Friday, June 13, 2008

Tim Russert, RIP


Tim Russert died today preparing voiceovers for a broadcast that he would never complete. Only 58 years old. I didn't watch a lot of his work in recent years but he was probably the best of the Sunday morning talk maestros. He was a tough interviewer but was generally gracious and tried to be as fair as possible to all his guests.


No one is objective; we all have points of view and as it happens, most people in Tim Russert's profession tend to be politically and socially liberal. What set Russert apart from many of his colleagues is that he genuinely tried to understand the arguments that conservatives made. He might not have agreed with the arguments, but it was clear that he had thought about the arguments and was willing to give conservatives the opportunity to explain what they believe and why they believe in their own words. That courtesy is what we'll miss. Rest in peace.

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