Growing up with Walter Cronkite

I cried yesterday when I heard of the death of Walter Cronkite.

Actually, I sobbed.  He may have been the most trusted man in America, but to me he was more like a father figure.

As far back as I can remember, watching the evening news was a ritual in our family.  My dad would come home, and we’d all gather around the television to find out what happened that day in the world.  Afterwards, we’d sit down to dinner together and discuss world happenings.

After I was out on my own, I would still watch Walter each night as a way to reassure myself that some things are dependable in life.  Some things stay the same.  He was always there for us.  We could believe him.

I’m told the term “anchorman” was created to describe him in 1962, when he took over the CBS news desk.  And that is as it should be.  He was our anchor in a world that was changing so fast it was tough to keep up.  He always treated others with respect and dignity.  That was before television became the multiple-choice mayhem of corrupt and corrosive talking heads it has turned into today.  Who can you trust?

The death of Walter represents the end of an era for me and many other boomers, I’m sure.  It represents the end of a time when we could trust the news and the people behind it, because we knew that they worked with the utmost integrity and respect for their employers, the American people.

“I don’t want to live in a world without Walter Cronkite!”

– George Clooney