Wednesday, March 09, 2011

David Broder, Dean Of "Meet The Press," Dies At 81

The day's news was topped by the passing of long-time Washington Post Columnist David Broder. Disagree with his positions, one may, but the way he presented his points and observations, with a dry, professional delivery that compelled attention, earned him the trust and respect of not just his peers, but the American Public.

He was particularly effective on NBC's Meet The Press, where Broder has appeared over 400 times; the 400th time came in August of 2008 and during one of his many memorable appearances during the 2008 presidential race:



At times, Broder made statements on Meet The Press that gave pause but were undoubtedly influential, like in March of 2008, when he suggested that then-Senator and presidential candidate Hillary Clinton would "hope" that "something happens" to then-Senator now President Barack Obama for her to win the Democratic Nomination as president:



Interestingly, two months later in 2008, Mrs. Clinton actually suggested that could happen to Senator Obama:



Broder, by sticking to an "overview" of an issue in the context of its time, could effectively escape making any inflammatory comment about, say, Hillary Clinton attacking Barack Obama on the issue of Rev. Jeremiah Wright. That's not to suggest, in any way, that Broder's take was intentional. Not at all. Broder's long history at the eye of the hurricane of social change crafted, for him, a unique perspective that many can learn from.

Again, here's Broder on Meet The Press talking about Obama's unique place in history as part of a "post-Boomer" demographic:




David Broder had many more great episodes on Meet The Press, 400-plus in all.  Hopefully, someone at NBC News puts together a tape of "The Best Of David Broder On Meet The Press."

Stay tuned.


1 comment:

  1. The problem with a columnist becoming one of the more "moderate" writers about politics is that he can't possibly offer any solutions when the greater of the two evils is in control of the Executive, Legislativ¬e and Judicial branches.

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