do w/ its elder statesmen journalists, so treated them shabbily, including Edwards, Severeid, and Cronkite. Other networks and the fledgling cable networks treated them
better. Cronkite’s many reports on “Universe,” and nature documentaries found a place on the Discovery Channel.
Betsy died in 2005, and mere weeks later, Cronkite started dating their realtor, Joanna Simon, 24 years his junior. Ewww. The book starts really suffering from more bias and terrible editing in this section, w/ even whole paragraphs being unnecessary or out of place. When I start editing in my head as I’m reading, I know the editors have missed the mark. Anyway, Cronkite died in 2009 and the final chapter about his cognitive issues, his death, and funeral were sad and touching.
I am one of the few baby boomers who did NOT grow up watching Walter Cronkite; we watched ABC instead, so I saw the “six o’clock war” and the moon landing broadcast by Frank Reynolds, not Cronkite’s masterful broadcast, but I have seen snippets of it many times since.
I respect Walter Cronkite’s contributions to broadcast journalism, and love that he was from KC, but as is often the case w/ an icon, I was disappointed that he was a typical man’s man of his time, paternalistic towards women, and a real hard partier. Again, I enjoyed the book but have to knock the biography as poorly edited with more editorializing and bias than normal in a typical biography.
July 18, 2017
Journalism as an idea is something that I believe many people, given the current political situation, agree with in the abstract sense and that non-specific ideal can usually be tied back to Walter Cronkite. As journalist the man managed to secure an ideal status in the American consciousness because the man always made sure to stick to the facts and only editorialize when he felt it was truly necessary. Cronkite is an icon and this book captures that spirit.
Now I can't speak to the full structure of the book because I read it through an audio-book that I found out halfway through was abridged. Still it covered almost all of the text and the writing was always balanced with a careful attention to real facts and little, if any, real pathos. The only real problem I had with the text is that the book focused so much on the man's career and didn't always balance it out with much of the man's personal life, or really his relationship with his wife Betsy who, after reading this book, deserves an entire book for herself.
No matter the reader is promised a fine read because Douglas Brinkley shines in this book and reminders the reader why he is highly regarded as a historian and biographer. Brinkley gives the reader the facts, but manages to humanize Walter showing them his faults, his strengths, his passions, and ends with a final summation of the man and his lasting impact upon the culture.
I didn't grow up with Cronkite, though as a kid I did watch (repeatedly) the film "We're Back" which starred his voice so I guess in a way I did. But even if I never watched the man report about the Kennedy assassination, or listen to him narrate the NASA programs that got us to the moon, and even if I never got a chance to hear his now canonical report "We Are Mired in Stalemate" I still recognise the importance of the idea and man of Walter Cronkite. The news (when it's done right) matters because it gives people facts from which they can decide how to act, and in the absence of trust the reporter ultimately has nothing. Cronkite's strength was always that people trusted him and for this reason Cronkite lives on as a figure that is iconic, but for all the right reasons.
Now I can't speak to the full structure of the book because I read it through an audio-book that I found out halfway through was abridged. Still it covered almost all of the text and the writing was always balanced with a careful attention to real facts and little, if any, real pathos. The only real problem I had with the text is that the book focused so much on the man's career and didn't always balance it out with much of the man's personal life, or really his relationship with his wife Betsy who, after reading this book, deserves an entire book for herself.
No matter the reader is promised a fine read because Douglas Brinkley shines in this book and reminders the reader why he is highly regarded as a historian and biographer. Brinkley gives the reader the facts, but manages to humanize Walter showing them his faults, his strengths, his passions, and ends with a final summation of the man and his lasting impact upon the culture.
I didn't grow up with Cronkite, though as a kid I did watch (repeatedly) the film "We're Back" which starred his voice so I guess in a way I did. But even if I never watched the man report about the Kennedy assassination, or listen to him narrate the NASA programs that got us to the moon, and even if I never got a chance to hear his now canonical report "We Are Mired in Stalemate" I still recognise the importance of the idea and man of Walter Cronkite. The news (when it's done right) matters because it gives people facts from which they can decide how to act, and in the absence of trust the reporter ultimately has nothing. Cronkite's strength was always that people trusted him and for this reason Cronkite lives on as a figure that is iconic, but for all the right reasons.
May 8, 2013
As described late in this book, in 2005, Ted Koppel gave an informal talk to young interns hoping to become news broadcasters. Koppel asked, did they knew anything about Eric Sevaried? Howard K. Smith? Frank Reynolds? Chet Huntley? John Chancellor? David Brinkley? Walter Cronkite? Of those seven names, Cronkite was the only one the interns recognized. Yet 40-50 years ago, all seven of these newsmen were household names to almost all Americans.
Why has Cronkite's legacy alone endured? Douglas Brinkley does a great job attempting to answer that question and, in the process, lead the reader through nearly all important events in American history from World War II to present day from a unique perspective. Cronkite always put himself in his viewers' shoes. He never talked down, he never gave his own opinions (not until after he "retired" as anchor), and he never stopped until he got the full story. So, how Cronkite reacted to the last 70 years of important events is a pretty good reflection of how America reacted.
There will never be another Walter Cronkite. The public has become too cynical to trust one news source, too impatient to wait until the facts have been fully checked, and too entrenched in their own bias to accept an impartial view. It's a shame. We may think we are a lot more informed now than we were 50 years ago, but are we?
Why has Cronkite's legacy alone endured? Douglas Brinkley does a great job attempting to answer that question and, in the process, lead the reader through nearly all important events in American history from World War II to present day from a unique perspective. Cronkite always put himself in his viewers' shoes. He never talked down, he never gave his own opinions (not until after he "retired" as anchor), and he never stopped until he got the full story. So, how Cronkite reacted to the last 70 years of important events is a pretty good reflection of how America reacted.
There will never be another Walter Cronkite. The public has become too cynical to trust one news source, too impatient to wait until the facts have been fully checked, and too entrenched in their own bias to accept an impartial view. It's a shame. We may think we are a lot more informed now than we were 50 years ago, but are we?
February 23, 2024
SPOILER ALERT
Excellent biography! Takes me back through the events of my childhood in the 60s and 70s. He was a natural reporter, worked hard, and became “America’s most trusted man” during some troubling times - the assassinations, the racial tensions, the Vietnam war, Nixon’s resignation & the Pentagon Papers. He loved the space program. There will never be another news anchor like him. We don’t pay attention to the nightly news like we used to. We get our news more quickly on our phones. No one man will ever be in the position to gain the nations trust again.
