Robert MacNeil was a Canadian-American journalist who co-founded the long running news program that is now known as “PBS NewsHour.”
- Died: April 12, 2024 (Who else died on April 12?)
- Details of death: Died at a New York City hospital at the age of 93.
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Robert MacNeil’s legacy
Before the career at PBS for which he is best known, MacNeil first worked in commercial news, reporting for NBC, the BBC, and other networks. While at NBC, he was in Dallas on November 22, 1963, covering President John F. Kennedy’s (1917–1963) visit to the city. He witnessed the horrifying shooting of the president, and he followed police across the grassy knoll before running to the nearby Texas School Book Depository. Searching for a phone to call in the news to his NBC affiliate, he spoke to a man who he later said was likely Lee Harvey Oswald, Kennedy’s assassin.
MacNeil joined PBS in 1971, initially hosting “Washington Week in Review.” In 1975, he and co-anchor Jim Lehrer (1934–2020) launched the show that would become both journalists’ greatest legacy. Initially called “The Robert MacNeil Report,” it was later renamed “The MacNeil/Lehrer Report” and then “The MacNeil/Lehrer NewsHour.” The daily program covered the news in depth, offering a more serious alternative to commercial network news. MacNeil became known for his no-nonsense style and for his interviews of notable people.
MacNeil retired in 1995, though he returned to TV occasionally to cover such events as the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. He hosted the 2007 PBS miniseries “America at a Crossroads,” and he found his way back to “NewsHour” in 2011 as part of a series on autism. In his retirement, MacNeil also wrote books, including the novels “Burden of Desire,” “The Voyage,” “Breaking News,” and “Portrait of Julia.” In 2008, he was honored with the Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Journalism, and he was a member of the Television Hall of Fame.
Notable quote
“Television has changed journalism, utterly, not just for television, but for print and everybody else. It’s changed the whole culture and ethos of journalism. And to have been able hold the line — perhaps Canute-like — against a tide that’s going to engulf us all in the end, for a few years, has been a source of gratification to me.” —from a 2001 interview for the Archive of American Television
Tributes to Robert MacNeil
Full obituary: The New York Times
