JFK Assassination (CBS Coverage) - Part 8/10 (1963)

[billybagbom]

All that being said, Cronkite was indeed a great anchorman, the right man for the job on that day at CBS. His Democratic leanings did him no disservice that day, for we were all Americans, and his sympathies and compassion for the Kennedy family and our nation were what was needed at that time. Cronkite and other MSM of that time were obviously known to be left-ward leaning ("For the times, they were a-changin'"), but unlike the media whores at MSNBC and FOX today, they really put America first

[observer9670]

Johnson became President the second that Kennedy died. Taking the oath is pro forma, and needs only to be done at the first opportune time. There is never a gap in the Presidency, not even for a second.

[billybagbom]

@observer9670 Yeah. I mean, even the papacy isn't that anal.

[dbaugh1805]

I can tell you why he kept taking his glasses off and on. I do the samething. I need them to read but I have never been able to get use to them and I put them on & take them off just like he does. I admired & respected Walter as did most Americans. When he went to Vietnam & put on a flack jacket & helmet to do a report & then when the cameras were turned off he took off the helmet & flack jacket. I no longer felt the same. Tet 1968 was no suprise as reported. We knew something was going down.

[billybagbom]

@dbaugh1805 Thank you for your service.

[blueguitarblue]

Notice when the story first broke, there were shots heard from the grassy knoll and a woman and man seen...it didn't take long to manipulate the story to a sole assassin from a building...

[billybagbom]

@blueguitarblue Yeah, but there were conflicting reports, as in any unexpected emergency. Perhaps other witnesses really did think they saw or heard other stuff...?

[mooneepondskid]

@blueguitarblue And then the shots were from the 2nd floor..only later to changed to the 5th/6th.

[slicknicktheprick]

proud to be a card-carrying Cronk-ite!

[Muhgaw]

My folks tell me this was their 9-11 (before 9-11 happened). They were in shock for days. It was so shocking my grandma actually thought it was false, as nothing like this happened before in her lifetime. It shows the emotional toll it took on her - she didn't agree with everything Kennedy did, but she and grandpa and many others were still deeply shocked by his death.

Looking back, I think Walter Cronkite was a good professional journalist a shame he was before my time. RIP, Mr Cronkite.

[MauryDann73]

The erroneous information that a Secret Service was killed -- how long until it was corrected?

[PancakesoftheLove]

Amazing. Simply amazing how well Mr. Cronkite kept it together, even with such an emotional roller coaster, a literal explosion of tragedy - and history. In that brief display of emotion, you can literally see the frustration. You can tell that he was pulling for the President and holding onto hope until the official news flash finally came in, despite the unconfirmed reports. And then it's like it didn't even happen.

Truly one of the greatest journalists of all time. If not the greatest.

[roscoegino]

cronkite had more class and credibility than cnn and foxnews combined. RIP.

[fromthesidelines]

Probably because Cronkite WAS somewhat "under stress" about the entire chain of events happening around him [as 'altfactor' has pointed out], 'david'- keep in mind that he had never covered this kind of "instant news story" on TV before....especially when it concerned the President of the United States' life hanging in the balance, not knowing what the outcome was going to be, as millions of viewers were also worried. So, he fiddled with his glasses, taking them off and putting them on...

[MiscVideos78rpm]

@fromthesidelines - Thanks for the info!

[snoops71]

@fromthesidelines Excellent analysis. My uncle, who was 19 at the time, always talked about Walter Cronkite and his glasses. I heard about it before I saw it in footage like this.

[Lateboomer059]

@fromthesidelines , while this is true Cronkite was under stress, he was also at the time a middle aged man having middle aged eyesight. As various updates were being given to him, he likely needed the glasses to be able to scan, read and interpret the copy as it became available.

[physicalgrafiti12345]

@fromthesidelines I think it was good that he did that, sort of shows the importance of this particular broadcast.

[davidlynn77]

Why did he keep taking off and putting back on his glasses? That is really strange.

[tipper2000]

my dad still cant get over what happen to president kennedy ...he wont watch nothing from or anything to do with movies like JFK

[D0CKTORDEATH]

i think we all know the truth about this the ONLY pres that spoke the TRUTH! R.I.P JFK

[jolpenrose]

We listened to part of this in my 5th grade classroom. Damned scary, like the world was coming to an end.

[cunnidvd]

@jolpenrose I was 13. It did seem a bit like the world was coming to an end. We were sent home from school early. Everyone was a bit frightened and very sad. The streets were empty that night. We didn't know who did it or why or what was going to happen next. Some feared that if it was the Russians we would be having a war.

[ksol1460tv]

"The words stuck in my throat. A sob wanted to replace them. A gulp or two quashed the sob, which metamorphosed into tears forming in the corners of my eyes. I fought back the emotion and regained my professionalism, but it was touch and go there for a few seconds before I could continue..."

Walter Cronkite, from his book 'A Reporter's Life'

[ksol1460tv]

"It is an interesting thing about us newspeople. We are much like doctors and nurses and firemen and police. In the midst of tragedy, our professional drive takes over and dominates our emotions. We move almost like automatons to get the job done. The time for an emotional reaction must wait.