He started out in newspaper and radio. He became a top WWII war correspondent in Europe. He flew in the B-52s with the airmen and reported on the war. He manned a machine gun during an air battle and saved a man’s life. Starting in 1952, he excelled at the national conventions with his ability to ad lib. He mastered the 1960 Winter Olympics. He handled the Kennedy-Nixon debates. He ran a series of popular educational documentaries. And he had a childlike curiosity reporting the space program.
In 1962, he anchored the 15 minute evening news for CBS. He was the first to expand to 30 minutes. Color TV came in 1965. His main competition was Chet Huntley and David Brinkley. He faced mandatory retirement from the anchor desk at 65 in 1981, but was kept on another 17 years as a correspondent. He never lost his interest in working. He despised his replacement, Dan Rather.
He challenged LBJ and the Pentagon over the Vietnam War in 1968 and was the first to declare that the war was a stalemate and probably couldn’t be won. He took on Nixon who declared the Big 3 networks were liberal and against him. He chastised George Bush’s decision to go the war against Iraq, calling it incompetent and morally corrupt. He called it bad public policy for the world, saying “if you don’t like what neighbor is doing, just go to war with him.” He supported de-criminalization of marijuana.
He was regarded as the best and most trusted reporter of his time and lived into his 90s. He was fair-minded and “had a moral compass that knew right from wrong.” He had an innate ability to make viewers feel good even when reporting bad news. He had a friend in every corner of the world. He and his wife, Betsy, loved their summer home in Martha’s Vineyard and entertained friends there. He loved his yachts. He passed away in 2009.
Excellent biography! Takes me back through the events of my childhood in the 60s and 70s. He was a natural reporter, worked hard, and became “America’s most trusted man” during some troubling times - the assassinations, the racial tensions, the Vietnam war, Nixon’s resignation & the Pentagon Papers. He loved the space program. There will never be another news anchor like him. We don’t pay attention to the nightly news like we used to. We get our news more quickly on our phones. No one man will ever be in the position to gain the nations trust again.
He started out in newspaper and radio. He became a top WWII war correspondent in Europe. He flew in the B-52s with the airmen and reported on the war. He manned a machine gun during an air battle and saved a man’s life. Starting in 1952, he excelled at the national conventions with his ability to ad lib. He mastered the 1960 Winter Olympics. He handled the Kennedy-Nixon debates. He ran a series of popular educational documentaries. And he had a childlike curiosity reporting the space program.
In 1962, he anchored the 15 minute evening news for CBS. He was the first to expand to 30 minutes. Color TV came in 1965. His main competition was Chet Huntley and David Brinkley. He faced mandatory retirement from the anchor desk at 65 in 1981, but was kept on another 17 years as a correspondent. He never lost his interest in working. He despised his replacement, Dan Rather.
He challenged LBJ and the Pentagon over the Vietnam War in 1968 and was the first to declare that the war was a stalemate and probably couldn’t be won. He took on Nixon who declared the Big 3 networks were liberal and against him. He chastised George Bush’s decision to go the war against Iraq, calling it incompetent and morally corrupt. He called it bad public policy for the world, saying “if you don’t like what neighbor is doing, just go to war with him.” He supported de-criminalization of marijuana.
He was regarded as the best and most trusted reporter of his time and lived into his 90s. He was fair-minded and “had a moral compass that knew right from wrong.” He had an innate ability to make viewers feel good even when reporting bad news. He had a friend in every corner of the world. He and his wife, Betsy, loved their summer home in Martha’s Vineyard and entertained friends there. He loved his yachts. He passed away in 2009.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 25, 2020
A little slow to start but a fantastic read. I loved so many of the storied moments in this book. Walter Cronkite was truly one of a kind and tho I missed most of his career, I do wish we could go back to his standards of journalism.
November 19, 2013
This comprehensive biography of Walter Cronkite details the life of Cronkite we television viewers knew; his steadying influence during American tragedies such as the JFK assassination, his famous Vietnam commentary,his infatuation with the NASA space program, his warm style during his interviews and broadcasts
But this book also details Cronkite's life that wasn't as well known, details that often belie his "Uncle Walter" persona. This includes his ambition and appetite for air time and control--shown by his locking Ed Murrow out of the broadcast booth when he did want to share airtime with him during the 1960 Democratic convention and his resentment of Eric Severaid's 2 minute commentaries because they cut into Cronkite's air time. Both examples also reflected his resentment of the "Murrow boys" and Ed Murrow's influence on journalism. However, these aspects of Cronkite are kept in context in his mentoring of younger reporters, his genuine warmth to even those he disagreed with, and his true commit to journalism
Cronkite's zest for life is also shown; from his strong marriage to Betsy which did not prevent his flirtations with women and trips to San Francisco's tenderloin district to his passion for sailing and the environment, his love of travel and wide circle of friends, his active night life which often included strong drinking and his Dutch frugality
This balanced biography was well written with a lively style that made this a fun read while learning about a larger than life man and the times that he greatly influenced
But this book also details Cronkite's life that wasn't as well known, details that often belie his "Uncle Walter" persona. This includes his ambition and appetite for air time and control--shown by his locking Ed Murrow out of the broadcast booth when he did want to share airtime with him during the 1960 Democratic convention and his resentment of Eric Severaid's 2 minute commentaries because they cut into Cronkite's air time. Both examples also reflected his resentment of the "Murrow boys" and Ed Murrow's influence on journalism. However, these aspects of Cronkite are kept in context in his mentoring of younger reporters, his genuine warmth to even those he disagreed with, and his true commit to journalism
Cronkite's zest for life is also shown; from his strong marriage to Betsy which did not prevent his flirtations with women and trips to San Francisco's tenderloin district to his passion for sailing and the environment, his love of travel and wide circle of friends, his active night life which often included strong drinking and his Dutch frugality
This balanced biography was well written with a lively style that made this a fun read while learning about a larger than life man and the times that he greatly influenced
August 18, 2012
Once upon a time, author and historian Douglas Brinkley tells us, giants roamed the earth -- and the airwaves! Nowadays, of course, a figure such as Walter Cronkite is in danger of being forgotten. So let's visit a time when there was a TV anchorman of such stature he was consider 'America's favorite uncle.' This compelling life-and-time treatment reminds us of an era when television news was more than car crashes and following up Internet scoops. Brinkley knew Cronkite, interviewed his family and friends, and stakes the book's importance on the notion that Cronkite (a former print reporter, whose first radio broadcast took place prior to WWII) was the most influential journalist of the 20th century. But it turns out, by the author's own estimation, Cronkite's legacy was largely a success of marketing; the 'most trusted man in America' was barely that. In turn, Brinkley fails to prove his thesis; Cronkite's importance overall may in fact have been overstated (I'd give the 'most important' nod to either Hunter S. Thompson or Sy Hersh, but neither was ever a paragon of truthiness). Long story short, we no longer believe that the news can be or should necessarily be objective, but just for the recounting of Uncle Walter's adventures in the news business I do recommend this book.
