Rather Special

Dan Rather is a uniquely important figure in broadcast journalism and his influence has been felt around the world.



So my class of graduate journalism students at New York University were particularly thrilled to hear Dan reflect on his remarkable career, including reporting the Kennedy assassination, the Vietnam War and Watergate. I questioned Dan for about an hour before an overflow crowd at NYU's Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute Thursday afternoon.

Dan stressed to students the importance of writing; he suggested that they practice every day. Dan was particularly emotional when talking about the special responsibility of American journalists and how their role was protected in the constitution by our founding fathers.

The students described Dan's remarks as inspirational, and they swarmed over him for photos. You see, Dan Rather is a Rock Star!