Edward R. Murrow and the Birth of Broadcast Journalism (Turning Points in History)
by Bob Edwards

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Book Reviews of Edward R. Murrow and the Birth of Broadcast Journalism (Turning Points in History)

Book Review: Superb Murrow Biography Has Message for Journalism's Future
Summary: 5 Stars

On the back of the book jacket, Edwards refers to Murrow as "someone with the highest standards. Tabloid crime stories, so much a part of the lust for ratings by today's news broadcasters, held no interest for Murrow ... I offer [this book] in the hope that more people in and out of the news business will get to know Ed Murrow. Perhaps in time the descent from Murrow's principles can be reversed."

There is real irony in those words, for, no sooner had this book been published, then the corporate bureaucrats at National Public Radio summarily fired Edwards as anchor of their flagship news show, "Morning Edition," which he had built over 25 years into the most-listened-to news show in radio broadcast history. The lame explanations about "natural evolution" of the show made no sense to most listeners, and "Morning Edition," which Edwards nurtured for a quarter century, is vastly less interesting without him. It hasn't descended to tabloid crime stories yet, but there are far more silly, feel-good puff pieces, and less rigorous news coverage and analysis than when Edwards sat in the anchor chair.

Ed Murrow's departure from CBS left Walter Cronkite as the nation's pre-eminent broadcast journalist, and Cronkite was a giant. But, with a few exceptions, broadcast journalism has suffered in the twenty years since Cronkite's retirement. Now, with Tom Brokaw's impending retirement from NBC, and Bob Edwards' departure from NPR's Morning Edition, we the audience may be in for more and more empty "infotainment," and less and less news coverage that lives up to Ed Murrow's high standards. The light that Bob Edwards' little gem of a book has shined on Ed Murrow's life will at least help us to understand what we're losing, and just might help kindle a demand for a return to the kind of journalism that can nurture and sustain our democracy instead of titillating, or simply pandering to the lowest common denominator.

Bill Moyers is quoted as saying of this book, "Get it, read it, and pass it on." I heartily agree.

Summary of Edward R. Murrow and the Birth of Broadcast Journalism (Turning Points in History)

"Most Americans living today never heard Ed Murrow in a live broadcast. This book is for them I want them to know that broadcast journalism was established by someone with the highest standards. Tabloid crime stories, so much a part of the lust for ratings by today's news broadcasters, held no interest for Murrow. He did like Hollywood celebrities, but interviewed them for his entertainment programs; they had no place on his news programs. My book is focused on this life in journalism. I offer it in the hope that more people in and out of the news business will get to know Ed Murrow. Perhaps in time the descent from Murrow's principles can be reversed."
?Bob Edwards

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