June 25, 2012
I enjoyed Douglas Brinkley's comprehensive biography of Walter Cronkite - but it was SO LONG. Brinkley's research was extensive - but he suffered from a problem he claims Cronkite did not- the inability (or unwillingness)to distinguish the wheat from the chaff. There is so much detail. While it is true that Cronkite, who was a journalist before TV and was involved in that medium from its inception, was involved in almost every major journalistic issue from the beginning of WWII until his death in 2009, Brinkley describes every aspect of Cronkite's life in such detail it's hard to know what is really important and what is not. That makes for a book longer and slower than it needs to be. There are times when a topical treatment would be better than a chronological discussion. (I've been reading Walter Isaacson's bio of Steve Jobs concurrently and it has the same problem. These guys seem so proud of their research that they don't want to leave ANYTHING out.)
February 19, 2014
Short review: an interesting subject, but the biography was mediocre. Lots of repetition of events, lots of focus on petty infighting. Very little focus on what Cronkite was really about. Reading other reviews there are lots of factual problems with the book and clearly some editing problems.
My full review is in my blog at http://bookwi.se/cronkite-douglas-bri...
My full review is in my blog at http://bookwi.se/cronkite-douglas-bri...
April 17, 2018
This was a very informative biography about the life of Walter Cronkite. I actually learned a lot, not only about his life and the television news industry, but about United States politics and history from the 1950s through the 1980s. Very well done.
January 31, 2018
Took me ages to finish this audiobook but I’m glad I did! I got to learn a lot more about one of my favorite historical figures and I’m glad for it.
May 3, 2022
This is not just a biography of Walter Cronkite, but also a history of television news and the impact it had during its golden age. When Brinkley can stick to that subject and not wander off into the weeds of unrelated asides, the content is top-rate. He shows exactly why Cronkite became a household name and how his reputation with middle America remained untarnished. (I'm sure most of our parents never suspected his penchant for strip joints and ribald jokes. I know mine didn't.)
Unfortunately, Brinkley does not have Uncle Walter's gift for brevity nor clarity. Never have I seen a book's post notes thank so many people for their editing help and still be so badly edited. Perhaps in the future, Mr. Brinkley should consider using fewer and better editors who can tame his needless repetitions and sometimes tortured syntax.
Unfortunately, Brinkley does not have Uncle Walter's gift for brevity nor clarity. Never have I seen a book's post notes thank so many people for their editing help and still be so badly edited. Perhaps in the future, Mr. Brinkley should consider using fewer and better editors who can tame his needless repetitions and sometimes tortured syntax.
April 7, 2018
I found this book to be well written and informative, but not so worthy as to fully hold my attention. Circumstances conspired to make it impossible for me to read for about a week, and after this break, I could not bring myself to pick it up again. In all fairness, I must confess that I had made the reading of this book rather an ordeal, by researching each of the historical events which were referenced as the biography proceeded. Thus, it had become something of a chore, though also a welcomed refreshment of American History. Perhaps had I taken on the book only itself, and not researched each historical event, I would have enjoyed it more.
March 2, 2018
Interesting and well-written study of Cronkite's life and place in journalistic history. This was an abridged audio CD, which was read by George Guidall, a treat in itself. I could tell it was abridged from some of the abrupt breaks, but I could not cope with the 892 page unabridged original.
February 24, 2025
Grew up watching Walter Cronkite on the CBS Evening News. Reading his biography, I learned he exhibited the same integrity in person as he did behind his desk in front of the camera. He never wanted glory, only the story. He might’ve been the last true newsman.
March 4, 2021
Just finished this book on audible. I really enjoyed this.
June 30, 2022
I grew up in an NBC News household and didn't learn to appreciate "Uncle Walter" until I went to college, during the last few years of Cronkite's tenure as the CBS anchorman. We would crowd around the TV in the dorm lounge to listen to someone who would tell us the news straight up, without all of the bangs and whistles you see today on cable.
Brinkley has written a solid, readable biography. Cronkite comes across as a more colorful, gregarious, and left-leaning character than I had ever realized he was.
Brinkley has written a solid, readable biography. Cronkite comes across as a more colorful, gregarious, and left-leaning character than I had ever realized he was.
July 17, 2012
I'd like to have given this a third star, but with other reviews running in the four-star average, I can't.
While I learned a number of things about Cronkite from this book (see below), I learned even more about Douglas Brinkley as a history/biography writer, especially since this isn't the first book of his I've read.
Brinkley is the new Stephen Ambrose, I am thinking more and more, and that's not a compliment. Cronkite deserves a better biographer.
I think Brinkley, like his mentor Ambrose, uses a larger-than-normal stable of research assistants, who actually do a fair amount of rough-draft writing, with Brinkley being an editor as much as anything.
Well, the "editor" has several errors of fact and a few of interpretation. Plus, he's a turgid writer at times.
First, beyond simply stating our entry into WWI, and the drafting of Cronkite's dad, he opines — and opines the mainstream Eastern establishment type view that Germany fored us into war. Nowhere does he examine Wilson's tilt toward Britain from 1914. Either just state the fact of US entry, or else give us real analysis.
Second, Cronkite's dad, a dentist, was drafted as an officer. Yet, discussing Walter's WWII work with UPI, he has him chatting up Gen. Ira Eaker whom, he says, was drafted as a private **like Cronkite's dad.** Not the only whopper in the book, on outright errors.
