Cronkite

A group seeking to uplift American political discourse announced yesterday that Gov. Parris N. Glendening and Republican challenger Ellen R. Sauerbrey had endorsed the broad principles of its code of conduct for political campaigns.The new Maryland affiliate of the Alliance for Better Campaigns, a national group led by former Washington Post political reporter Paul Taylor, released statements from the two campaigns in which they both agreed to participate in as many debates as possible.But the carefully worded statements by the campaigns fell far short of a specific acceptance of the rules proposed by the group.

After having spent many years racing Austin-Healeys, Volvos and Lotus Elevens, Walter Cronkite finally gave up the rough-and-tumble sport of competitive driving, to his family's great relief, and turned to the sea for relaxation. He wrote in his 1996 autobiography, A Reporter's Life, that sailing was a more "family-oriented sport that I should substitute for racing," but "there has never been anything as exhilarating as driving at speed in competition." Cronkite, who acknowledged that he had read plenty of books about the sea, didn't know the first thing about sailing when he began on a Sunfish in the late 1940s.

Walter Cronkite turns 90 years old today, and the renowned broadcaster has lost none of his lust for the news business. "I would like to think that I'm still quite capable of covering a story," he told the New York Daily News this week. After anchoring the CBS Evening News for nearly two decades, the man with the famous stentorian voice can now be heard introducing one of his successors, Katie Couric. Asked for his reaction when CBS News executives invited him to do the introduction, he replied without hesitation: "I would like to be doing the whole broadcast."

Walter Cronkite, once the most trusted man in America and a leading figure in broadcast journalism's Mount Rushmore, believed the nation's war on drugs was unwinnable, and he said so on television. A decade after his years with CBS News, Mr. Cronkite succeeded in raising public awareness of the war's futility - an impressive accomplishment. Of course, Mr. Cronkite is famous for having reached the same correct conclusion about the Vietnam War in 1968. All of his obituaries have recalled Mr. Cronkite's special report from Vietnam, his characterization of the war as stalemate and his call for a negotiated peace.

Is it too late to save the Chesapeake Bay? Walter Cronkite asks the question rhetorically at the close of a provocative new educational film about the degraded estuary -- and answers his own question with uneasy equivocation."

After having spent many years racing Austin-Healeys, Volvos and Lotus Elevens, Walter Cronkite finally gave up the rough-and-tumble sport of competitive driving, to his family's great relief, and turned to the sea for relaxation. He wrote in his 1996 autobiography, A Reporter's Life, that sailing was a more "family-oriented sport that I should substitute for racing," but "there has never been anything as exhilarating as driving at speed in competition." Cronkite, who acknowledged that he had read plenty of books about the sea, didn't know the first thing about sailing when he began on a Sunfish in the late 1940s.

CBS News legends Walter Cronkite and Andy Rooney rave about the recently released Good Night, and Good Luck, but they worry that the George Clooney movie could baffle younger viewers. "Because of the complexity of the story line, and the entire generation that's grown up since those events, some of us felt there should have been a little introduction to what it was all about to set the scene," says Cronkite, 88, former CBS Evening News anchorman. Here's an introduction: Director Clooney depicts how Edward R. Murrow of CBS News challenged Sen. Joseph R. McCarthy's intimidating methods in investigating Communist influence on the U.S. government in the 1950s.

If there is such a thing as an unpretentious 64-foot yacht, the two-masted vessel owned by Walter Cronkite is it. While some owners turn their boats into floating jewel boxes, Cronkite's Wyntje is the kind of boat on which you could spill your lemonade and not worry about being thrown overboard. "He has [the boat] to sail. Not sit in the harbor," said J. Holt, the yacht's smiley 28-year-old captain. "It is very family-friendly." The upholstery is faded, and the wood panels gleam but don't overwhelm.

Walter Cronkite, the most widely known and respected anchorman in network TV history, will be joining the Columbia-based Retirement Living TV channel on Tuesday as a weekly commentator. The 91-year-old journalist, who was anchor and managing editor of the CBS Evening News during its heyday from 1962 to 1981, will appear on videotape delivering editorial commentaries every Tuesday during the Daily Cafe, a two-hour noontime program anchored by former CNN newscasters Bobbie Battista and Felicia Taylor.

