Tim Russert

Leave aside the fact that U.S. troops in Iraq have not yet found the expected caches of weapons of mass destruction, the existence of which the American media largely failed to question adequately before last spring's invasion. Forget, too, the press' oversight in its weak pursuit of sketchy early reports - months ago - of abuse of Iraqis prisoners by Americans. Tim Russert thinks the media has done a pretty good job in covering the U.S.-led invasion and occupation of Iraq. But then, Russert gets to think that, because he performs his job so skillfully.

For virtually all the time I spent in politics, my main function was to craft words for someone else. And, for a long time, I was pretty good at it. In fact, I got so good at it that, when I finally decided I wanted to start opining under my own name again, it took some adjustment. The biggest change was learning how to resist the urge to self-edit, to choose my words against an internal calculus weighted in favor of what I should say at the expense of what I wanted to say. But once I learned how to do it, I felt liberated.

Work hard. Tell the truth. Cultivate a firm handshake. Look everybody straight in the eye. Dodge no problems or issues. Venerable virtues that to many have seemed quintessentially un-American since the 1960s now re-emerge as the heart of American character. So insists Tim Russert, the television personality. He does that in Big Russ & Me: Father and Son: Lessons of Life (Miramax, 352 pages, $22.95), which is destined to dominate the Father's Day market. Russert, born in 1950, grew up in South Buffalo, N.Y. His father, who never finished high school, drove a sanitation truck for a living, later becoming a foreman.

Gregory named successor to Russert on 'Press' David Gregory's new job as moderator of Meet the Press was made official yesterday with an announcement on the long-running NBC interview program that he will take over starting next week. The 38-year-old chief White House correspondent was introduced by Tom Brokaw, who stepped in as temporary host in June after the death of Tim Russert, the program's moderator since 1991. "I've thought a lot about what it means to succeed somebody like Tim Russert," Gregory told viewers.

So it is that we find ourselves on Father's Day mourning a man who was one of the pre-eminent journalists of his generation - but, more important, a man who was passionate about his role as a father and a son. Tim Russert pursued his work as NBC Washington Bureau chief and moderator of Meet the Press with tough intelligence and joyous energy. He doggedly challenged politicians, Republicans and Democrats, and explained the tangled politics of Washington in fair-minded terms Americans appreciated.

Tim Russert, the hard-charging and fast-talking NBC journalist who was equally respected by politicians and journalists, died of a heart attack on the job yesterday, collapsing in the network's Washington bureau that he so capably led the past decade. Mr. Russert, who also served as host of Meet the Press, the longest-running Sunday-morning public-affairs show on TV, was 58. The veteran newsman, who was recording voiceovers for Sunday's show when the attack occurred, was pronounced dead at Washington's Sibley Memorial Hospital after resuscitation efforts failed.

A listing of commencement exercises held yesterday incorrectly identified Samuel H. Lacy as the speaker at Loyola College. In fact, the longtime Baltimore Afro-American sports editor received an honorary degree. The commencement speaker was Tim Russert, the Washington bureau chief of NBC News and host of "Meet the Press."The Sun regrets the errors.Pub Date: 5/18/97

WASHINGTON - A federal grand jury has subpoenaed at least two journalists, Tim Russert of NBC's Meet the Press and Michael Cooper of Time magazine, to testify about whether the Bush White House leaked the identity of an undercover CIA officer to the news media. Lawyers for both NBC and Time said they would fight the subpoenas. NBC said a subpoena could have a "chilling effect" on its ability to report the news. In a statement, Neal Shapiro, the network's president, said, "Sources will simply stop speaking with the press if they fear those conversations will become public."

Last year, as Father's Day approached, I asked readers to answer the question, "What did you learn from your father?" The response was impressive. Men and women from all over, most of them baby boomers, took the opportunity to write loving tributes to their dads and to enumerate life lessons they'd passed along. Reading them made me happy, and envious. Many of the responses were posted on my blog, Random Rodricks. This year, we asked the same question and didn't get much of a response.

Gregory named successor to Russert on 'Press' David Gregory's new job as moderator of Meet the Press was made official yesterday with an announcement on the long-running NBC interview program that he will take over starting next week. The 38-year-old chief White House correspondent was introduced by Tom Brokaw, who stepped in as temporary host in June after the death of Tim Russert, the program's moderator since 1991. "I've thought a lot about what it means to succeed somebody like Tim Russert," Gregory told viewers.

So it is that we find ourselves on Father's Day mourning a man who was one of the pre-eminent journalists of his generation - but, more important, a man who was passionate about his role as a father and a son. Tim Russert pursued his work as NBC Washington Bureau chief and moderator of Meet the Press with tough intelligence and joyous energy. He doggedly challenged politicians, Republicans and Democrats, and explained the tangled politics of Washington in fair-minded terms Americans appreciated.