On one photo, Cronkite's either made 10 years too young or the photo's dated 10 years too late. That's ultimately the copy editor's fault (book publishing is going down the tubes as much as newspapers at times), but it's also Brinkley's boo-boo.
Then there's an error of description of Houston, with its "gnarled oaks" and "mesquite groves." Uhh, while Houston may have a few mesquites scattered, there's no groves. "Stately oaks dripping with Spanish moss" is the right description. "Gnarled oaks" and "mesquite groves" is the Hill Country west of Austin. Worse, Brinkley teaches at Rice University in Houston and should know better.
Another error of interpretation? Claiming the rise of AP and UP (later UPI) was detrimental to the U.S. Wrong! It made small towns a tad less parochial.
Now, the turgid writing, or questionable writing.
1. Using "Kaycee" for K.C., the shortened version of Kansas City. I've never seen that.
2. Routinely capitalizing "Doughboy." Never seen that.
3. On Cronkite's second, and long-term, WWII trip to Europe, talking about Unterseebooten on initial reference, with U-Boat in parentheses. U-Boat is fine on first reference. So is "submarine."
===
That sais, I did learn:
1. Cronkite was a bit of a ... er ... horndog.
2. He was kind of a softball interviewer, and would have been a flop on a 60 Minutes.
3. He had a thin skin at times, paired with a long memory.
4. His grudges/animosities included Edward R. Murrow (perhaps because he was right about TV?), Dan Rather (quite possibly deserved), and Barbara Walters (in what comes off as professional jealousy related to point 2 above).
Cronkite was the best at the role he filled at CBS. That said, that role has largely come and gone.
And Cronkite still deserves a better biographer. How much did he react to his dad's alcoholic-level drinking? Brinkley only occasionally touches on that. Did Walter himself push the edge at times? Not asked at all.
While I learned a number of things about Cronkite from this book (see below), I learned even more about Douglas Brinkley as a history/biography writer, especially since this isn't the first book of his I've read.
Brinkley is the new Stephen Ambrose, I am thinking more and more, and that's not a compliment. Cronkite deserves a better biographer.
I think Brinkley, like his mentor Ambrose, uses a larger-than-normal stable of research assistants, who actually do a fair amount of rough-draft writing, with Brinkley being an editor as much as anything.
Well, the "editor" has several errors of fact and a few of interpretation. Plus, he's a turgid writer at times.
First, beyond simply stating our entry into WWI, and the drafting of Cronkite's dad, he opines — and opines the mainstream Eastern establishment type view that Germany fored us into war. Nowhere does he examine Wilson's tilt toward Britain from 1914. Either just state the fact of US entry, or else give us real analysis.
Second, Cronkite's dad, a dentist, was drafted as an officer. Yet, discussing Walter's WWII work with UPI, he has him chatting up Gen. Ira Eaker whom, he says, was drafted as a private **like Cronkite's dad.** Not the only whopper in the book, on outright errors.
On one photo, Cronkite's either made 10 years too young or the photo's dated 10 years too late. That's ultimately the copy editor's fault (book publishing is going down the tubes as much as newspapers at times), but it's also Brinkley's boo-boo.
Then there's an error of description of Houston, with its "gnarled oaks" and "mesquite groves." Uhh, while Houston may have a few mesquites scattered, there's no groves. "Stately oaks dripping with Spanish moss" is the right description. "Gnarled oaks" and "mesquite groves" is the Hill Country west of Austin. Worse, Brinkley teaches at Rice University in Houston and should know better.
Another error of interpretation? Claiming the rise of AP and UP (later UPI) was detrimental to the U.S. Wrong! It made small towns a tad less parochial.
Now, the turgid writing, or questionable writing.
1. Using "Kaycee" for K.C., the shortened version of Kansas City. I've never seen that.
2. Routinely capitalizing "Doughboy." Never seen that.
3. On Cronkite's second, and long-term, WWII trip to Europe, talking about Unterseebooten on initial reference, with U-Boat in parentheses. U-Boat is fine on first reference. So is "submarine."
===
That sais, I did learn:
1. Cronkite was a bit of a ... er ... horndog.
2. He was kind of a softball interviewer, and would have been a flop on a 60 Minutes.
3. He had a thin skin at times, paired with a long memory.
4. His grudges/animosities included Edward R. Murrow (perhaps because he was right about TV?), Dan Rather (quite possibly deserved), and Barbara Walters (in what comes off as professional jealousy related to point 2 above).
Cronkite was the best at the role he filled at CBS. That said, that role has largely come and gone.
And Cronkite still deserves a better biographer. How much did he react to his dad's alcoholic-level drinking? Brinkley only occasionally touches on that. Did Walter himself push the edge at times? Not asked at all.
November 29, 2018
MAGNIFICENT! Well-written, fair, exhaustive -- but not exhausting! This will be the definitive biography of the legendary TV newscaster, best known as "The Most Trusted Man in America"! I seldom read every word of any work of nonfiction, but I read every word of this book! I LOVED Walter Cronkite, and watched him every night. He was FAIR AND OBJECTIVE! His era in TV news is long gone! I STILL miss him! How I long for another Walter Cronkite! Why? Read the book!
December 6, 2018
I have read a lot of biographies, and have come to believe that the lives of nice guys often make for dull reading, but CRONKITE, a bio of the iconic anchor of the CBS Evening News, by Douglas Brinkley, made me rethink that assertion. This is one fascinating account of a great American life, and an excellent mini history of American culture from the Depression era to the Internet Age, and how the country got their daily news in a time of tremendous technological change, and more importantly, how Americans reacted to it all, in short, how we made the news, and how the news made us. If like me, you are a fan of THE POWERS THAT BE, David Halberstam’s epic account of the rise the mainstream media in the 20th Century, then much of CRONKITE will read like a sequel to that book, especially Halberstam’s sections on William S. Paley’s CBS.
