RIP Tim Russert
As you probably know by now Tim Russert, host of NBC’s “Meet The Press” died last Friday of a heart attack. He was only 58 years old and is survived by his wife Maureen, his son Luke and his father “Big Russ.” I watched the breaking news coverage last Friday and was saddened by several things.
One, that the world lost someone so young, two, that the journalism world lost someone who was so good at what he did and three, that a family lost a husband, father and son, who still had so much more life to be lived.
I watched a lot of the televised tributes to Russert over the weekend and he seems to have been a man with a passion for life, but especially for his job. He took the responsibility of a journalist very seriously and from what his colleagues said, always tried to be tough but fair.
If you ever watched “Meet The Press” you’d have to agree. Whether they were republican or democrat, liberal or conservative, guests got the “tough but fair” Russert treatment. He’d ask the questions you at home were thinking about, and if the questions weren’t answered, he’d push the guest until he got one.
That’s what made Russert the best interviewer on television and the one every politician knew they had to face if they were ever to be taken seriously.
He’ll be sorely missed.