Thinking about trusted anchormen; Walter Cronkite

I haven't done one of these "linkfests" in quite a while, but this seemed like a good subject on which to get a few perspectives.

From a new-to-me website...

Through comedy, The Daily Show has done more for journalism in the past 10 years than any other newspaper, news channel or news radio program. Unlike the mainstream media, Jon Stewart and the gang refuse to be used by politicians from either side, making politicians accountable for their actions (like pulling old tapes to show their inaccuracies and hypocrisy). It is widely known that politicians are scared to death of being made fun of on The Daily Show. Good.

I also wish cable news would learn something from the debates that occur on that show.

Via Think Progress:

2003:

While many are confident the United States would easily oust Saddam Hussein, Cronkite said he isn’t so sure. “The military is always more confident than circumstances show they should be,” he said.

And the Twinkies said: Out of the way, you old fool!

Cronkite chided Congress for not looking closely enough at the war and attempting to ascertain a viable estimate of its eventual cost, particularly in light of Bush’s commitment to tax cuts.

“We are going to be in such a fix when this war is over, or before this war is over … our grandchildren’s grandchildren are going to be paying for this war,” Cronkite said.

“I look at our future as, I’m sorry, being very, very dark. Let’s see our cards as we rise to meet the difficulties that lie ahead,” he added...

The Nation's John Nichols reports that as the war in Iraq went horribly awry, he asked Cronkite whether a network anchorman would speak out in the same way that he had. "I think it could happen, yes. I don't think it's likely to happen," he said with an audible sigh. "I think the three networks are still hewing pretty much to that theory. They don't even do analysis anymore, which I think is a shame. They don't even do background. They just seem to do headlines, and the less important it seems the more likely they are to get on the air."

And this from Barry Michael Cooper:

Will there be another Walter Cronkite? As much as I would readily elect bright candidates such as Keith Olbermann, Brian Williams, Rachel Maddow, and even MSNBC newcomer Carlos Watson, to fill the vacancy of the most trusted person in America, the answer is a resounding, No.

We are The Generation Who Knows Way Too Much, and the more we know about your private life, the less we trust you.

And one last question, from me: Is Cronkite even in his grave yet? If so, he must already be turning over. Now that we know just how much GOP dick the "news people" of today are quite eager to suck.