If ever there was an icon, it was Walter Cronkite, “Uncle Walter” as was known to millions during his more than 20 years on the air as “the most trusted man in America.” Brinkley does a masterful job of telling us how this came about, while also giving us a portrait of a fully human man, and a great journalist from his early roots in Missouri and Texas to his rise as a network anchorman – a job he virtually invented – to his years at the top of his game and beyond. Cronkite found his calling early, and it was a love of journalism, of being the first to get a story, to get the facts, and get them before the public. Cronkite was a natural at the job of reporter, and covering World War II from Great Britain for UPI gave him an invaluable opportunity to hone his skills. It was more than being just a good print reporter, Cronkite had a smooth voice and the ability to ad-lib, skills that served him well on radio, and when the chance came, even better on TV. After the war, he went to work at CBS, where he would go on to supplant the legendary Edward R. Murrow as the face of the Tiffany Network’s news division. But as Brinkley tells it, success was hard work and long hours, as it took more than a few years for Cronkite to surpass Huntley-Brinkley over at NBC, who were for years the evening news ratings champions. The Kennedy assassination, the Civil Rights movement, the Vietnam War, the space program (one of Cronkite’s many passions), the landing on the moon, Watergate, and all the other massive stories of the 60’s and 70’s get plenty of print, but what I enjoyed was getting the behind the scenes newsman’s view of those stories, as how they were covered would often become as controversial as the story itself. That Walter Cronkite always strove for objectivity is something Brinkley makes clear, but he also implies that many of the big stories of the 60’s, especially the Vietnam War and the crusade for equal rights, often pitted one set of values cherished by Americans against another set of equally cherished values. On any given day, nightly news viewers would see something that would deeply anger and offend them, and in time, many of them would turn against the messenger, but through most of it, Cronkite retained his dignity, stayed cool on the air, and managed to retain cordial relations with Presidents and those in power, the exception being Richard Nixon and Spiro Agnew, but they hated everybody.
For me, the most interesting parts concerned the big stories many consider Cronkite’s finest hours, starting with the Kennedy assassination, the event where network news came of age, which gave us the iconic sound bite where Cronkite pauses, takes off his glasses and then announces the President’s death after getting it confirmed by the hospital – a piece of film that has turned up on every single retrospective on that terrible day in Dallas ever since. I couldn’t help but have respect for Cronkite after reading how he went to Vietnam during the 1968 Tet offensive and covered that battle up close, going into harm’s way countless times – despite being the most well paid newsman in America, he still went into a war zone to get the real story. This set the stage for him to go on TV and tell the American public that after years of fighting, there was no light at the end of the tunnel in South Vietnam, and that the stalemate would only end in a negotiated settlement. It says something that Lyndon Johnson, who could hold a grudge, remained on good terms with Cronkite afterward. His relationship with NASA is detailed, an organization for which he was often accused of being a cheerleader, though there is no denying his genuine enthusiasm for the space program and the lunar landing in 1969. There is no getting away from the issue of bias, which was festering even back in the glory days of the 60’s, and though Walter Cronkite strove hard to be objective on air, there is no denying CBS was less than fair to Barry Goldwater in 1964, but it was hardly the bastion of social liberalism conservative critics would later claim, as Brinkley makes it plain that Cronkite took his time when it came to feminism and gay rights. Long after he left the anchor’s chair, Cronkite became a vocal supporter of left wing causes, opposing the Gulf War, and later, George W. Bush’s invasion of Iraq, and supporting the legalization of marijuana, and right wingers would push back, claiming it was only Uncle Walter showing his true colors.
I liked Brinkley’s writing style, the chapters are well laid out, covering a specific period of time and a series of events, working in personal details, like Cronkite’s love of sailing, good drink, a bawdy joke, his home life, where he was a loving, but a far too absent husband and father, though his marriage would be a strong one to the end. In one part, the author does not mince words when dispensing with Bill Moyers’s criticism of CBS’s Vietnam coverage, while laying out a damning case that Dan Rather was one insecure jerk. The book came out a few years ago, and in some places it is telling, as when the now gone and forgotten FOX news host, Bill O’Reilly, is quoted. We also get the picture that there is little loyalty at CBS, no matter who is in charge, Murrow was pushed toward the door in the last years of his career, and Cronkite was often given a cold shoulder in his retirement.
I think Brinkley’s book does a good job of proving that Walter Cronkite is still relevant decades after he gave up the anchor’s chair and nearly a decade since his death; he stood for an objective standard, and for a pact with his viewers that implied that he would not lie, nor knowingly miss lead them. Today, people get their news from social media; or a cable channel that that totally supports their world view in every way; it’s a world where you can pick your facts and choose your truth, and live a life without anyone challenging your beliefs. That this is a disaster waiting to happen, if it not already, is clear to anyone who can take a step back and see things for what they are; once upon a time, men like Walter Cronkite came into homes each evening at dinner time, and told us just that. Journalists who had earned our trust and it was returned in kind. Those days are gone, and their absence is a gaping hole only a few seem notice. There is no Walter Cronkite now to tell us, “That’s the way it is.” What a shame.
If ever there was an icon, it was Walter Cronkite, “Uncle Walter” as was known to millions during his more than 20 years on the air as “the most trusted man in America.” Brinkley does a masterful job of telling us how this came about, while also giving us a portrait of a fully human man, and a great journalist from his early roots in Missouri and Texas to his rise as a network anchorman – a job he virtually invented – to his years at the top of his game and beyond. Cronkite found his calling early, and it was a love of journalism, of being the first to get a story, to get the facts, and get them before the public. Cronkite was a natural at the job of reporter, and covering World War II from Great Britain for UPI gave him an invaluable opportunity to hone his skills. It was more than being just a good print reporter, Cronkite had a smooth voice and the ability to ad-lib, skills that served him well on radio, and when the chance came, even better on TV. After the war, he went to work at CBS, where he would go on to supplant the legendary Edward R. Murrow as the face of the Tiffany Network’s news division. But as Brinkley tells it, success was hard work and long hours, as it took more than a few years for Cronkite to surpass Huntley-Brinkley over at NBC, who were for years the evening news ratings champions. The Kennedy assassination, the Civil Rights movement, the Vietnam War, the space program (one of Cronkite’s many passions), the landing on the moon, Watergate, and all the other massive stories of the 60’s and 70’s get plenty of print, but what I enjoyed was getting the behind the scenes newsman’s view of those stories, as how they were covered would often become as controversial as the story itself. That Walter Cronkite always strove for objectivity is something Brinkley makes clear, but he also implies that many of the big stories of the 60’s, especially the Vietnam War and the crusade for equal rights, often pitted one set of values cherished by Americans against another set of equally cherished values. On any given day, nightly news viewers would see something that would deeply anger and offend them, and in time, many of them would turn against the messenger, but through most of it, Cronkite retained his dignity, stayed cool on the air, and managed to retain cordial relations with Presidents and those in power, the exception being Richard Nixon and Spiro Agnew, but they hated everybody.