"I was doing fine in that department until it was necessary to pronounce the words: 'From Dallas, Texas, the flash -- apparently official -- President Kennedy died at 1 p.m...."

[kh2hbTV]

Walter uses vocabulary no recent graduate of public schools could understand.

[DonJulioBlanco2002]

It's fascinating that Cronkite said the report of Kennedy's death was "apparently" official ... he still could not say "official" even after the AP/UPI report.

[rpasenow]

Thanks for posting these...I've seen bits and pieces before but never the entire, unedited coverage of the first few hours of this coverage. Have you figured out a timeline for the various broadcast announcements compared to the reality? It seems to me that the local affiliate "scooped" everyone by at least half an hour in reporting the President's death. (Continued)

[MiscVideos78rpm]

@rpasenow You're welcome!

[bluecatky]

That was a heart-wrenching scene at 4:00 where Walter Cronkite officially reported Kennedy's death and then takes off his glasses and tries to calm himself and continue speaking. He was a professional through and through.

[OzzyFan87]

My dad was 16 and he said they were getting ready to go into town when someone came by and told them.

[dbaugh1805]

I was 16 years old at that time & was visiting a radio station in Carrollton, GA. All at once the teletype machine bells started ringing. Ding, ding, ding for a long time. We went to see what was going on & the first messages that came across were unreadable. You could tell who ever was typing the messages were in a panic. Lots of bad spelling and finally the message came that President Kennedy had been shot as his car passed under an over pass. I still have some of those teletypes from then.

[MiscVideos78rpm]

@dbaugh1805 Those must be collector's items!

[huskyjerk]

@dbaugh1805 Awesome story. Can you email me a pic of those teletypes?

[Giua1973]

Cronkite made an error: "Vice President Lyndon Johnson has left the hospital..." The correct and accurate statement was "Vice President Lyndon Johnson has started his getaway...."

[altfactor]

@Giua1973 Remember that Cronkite (along with anchors on other networks) was under a lot of stress.

They should be given slack for occassional misuses of language.

[noaanhc]

Walter Cronkite announcing the offical death of the President still bring cold shivers over me everytime I watch this.

[kpyng]

For all these years, I've been curious as to the identity of the young woman whom one sees occasionally in the background going to & from the teletype machines - an anonymous bit player amid the commotion in the CBS newsroom on that dark day.

[slokes1]

You can see the moment that definitive news of the President's death reached the CBS newsroom: At 3:40, right behind Cronkite, a staffer leans in on the AP machine as the flash announcement of Kennedy's death comes over the wire. As soon as he can, he gets the teletype to Cronkite's desk, and it is then read.

It STILL feels weird hearing now that Johnson is the 36th President, like it's a bad dream and not at all 47 years old.

[MerleOberon]

JFK flew from Ft. Worth to Dallas? aren't they next to each other?

[jmax461]

@MerleOberon yes another democrat with his airforce one toy spent 50k on fuel to fly 35 miles.

[MerleOberon]

Air Force One must have had a leak in it's tanks in that case...

[Aquaria]

The jet was going there anyway, since JFK was scheduled to leave Dallas for Austin right after the Trade Mart meeting. It's not like he was staying in D/FW for a few days.

[1976chrisc]

Did anyone else notice Walter clenching his hands? I think he was doing that to keep himself together.

[latinahoney123]

so lyndon johnson would have never been president then if jfk didn't die right? Is it always a fact that if something happens to the president the vice president must take over no matter what, what if they dont want to? Being a president is such a very hard job I cant even imagine but I guess if your schooled in all that.

[swimmer7189]

The role of the vice-president is not only to be the president of the US senate, but also to take over as President if the current president becomes incapacitated or is somehow unable to perform the duties of president. They go into the office of Vice President knowing that there is a possibility they could become president.

[latinahoney123]

dan rather what the hell that guy was around back then? wow haha

[myteemouseredux]

Why did he not become emotional until official word came down? Because he was a seasoned newsman who knew that rumors fly quickly (as evidenced by the reports that a secret serviceman had been killed and Johnson had been shot). As for the reports of the killing of the secret serviceman, remember that early on it was reported that a secret serviceman had been heard to say that the president was dead. It's not a stretch to see how that quickly became, "a secret serviceman is dead."

[swimmer7189]

poor thing. he's about to start crying after he makes the official announcement. you can hear his voice on the verge of breaking. so sad.

[lwmson]

This is intersting.. The famous excerpt of when Cronkite makes the offiicial announcement of Kennedy's death and gets emotinal, I was always under the impression that this was the first news he receieved of JFK's death. However, he had already received multiple reports from independent sources that JFK had died, prior to the offical confirmation. Though not official, it still would have been enough to substaniate JFK's death. So I wonder why all of a sudden he became emotional?