Last year, as Father's Day approached, I asked readers to answer the question, "What did you learn from your father?" The response was impressive. Men and women from all over, most of them baby boomers, took the opportunity to write loving tributes to their dads and to enumerate life lessons they'd passed along. Reading them made me happy, and envious. Many of the responses were posted on my blog, Random Rodricks. This year, we asked the same question and didn't get much of a response.

Tim Russert, the hard-charging and fast-talking NBC journalist who was equally respected by politicians and journalists, died of a heart attack on the job yesterday, collapsing in the network's Washington bureau that he so capably led the past decade. Mr. Russert, who also served as host of Meet the Press, the longest-running Sunday-morning public-affairs show on TV, was 58. The veteran newsman, who was recording voiceovers for Sunday's show when the attack occurred, was pronounced dead at Washington's Sibley Memorial Hospital after resuscitation efforts failed.

WASHINGTON -- It was classic Tim Russert: On yesterday's Meet the Press, Lt. Gov. Michael S. Steele was talking about the United States Supreme Court and Clarence Thomas, one of its most conservative justices. Steele has called Thomas a hero but yesterday said he disagrees with him on a number of issues. Like what? "I strongly support affirmative action," Steele said. Russert saw an opening. "You haven't always supported it," he said. "No, I've always supported affirmative action," Steele replied.

WASHINGTON - A federal grand jury has subpoenaed at least two journalists, Tim Russert of NBC's Meet the Press and Michael Cooper of Time magazine, to testify about whether the Bush White House leaked the identity of an undercover CIA officer to the news media. Lawyers for both NBC and Time said they would fight the subpoenas. NBC said a subpoena could have a "chilling effect" on its ability to report the news. In a statement, Neal Shapiro, the network's president, said, "Sources will simply stop speaking with the press if they fear those conversations will become public."

Leave aside the fact that U.S. troops in Iraq have not yet found the expected caches of weapons of mass destruction, the existence of which the American media largely failed to question adequately before last spring's invasion. Forget, too, the press' oversight in its weak pursuit of sketchy early reports - months ago - of abuse of Iraqis prisoners by Americans. Tim Russert thinks the media has done a pretty good job in covering the U.S.-led invasion and occupation of Iraq. But then, Russert gets to think that, because he performs his job so skillfully.

Those nasty aliens on "Dark Skies" bid prime time goodbye (except possibly for reruns), tonight on NBC."Children's Miracle Network Champions Telethon" (9 p.m.-6 p.m. tomorrow, WMAR, Channel 2) -- CMN co-founders Marie Osmond and John Schneider are the hosts for this 15th annual fund-raiser for children's hospitals. Live from Walt Disney World in Florida, scheduled performers include Kenny Loggins and John Tesh, with appearances by athletes Drew Bledsoe, Steve Young, Shannon Miller and Kerri Strug.

What a week to hobnob in Baltimore. It's not often that in one week I have lunch or dinner in the company of Jay Leno, Bob Costas, Tim Russert, James Robinson, Cardinal William H. Keeler, Cal Ripken Jr., Art Donovan, Ned Beatty, Tom Clancy, and I could go on and on.The festivities began Tuesday evening, when WBAL-TV put on quite a show in the Hyatt ballroom. As most of you know, on Jan. 2, Baltimore's three major television stations change affiliations -- NBC moves to WBAL-TV; ABC moves to WMAR-TV and CBS moves to WJZ-TV.

Work hard. Tell the truth. Cultivate a firm handshake. Look everybody straight in the eye. Dodge no problems or issues. Venerable virtues that to many have seemed quintessentially un-American since the 1960s now re-emerge as the heart of American character. So insists Tim Russert, the television personality. He does that in Big Russ & Me: Father and Son: Lessons of Life (Miramax, 352 pages, $22.95), which is destined to dominate the Father's Day market. Russert, born in 1950, grew up in South Buffalo, N.Y. His father, who never finished high school, drove a sanitation truck for a living, later becoming a foreman.

Those nasty aliens on "Dark Skies" bid prime time goodbye (except possibly for reruns), tonight on NBC."Children's Miracle Network Champions Telethon" (9 p.m.-6 p.m. tomorrow, WMAR, Channel 2) -- CMN co-founders Marie Osmond and John Schneider are the hosts for this 15th annual fund-raiser for children's hospitals. Live from Walt Disney World in Florida, scheduled performers include Kenny Loggins and John Tesh, with appearances by athletes Drew Bledsoe, Steve Young, Shannon Miller and Kerri Strug.