For me, the most interesting parts concerned the big stories many consider Cronkite’s finest hours, starting with the Kennedy assassination, the event where network news came of age, which gave us the iconic sound bite where Cronkite pauses, takes off his glasses and then announces the President’s death after getting it confirmed by the hospital – a piece of film that has turned up on every single retrospective on that terrible day in Dallas ever since. I couldn’t help but have respect for Cronkite after reading how he went to Vietnam during the 1968 Tet offensive and covered that battle up close, going into harm’s way countless times – despite being the most well paid newsman in America, he still went into a war zone to get the real story. This set the stage for him to go on TV and tell the American public that after years of fighting, there was no light at the end of the tunnel in South Vietnam, and that the stalemate would only end in a negotiated settlement. It says something that Lyndon Johnson, who could hold a grudge, remained on good terms with Cronkite afterward. His relationship with NASA is detailed, an organization for which he was often accused of being a cheerleader, though there is no denying his genuine enthusiasm for the space program and the lunar landing in 1969. There is no getting away from the issue of bias, which was festering even back in the glory days of the 60’s, and though Walter Cronkite strove hard to be objective on air, there is no denying CBS was less than fair to Barry Goldwater in 1964, but it was hardly the bastion of social liberalism conservative critics would later claim, as Brinkley makes it plain that Cronkite took his time when it came to feminism and gay rights. Long after he left the anchor’s chair, Cronkite became a vocal supporter of left wing causes, opposing the Gulf War, and later, George W. Bush’s invasion of Iraq, and supporting the legalization of marijuana, and right wingers would push back, claiming it was only Uncle Walter showing his true colors.
I liked Brinkley’s writing style, the chapters are well laid out, covering a specific period of time and a series of events, working in personal details, like Cronkite’s love of sailing, good drink, a bawdy joke, his home life, where he was a loving, but a far too absent husband and father, though his marriage would be a strong one to the end. In one part, the author does not mince words when dispensing with Bill Moyers’s criticism of CBS’s Vietnam coverage, while laying out a damning case that Dan Rather was one insecure jerk. The book came out a few years ago, and in some places it is telling, as when the now gone and forgotten FOX news host, Bill O’Reilly, is quoted. We also get the picture that there is little loyalty at CBS, no matter who is in charge, Murrow was pushed toward the door in the last years of his career, and Cronkite was often given a cold shoulder in his retirement.
I think Brinkley’s book does a good job of proving that Walter Cronkite is still relevant decades after he gave up the anchor’s chair and nearly a decade since his death; he stood for an objective standard, and for a pact with his viewers that implied that he would not lie, nor knowingly miss lead them. Today, people get their news from social media; or a cable channel that that totally supports their world view in every way; it’s a world where you can pick your facts and choose your truth, and live a life without anyone challenging your beliefs. That this is a disaster waiting to happen, if it not already, is clear to anyone who can take a step back and see things for what they are; once upon a time, men like Walter Cronkite came into homes each evening at dinner time, and told us just that. Journalists who had earned our trust and it was returned in kind. Those days are gone, and their absence is a gaping hole only a few seem notice. There is no Walter Cronkite now to tell us, “That’s the way it is.” What a shame.
February 4, 2017
Overall this book was enjoyable. I thought it provided a good review of American History post World War II to the early 80s. It also provided a good review of how Americans consume the news, from World War II (primarily newspapers and radio) to now (internet and cable news). Walter Cronkite was dubbed the most trusted man of America. However, he was not above questionable behavior. For example, he bugged a committee room at the 1952 Republican National Convention so he could learn more about the fight between Ohio Sen. Robert Taft and Dwight Eisenhower. This seems more egregious then anything Brian Williams did. Some people believe that his reporting became more biased after his 1968 "Report from Vietnam" regarding the Tet offensive, where he basically said the war was a stalemate and that America would be better off trying to negotiate peace. This was a big deal, as most reporters on the ground were instructed to just report the facts, without giving any commentary. Some people felt his reporting was biased. It could be argued that this was the start of the "liberal Main Stream Media" argument many people make. In fact, in 1971, Vice President Agnew gave a speech (written by Pat Buchanan) that sounded very much like a speech our current president would give about the news media. Regardless, Cronkite believed that the Johnson and Nixon administrations were being untruthful, and destructed the government since.
The last 200 pages or so were a little less pleasant, as it related to his retirement in 1981. Apparently, he hated Dan Rather. This came as a shock to me as I always liked Dan Rather (though I was primarily a Peter Jennings man). He was actually happy when Dan Rather was fired in 2004. Further, he struck me as a creepy older man, flirting with women and things of the nature. While he did advocate for noble causes at the end of his career, I just wished it was done with a little more dignity.
The last 200 pages or so were a little less pleasant, as it related to his retirement in 1981. Apparently, he hated Dan Rather. This came as a shock to me as I always liked Dan Rather (though I was primarily a Peter Jennings man). He was actually happy when Dan Rather was fired in 2004. Further, he struck me as a creepy older man, flirting with women and things of the nature. While he did advocate for noble causes at the end of his career, I just wished it was done with a little more dignity.
October 9, 2012
Journalism and the world in general are better because Walter Cronkite was among us. I am a better human being for having waded through this hefty book. I am in awe of the depth of research and the voluminous interviews which contributed to this detailed and engaging chronicle of a witness to history without equal. I am quite taken with a summary near the end which seems to capture why so many of us have such feeling for the man to this day --
"The Cronkite attitude, stout and undaunted, combined with bedrock humility and compassion, gave the Missourian the ability to steady uncertain times. At the height of Cronkite's fame as CBS anchorman, he tried to identify that elusive quality in his DNA makeup, that defining ingredient that made him different, and somehow managed to explain it. 'There are better writers than me, better reporters, better speakers, better-looking people and better interviewers,' he said. 'I don't understand my appeal. It gets down to an unknown quality, maybe communication of integrity. I have a sense of mission. That sounds pompous, but I like the news. Facts are sacred. I feel people should know about the world, should know the truth as much as possible. I care about the world, about people, about the future. Maybe that comes across.'"
Indeed it did and continues to do so to this day.