Former CBS anchorman Walter Cronkite, who was named the "most trusted man in America" in a 1972 poll and came to personify the golden age of network TV news, died Friday. He was 92. Mr. Cronkite's longtime chief of staff, Marlene Adler, said Mr. Cronkite died at 7:42 p.m. at his Manhattan home surrounded by family. She said the cause of death was cerebral vascular disease. Known for his avuncular camera presence and fierce commitment to fact-based journalism, Mr. Cronkite was the face and voice that most Americans turned to from 1962 to 1981, when the CBS Evening News with Walter Cronkite became TV's most influential news franchise.

There was something about Uncle Walt. He was so ... avuncular. Walter Cronkite became the most trusted man in television precisely because he seemed so grown up. The CBS anchor was a pillar of maturity, reliability and unemotional accountability - just the sort of fellow who could sell you a tin of coffee by simply taking a sip. During a bumpy time in our nation's history, he filled a need for order amid chaos. By showing up every night at the same time, same place - speaking simply and without drama - he conveyed a sense that someone was in charge.

Former CBS anchorman Walter Cronkite, who was named the "most trusted man in America" in a 1972 poll and came to personify the golden age of network TV news, died Friday. He was 92. Mr. Cronkite's longtime chief of staff, Marlene Adler, said Mr. Cronkite died at 7:42 p.m. at his Manhattan home surrounded by family. She said the cause of death was cerebral vascular disease. Known for his avuncular camera presence and fierce commitment to fact-based journalism, Mr. Cronkite was the face and voice that most Americans turned to from 1962 to 1981, when the CBS Evening News with Walter Cronkite became TV's most influential news franchise.

Ship may pose toxic threat A former World War II hospital ship that is moored in Baltimore will soon be towed to Greece, under a plan that's raising legal questions and pollution concerns. A Seattle environmental group claims the Sanctuary contains toxic polychlorinated biphenyls and that towing it abroad would violate federal rules barring the export of PCBs. Sparrows Point deal doubted The local that represents workers at Sparrows Point is questioning the sale of the plant to an investment group led by Chicago-based Esmark Inc. John Cirri, president of United Steelworkers Local 9477, sent a letter to the international union body asking it to reconsider its support of the sale to E2 Acquisition Corp.

Walter Cronkite, the most widely known and respected anchorman in network TV history, will be joining the Columbia-based Retirement Living TV channel on Tuesday as a weekly commentator. The 91-year-old journalist, who was anchor and managing editor of the CBS Evening News during its heyday from 1962 to 1981, will appear on videotape delivering editorial commentaries every Tuesday during the Daily Cafe, a two-hour noontime program anchored by former CNN newscasters Bobbie Battista and Felicia Taylor.

Walter Cronkite turns 90 years old today, and the renowned broadcaster has lost none of his lust for the news business. "I would like to think that I'm still quite capable of covering a story," he told the New York Daily News this week. After anchoring the CBS Evening News for nearly two decades, the man with the famous stentorian voice can now be heard introducing one of his successors, Katie Couric. Asked for his reaction when CBS News executives invited him to do the introduction, he replied without hesitation: "I would like to be doing the whole broadcast."

If there is such a thing as an unpretentious 64-foot yacht, the two-masted vessel owned by Walter Cronkite is it. While some owners turn their boats into floating jewel boxes, Cronkite's Wyntje is the kind of boat where you could spill your lemonade and not worry about being thrown overboard. "He has [the boat] to sail. Not sit in the harbor," said J. Holt, the yacht's smiley 28-year-old captain. "It is very family-friendly." The upholstery is faded, and the wood panels gleam but don't overwhelm.

When tourists come to eat seafood or stroll by the water in Annapolis, they often miss the history surrounding them. Perhaps Walter Cronkite will change that.The former CBS anchorman, a longtime Chesapeake Bay sailor, has taped a 1 1/2 -hour walking tour through the city. Simple plaques mark the Georgian architecture, but visitors usually don't get to hear the colorful stories of the shipbuilders, tavern owners and national leaders who lived in Maryland's Colonial capital.The Historic Annapolis Foundation has wanted to offer visitors who miss its group tours a self-guided version for some time, said Linnell R. Bowen, director of development for the nonprofit organization.

Legendary broadcast journalist Walter Cronkite, visiting Annapolis yesterday to receive an honor from the new National Sailing Hall of Fame, voiced support for new CBS Evening News anchor Katie Couric and said he hopes the recent retooling of the show is successful. "I think she is doing a great job," Cronkite said of Couric, who last week took the anchor chair that Cronkite occupied from 1962 to 1981. Cronkite, 89, who has been critical of what he views as increasing sensationalism in broadcast news, declined to discuss his views on the state of the industry during a brief interview at Annapolis' City Dock.