And That's The Way It Is.
Some months ago, I stuck that glib little tag at the header of this page, "On Assignment". That was Walter_Cronkite's witty euphemism for whenever he was on vacation (and, wryly, the name of his boat, "Assignment")... which I thought appropriate for my own, "permanent" one. Sadly, he's certainly got me trumped on that one. He always did.
Not so terribly different from now (considering that the privilege of broadband internet connections costs more than what some people pay for electricity), this outback in the mid-Atlantic provided few choices when it came to television in my youth. Three black & white channels, on a good day. Luckily, for me, C*B*S had the strongest signal, and, in retrospect, it was the best in content... and intent.
Ours was not a Disney-friendly house (which seems ironic, now... considering my mother's interest in the occult and astrology). Reality won out on the cathode ray tube: The Evening News; The Twentieth Century; Ed Sullivan (which would qualify as a "reality" show, now... and a stageful of plates spinning on sticks seemed "real", unrealistically).
But, before getting any more parenthetical, it must be acknowledged that such an introduction into objectivity and shoes-on-the-ground methodology was crucial for a young mind. It was a door opened to a reputable path. A fair one. A realistic one. It didn't hurt that it was delivered (or "professed", actually) by an individual with unusual skills in factual, first-person reporting, grammar and diction. And humanity.
It is said that kids have great Bullshit Detectors. Though a child's grasp of the adult world of politics and current affairs is abstract, at best, never once do I recall being lied to, or steered by some agenda. Truth, spoken in simple, reasoned language is hard to fake... straight-on to a camera. There were no "interactive" bells-and-whistles. No splashy graphics and foley-editor sound effect punctuation. Only black and white. And grey.
"Trust" is the word most often seen in combination with his name, though he never had to ask for or profess it. That's so unlike C*N*N's schtick, piloted by Blitzer The Clown. If you have to remind people that you're "The Most Trusted Name In News", you are immediately open to doubt.
To me, he was The Uncle You Wish You Had: Traveled. Experienced. Reflective. Wise. Unimpeachable. Approachable.
Long after Cronkite's retirement from broadcast news, an older co-worker showed me programs from the Sebring 24 Hour races that he'd attended, from 1959 and 1961. There, among the Stirling Mosses, Phil Hills, Carroll Shelbys and other Big Names in international racing, was Walter_Cronkite. To say that his coolness factor shot up many points is an understatement. But, it was never alluded to when it could have been... when it could have spelled higher ratings.
There was no "I" in his spelling of "News", obviously.
And That's The Way It Is.