"The Cronkite attitude, stout and undaunted, combined with bedrock humility and compassion, gave the Missourian the ability to steady uncertain times. At the height of Cronkite's fame as CBS anchorman, he tried to identify that elusive quality in his DNA makeup, that defining ingredient that made him different, and somehow managed to explain it. 'There are better writers than me, better reporters, better speakers, better-looking people and better interviewers,' he said. 'I don't understand my appeal. It gets down to an unknown quality, maybe communication of integrity. I have a sense of mission. That sounds pompous, but I like the news. Facts are sacred. I feel people should know about the world, should know the truth as much as possible. I care about the world, about people, about the future. Maybe that comes across.'"
Indeed it did and continues to do so to this day.
December 21, 2015
I usually read the reviews of others before I write my own review -- I hesitate to cover ground others might have covered in a better manner.
I saw only one other reviewer mention something that jumped out to me. Mr. Cronkite spent his career fighting for what he considered impartial reporting of the news, and the journalism required to bring those news reports. Yet Cronkite was a liberal all of his adult life, and in his life after he left broadcasting, was very extreme, like one-world-government., George Soros extreme. The book spent about half the time stating how journalism has deteriorated in the years since Cronkite left, and about half the time telling me that Cronkite did not participate in objective journalism. He picked his targets, and oddly, none of them were liberals. He wouldn't have ever admitted it, but it was evident to me from what I listened to.
Liberals will enjoy this book about Cronkite, conservatives much less so. Because I listened to it, and did not read it, I was not aware of the editing mistakes others noted. I did see that at times the author repeated himself, and treated the second or third reference to something like it was being introduced for the first time. That tended to make the story drag.
I saw only one other reviewer mention something that jumped out to me. Mr. Cronkite spent his career fighting for what he considered impartial reporting of the news, and the journalism required to bring those news reports. Yet Cronkite was a liberal all of his adult life, and in his life after he left broadcasting, was very extreme, like one-world-government., George Soros extreme. The book spent about half the time stating how journalism has deteriorated in the years since Cronkite left, and about half the time telling me that Cronkite did not participate in objective journalism. He picked his targets, and oddly, none of them were liberals. He wouldn't have ever admitted it, but it was evident to me from what I listened to.
Liberals will enjoy this book about Cronkite, conservatives much less so. Because I listened to it, and did not read it, I was not aware of the editing mistakes others noted. I did see that at times the author repeated himself, and treated the second or third reference to something like it was being introduced for the first time. That tended to make the story drag.
April 16, 2023
Summary: The biography of Walter Cronkite, from his early reporting days, his United Press work during World War 2, and his years at CBS, including his nineteen years on the CBS Evening News, and his “retirement years,” where he came out as a liberal.
I grew up with “Uncle Walter.” I was a fourth grader when John F. Kennedy was assassinated and watched as Walter Cronkite walked us through the days that followed, from his initial announcement of the death of Kennedy, removing his glasses and sitting in silence, connecting with the stunned response of all of us. I watched the unfolding of the Vietnam war, which Cronkite declared, after visiting the front lines in 1967, a “stalemate.” He covered the horrors of 1968 from the deaths of Kennedy and King through the turbulent 1968 Democratic convention. With the world, I watched the orbiting of the moon on Christmas eve in 1968, and the landing on the moon in the summer of 1969, accompanied by his characteristic “Oh, boy!” Watergate, the fall of Saigon, the Iran hostages, and that final sign off in March of 1981. “That’s the way it is.”
Douglas Brinkley chronicles all of this in this outstanding biography, and so much more. He covers the shaping and the rise that made him “the most trusted man in America.” We follow him from his sports reporting forays, his unfinished college career at UT Austin, his radio news experience at KCMO, and the pivotal opportunity of becoming night editor at the United Press office in Kansas City, that honed his instincts as a news hound both careful with the facts and eager to be the first to break the story that would go with him for the rest of his life. Then the war came, and through persistence he won the opportunity to cover the war in Europe for the United Press on the front lines, flying in a bombing run, and with troops in northern Africa, on D-Day, and the Battle of the Bulge, first meeting Andy Rooney as part of the “Writing 69th.” His bombing dispatch caught the attention of Edward R. Murrow, who thought he’d succeeded in recruiting Cronkite to CBS only to have him renege, still believing print was the thing.
Murrow tried again and Cronkite joined CBS in the fifties to cover the Korean War. Returning stateside, he failed as the host of CBS’s version of the Today show, hosted “You Are There,” a weekly show in which Cronkite would interview historical figures or cover events like the Boston Tea Party. It was in 1956 that he found his true calling as anchor of CBS television’s political convention coverage, first earning the nickname, “Old Ironpants” for his stamina.
We learn about the complicated relationship with Edward R. Murrow, the dean of broadcasters, both mentor and rival. Cronkite continued to accumulate achievements, polishing his TV credentials with the coverage of the Mercury 7 astronauts and his relationship with John Glenn. Murrow left CBS at Kennedy’s request to lead the US Information Agency. When it became apparent that Douglas Edwards was coming to the end of his tenure, the rivalry became fierce. In the end Cronkite won over Eric Sevareid, who did offer commentary at the end of newscasts for a time, Charles Collingwood, Charles Kuralt, and Howard K. Smith. Cronkite was Paley’s choice, and for nineteen years anchored the CBS Evening News.
Brinkley covers the team of people who worked with Cronkite, perhaps Richard Salant as news director, and a young, ambitious reporter by the name of Dan Rather. He describes the slow, upward climb to supplant NBC’s top position in the news ratings. He recounts the decisive role Cronkite played in changing the narrative about Vietnam, after passing along the administration version in 1965 and 1966, how he served to “platform” the story Woodward and Bernstein were putting together about Watergate, and his role in bringing Sadat and Begin together.
Brinkley offers an unvarnished account of how difficult Cronkite’s retirement was and his bitterness toward Dan Rather, his successor, who cut him out of opportunities to continue to contribute, despite Rather’s flagging ratings. They would never reconcile. Freed of the reporter’s commitment to neutrality, his own liberal views came to the fore, brought on, in part, by the movie, Network. In later years, he would rail on the war on drugs, and argue for the legalization of marijuana.
Betsy Cronkite, Walter’s wife of 65 years comes through as a force in her own right, often traveling with Cronkite, and helping him keep perspective. I was also surprised to learn that two of his close friends were Mickey Hart, drummer for the Grateful Dead, who encouraged Cronkite’s drumming, and Jimmy Buffett. I never knew Cronkite was either a “Deadhead” or a “Parrothead.” Buffett was actually at Cronkite’s death bed, playing songs, which he also did at his funeral.
