Posted by
David Zublick on Sunday, June 15, 2008 9:02:18 AM
It was with great shock and sadness that we learned of the untimely passing of Tim
Russert.
Here was the consummate journalist.
Russert
may have had leftist political leanings, but they were never evident on
the air. Whether he was interrogating a liberal or a conservative, he
was tough but fair. And I do not use the term interrogate lightly. All
of his guests knew going in that they needed to do their homework
before stepping into his arena.
Russert
researched his subjects thoroughly. He would delve into statements they
had made in the past, and took them to task on recent views which were
in contrast to previous remarks. Many a time you could sense the
discomfort from a guest being skewered with his own words up on the
screen. But everyone from Howard Dean to Karl Rove walked away feeling
they had been treated fairly. And as Rove put it this week, if after
putting in two hours of preparation for a fifteen minute segment with
Russert you walked away feeling you had gone toe to toe with him and come across well, that was quite an accomplishment.
Russert was also a loving husband, father and son.
Russert's family meant the world to him. His best selling book about his father,
Bid Russ and Me was quite a tribute, and it inspired a second book,
Wisdom of Our Fathers, which was based on 60,000 letters he received from people for whom his
relationship with his dad had struck a responsive chord.
A devout Catholic, it is said he attended mass almost every day. He lived his faith and his life to the fullest.
He will be
sorely missed. And Sunday mornings will never be the same.
Listen to America Talks Monday through Thursday at 6 pm eastern time at www.blogtalkradio.com/americatalks. Visit our website at www.americatalks.com.