[Anticyclonic]

Probably for the benefit of his viewers, knowing that, although the reports came from credible sources, none were "official" and people would still be holding out hope that the reports were untrue (kind of like wishful thinking). The word "official" undoubtedly cements in peoples' heads that yes, it's true, the tragedy actually happened. And since the reports were not confirmed, he'd know that new developments would be pouring in...obviously he'd have to remain composed to read them.

[lwmson]

I guess what's interesting to note is that when Reagan was shot, nearly 20 years later, ABC's Frank Reynolds received unofficial reports that James Brady had been killed and announced it accordingly. I'll never forget how livid he became--on the air--when he found out the reports were inaccurate.

[oldies5161]

Because he was a Kennedy lover.

[rayjr62]

@oldies5161 And what are you. . . a Bush lover?

Asshole. 

[grettoz]

@oldies5161

wtf is your prob??

[moonspots01]

A class act you were Mr. Cronkite!

[BamaChris]

It's amazing that they continually falsely reported the death of a Secret Service Agent.

[lwmson]

Yes. I wonder why it was reported that a secret service agent was killed when one hadn't even been shot?

[talbotfisher1984]

Because a police officer was killed while apprehending Oswald. They were mixed up on who was killed.

[jmax461]

@talbotfisher1984

officer was not killed apprehending oswald.......he was killed try to question oswald....... get the facts striaght

[pannoni1]

It was the Baby Boomers' "Acoplaystic" event, and many people over 60 or so use this as a "cutoff" for their "good times nostalgia". Just go to the JFK library in Boston and you'll see a few clips of this broadcast. The next two decades would be an unstable time in America.

[notredamehesamighty]

What a wonderful journalist. Note how he does not show emotion even after reports from Dallas, including one from fellow CBS correspondent Dan Rather, told of the president's death. Only after it had been unequivocally confirmed via AP/UPI did he report it as fact - THEN AND ONLY THEN does he allow his emotions to take over, if only for a brief moment. To journalist - REAL JOURNALISTS - things don't happen unless they are confirmed. Compare this man's work with Fox News. Sad, no?

[oldies5161]

Had Nixon won and been shot, Cronkite wouldnt have showed any emotion. Cronkite was a flaming liberal.

[leandar]

@oldies5161 I think that may be a bit harsh. Cronkite may have been a liberal, but that doesn't mean he would have wished harm on anyone. I'm quite sure that if it had been Nixon, although I doubt it would have happened because I imagine that Nixon would have had the bubble top on the car unlike Kennedy, but if it were say, Nixon that was assassinated instead of Kennedy, I'm sure that Cronkite would have been a pure professional about it and would still have been upset just like everyone else.

[somethinsuavetheater]

@oldies5161 There was a time in this country when everyone respected the president. Maybe not liked, but respected him. The difference is that people loved Kennedy because he brought about change. He was doing good for this country. We all know what Nixon did.

[RManBB2010]

@somethinsuavetheater That may sound good, but it's not true. Everyone, including the various presidential assassins? The fact is, every president back to G. Washington had enemies who passionately hated them, threatened them, and in several cases, managed to assault or even assassinate them. Duels were fought over things that were said and slanders in newspapers. Lincoln is a prime example. The things that were said and printed about him at the time were some of nastiest for any president.

[bubblinbrownsugar616]

@notredamehesamighty Heck yeah! My favorite is the one where he's on the phone hearing the details of President Johnson's death. Even though he picked it up during a commerical break, he remained on returning from it.

Clearly he has someone in the background telling him he's back on the air but did what I found kick ass amazing. He put his finger up, told them to wait, and simply told the audience he was getting ALL the information on Johnson's death before reporting it. Clearly EPIC! :)

[notredamehesamighty]

@bubblinbrownsugar616 Interesting and informative observation on your part. Although not as dramatic as the JFK reporting ten years earlier, the death of LBJ in '73 also showed a seasoned journalist at his best. Cronkite didn't care how he looked or came off... he wanted to get the story right and if the audience had to wait until he got the facts on-the-air on the telephone, so be it. Old technoogy, great reporting.

[Coowallsky]

@notredamehesamighty Funny you only single out Fox when ALL of the major 3, CNN, MSNBC & NPR are equally afflicted. Selective indignation is a bitch.

[notredamehesamighty]

@Coowallsky I single out Fox News Channel not as a component of ideology but as a comparison of competency. The network does have some decent journalists, Chris Wallace and Brit Hume among them. The fact they are admitted conservatives doesn't bother me a whit. The rest of the talking heads, however, are without jouranlistic standards of any kind.

[heine71]

What heartbreaking coverage that was 38 years before September 11, 2001's events.

[snoops71]

This remains fascinating to watch.

[fromthesidelines]

This excerpt, from CBS' coverage of the Kennedy assassination on November 22, 1963, begins around 2:34pm(et), over a half-hour after Cronkite officially went on the air from his New York newsroom in shirtsleeves, as he was preparing the "EVENING NEWS" while events happened in Dallas [he'll be in his jacket in front of a "CBS" mike by 3:30pm(et)]. At 4:00, of course, is his famous announcement {reading from an Associated Press dispatch} that Kennedy had died- his composure shaking, but firm.