Brinkley gives us a portrait with warts and all. Cronkite was absolutely tenacious about both getting the facts straight and getting the story out, and he succeeded so well at this because of his relentless pursuit of the reporter’s disciplines. He had a kind of “common touch” that came from middle-American roots but his credibility was earned and not just because of an “on air” personality. Yet he was contemptuous of some of his rivals, both Murrow and Rather. He liked to carouse, and while he gave opportunities to women like Connie Chung and Katie Couric, he was a bit of a chauvinist, still enjoying the company of his “old boys.”
Reading this account makes one wonder whether such news coverage is possible today, and perhaps wistful for a different time. Cronkite did not have to deal with a 24/7 news cycle on cable TV and the internet and the increasingly partisan character of many news outlets. I suspect he would have done what he did, pursue the facts and work at getting the story out both quickly and right. What this biography reminds me of is why we did not have the epistemic crisis in the Cronkite years that we face when it comes to the news today. Back then, you trusted Cronkite, and he warranted that trust. We didn’t ask, “who can you trust?” Today that sounds incredibly naïve. Sadly, today it is.
I grew up with “Uncle Walter.” I was a fourth grader when John F. Kennedy was assassinated and watched as Walter Cronkite walked us through the days that followed, from his initial announcement of the death of Kennedy, removing his glasses and sitting in silence, connecting with the stunned response of all of us. I watched the unfolding of the Vietnam war, which Cronkite declared, after visiting the front lines in 1967, a “stalemate.” He covered the horrors of 1968 from the deaths of Kennedy and King through the turbulent 1968 Democratic convention. With the world, I watched the orbiting of the moon on Christmas eve in 1968, and the landing on the moon in the summer of 1969, accompanied by his characteristic “Oh, boy!” Watergate, the fall of Saigon, the Iran hostages, and that final sign off in March of 1981. “That’s the way it is.”
Douglas Brinkley chronicles all of this in this outstanding biography, and so much more. He covers the shaping and the rise that made him “the most trusted man in America.” We follow him from his sports reporting forays, his unfinished college career at UT Austin, his radio news experience at KCMO, and the pivotal opportunity of becoming night editor at the United Press office in Kansas City, that honed his instincts as a news hound both careful with the facts and eager to be the first to break the story that would go with him for the rest of his life. Then the war came, and through persistence he won the opportunity to cover the war in Europe for the United Press on the front lines, flying in a bombing run, and with troops in northern Africa, on D-Day, and the Battle of the Bulge, first meeting Andy Rooney as part of the “Writing 69th.” His bombing dispatch caught the attention of Edward R. Murrow, who thought he’d succeeded in recruiting Cronkite to CBS only to have him renege, still believing print was the thing.
Murrow tried again and Cronkite joined CBS in the fifties to cover the Korean War. Returning stateside, he failed as the host of CBS’s version of the Today show, hosted “You Are There,” a weekly show in which Cronkite would interview historical figures or cover events like the Boston Tea Party. It was in 1956 that he found his true calling as anchor of CBS television’s political convention coverage, first earning the nickname, “Old Ironpants” for his stamina.
We learn about the complicated relationship with Edward R. Murrow, the dean of broadcasters, both mentor and rival. Cronkite continued to accumulate achievements, polishing his TV credentials with the coverage of the Mercury 7 astronauts and his relationship with John Glenn. Murrow left CBS at Kennedy’s request to lead the US Information Agency. When it became apparent that Douglas Edwards was coming to the end of his tenure, the rivalry became fierce. In the end Cronkite won over Eric Sevareid, who did offer commentary at the end of newscasts for a time, Charles Collingwood, Charles Kuralt, and Howard K. Smith. Cronkite was Paley’s choice, and for nineteen years anchored the CBS Evening News.
Brinkley covers the team of people who worked with Cronkite, perhaps Richard Salant as news director, and a young, ambitious reporter by the name of Dan Rather. He describes the slow, upward climb to supplant NBC’s top position in the news ratings. He recounts the decisive role Cronkite played in changing the narrative about Vietnam, after passing along the administration version in 1965 and 1966, how he served to “platform” the story Woodward and Bernstein were putting together about Watergate, and his role in bringing Sadat and Begin together.
Brinkley offers an unvarnished account of how difficult Cronkite’s retirement was and his bitterness toward Dan Rather, his successor, who cut him out of opportunities to continue to contribute, despite Rather’s flagging ratings. They would never reconcile. Freed of the reporter’s commitment to neutrality, his own liberal views came to the fore, brought on, in part, by the movie, Network. In later years, he would rail on the war on drugs, and argue for the legalization of marijuana.
Betsy Cronkite, Walter’s wife of 65 years comes through as a force in her own right, often traveling with Cronkite, and helping him keep perspective. I was also surprised to learn that two of his close friends were Mickey Hart, drummer for the Grateful Dead, who encouraged Cronkite’s drumming, and Jimmy Buffett. I never knew Cronkite was either a “Deadhead” or a “Parrothead.” Buffett was actually at Cronkite’s death bed, playing songs, which he also did at his funeral.
Brinkley gives us a portrait with warts and all. Cronkite was absolutely tenacious about both getting the facts straight and getting the story out, and he succeeded so well at this because of his relentless pursuit of the reporter’s disciplines. He had a kind of “common touch” that came from middle-American roots but his credibility was earned and not just because of an “on air” personality. Yet he was contemptuous of some of his rivals, both Murrow and Rather. He liked to carouse, and while he gave opportunities to women like Connie Chung and Katie Couric, he was a bit of a chauvinist, still enjoying the company of his “old boys.”
Reading this account makes one wonder whether such news coverage is possible today, and perhaps wistful for a different time. Cronkite did not have to deal with a 24/7 news cycle on cable TV and the internet and the increasingly partisan character of many news outlets. I suspect he would have done what he did, pursue the facts and work at getting the story out both quickly and right. What this biography reminds me of is why we did not have the epistemic crisis in the Cronkite years that we face when it comes to the news today. Back then, you trusted Cronkite, and he warranted that trust. We didn’t ask, “who can you trust?” Today that sounds incredibly naïve. Sadly, today it is.
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