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My Sunday mornings will never be the same again. Tim Russert, NBC journalist and host of Meet the Press, died yesterday of an apparent heart attack while at work.
It is hard for me to describe what Russert meant to me. I've been heard to remark that Russert served a pastoral role in my life. That may sound strange, but he had the rare ability to digest large hunks of information and interpret what he had learned in a fair and insightful manner. He helped me make sense of the world.
I watched his Sunday morning program every time I could. When he appeared on other NBC programming, I turned up the volume instinctively. Russert grew up, as I did, in a blue collar working family.
His father, "Big Russ" (about whom he wrote his best-selling book, Big Russ & Me
Shortly after his death I heard James Carville, one of his best friends, describe Russert's approach to life as that of "childlike excitement." Whether it was the Wizards, the Nationals, the Bills, his son Luke, his family, his hometown of Buffalo, N.Y., or a visit from the Pope, this hard-nosed journalist engaged life with joy, exuberance and fairness.
Renowned theologian Karl Barth is reported to have said on more than one occasion that Christians should approach life with "a Bible in one hand and the morning newspaper in the other."
Russert, a devout Catholic, lived that code.
He helped me understand things.
As I say, Sunday mornings will never be the same for me.
Thanks for your help, Mr. Russert. You will be missed. The void will be enormous in the morning.
Published June 14, 2008 by Larry James |
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Journalism
Television
