Tim Russert, Washington Bureau Chief for NBC News, died today at age 58. Working in an era when cable news and the deaths or retirements of the great anchors has diminished the importance of the evening network news, Russert managed to dominate contemporary political coverage. One small example of his importance could be seen in May after the Indiana primary. That night Tim Russert proclaimed that Barack Obama had won the Democratic nomination (video here). And it was so.
Russert died while working on this Sunday’s Meet the Press, a show he turned into a major institution of journalism. As sad as his death might be under any circumstance, it seems especially unfair that he could not live to see the conclusion of an election year as remarkable as this one.
Pay tribute to the great Tim Russert at our non-profit, http://www.tributefund.org. We remember the inspiring men and women in our lives.