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Walter Cronkite

File:Walter_Cronkite_November_1983_gtfy.00866_(cropped).jpg · Wikimedia Commons · See Wikimedia Commons

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Walter Cronkite

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Also known as Walter Leland Cronkite, Jr., Walter Leland Cronkite, Jr, Walter Wilcox, Old Ironpants, Uncle Walter, King of the Anchormen, Walter Leland Cronkite

American broadcast journalist (1916-2009)

AI overview

Walter Cronkite was an American broadcast journalist who became one of the most trusted news anchors in television history during his long career from the mid-20th century until his retirement. He matters because he helped shape how millions of Americans received and trusted their news during pivotal historical events, establishing the role of the television news anchor as a central figure in American public life.

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Person · Open Library

Works
44

Top works

  • Remembering the moon
  • George Washington
  • Harry S. Truman
  • The first annual Theodore H. White Lecture with Walter Cronkite
  • Walter Cronkite

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Film & TV

Acting · St. Joseph, Missouri, USA

Walter Leland Cronkite, Jr. (November 4, 1916 – July 17, 2009) was an American broadcast journalist, best known as anchorman for the CBS Evening News for 19 years (1962–81). During the heyday of CBS News in the 1960s and 1970s, he was often cited as "the most trusted man in America" after being so named in an opinion poll. Although he reported many events from 1937 to 1981, including bombing in…

Known for

  • One to One: John & Yoko — Self (archive footage)2025
  • Sally — Self (archive footage)2025
  • JFK Assassination: A New Perspective — Self (archive footage)2025
  • Apollo 13: Survival — Self (archive footage)2024
  • Bad Hostage — Self (archive footage)2024
  • The White House Effect — Self (archive footage)2024
  • Hollywood Black — Self (archive footage)2024
  • JFK: 24 Hours That Changed the World — Self (archive footage)2023
  • The Janes — Self (archive footage)2022
  • The Martha Mitchell Effect — Self (archive footage)2022

via TMDB

Music · MusicBrainz

Type
Person
Gender
Male
Origin
United States
Active from
1916
Active to
2009

via MusicBrainz · CC0

Listeners · Last.fm

Listeners
2,810
Total plays
10,240

Tags

Talking Head

Walter Leland Cronkite, Jr. (November 4, 1916 – July 17, 2009) was an American broadcast journalist, best known as anchorman for the CBS Evening News for 19 years (1962–81). During the heyday of CBS News in the 1960s and 1970s, he was often cited as "the most trusted man in America" after being so named in an opinion poll. Although he reported many events from 1937 to 1981, including bombing in World War II, the Nuremberg trials, combat in the Vietnam War, the death of President John F. <a hre

via Last.fm · Walter Cronkite

Academic profile · OpenAlex

4h-index
Works
115
Cited by
106

Research areas

Computer sciencePolitical scienceHistoryBusinessSociology

Most cited works

  • Memorias de un reportero1997 · 34 cit
  • Source Diversity in U.S. Online Citizen Journalism and Online Newspaper Articles2008 · 29 cit
  • A Reporter's Life1997 · 22 cit
  • Visualizing the Public Spheres1994 · 6 cit
  • Cronkite's War: His World War II Letters Home2013 · 3 cit

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Quotes

  • And that's the way it is. ...[reads date]. This is Walter Cronkite, CBS News; good night.
  • We recognize, however dimly, that greater efficiency, ease, and security may come at a substantial price in freedom, that can be a version of oppression, that individual liberties surrendered for whatever good reason are freedom lost.
  • I regret that, in our attempt to establish some standards, we didn't make them stick. We couldn't find a way to pass them on to another generation, really.
  • Here is a bulletin from CBS News: in Dallas, Texas, three shots were fired at President Kennedy's motorcade in downtown Dallas. The first reports say that President Kennedy has been seriously wounded by this shooting.
  • More details just arrived. These details about the same as previously: President Kennedy shot today just as his motorcade left downtown Dallas; Mrs. Kennedy jumped up and grabbed Mr. Kennedy, she called 'Oh, no!'; the motorcade sped on. United Press says that the wounds for President Kennedy perhaps could be fatal.
  • From Dallas, Texas, the flash apparently official: President Kennedy died at 1 p.m. Central Standard Time, 2:00 Eastern Standard Time, some 38 minutes ago. [pause as Cronkite fights back tears, then regains his composure] Vice President Johnson [clears throat] has left the hospital in Dallas, but we do not know to where he has proceeded; presumably, he will be taking the oath of office shortly and become the 36th President of the United States...

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Wikidata facts

Image
Walter Cronkite (1985).jpg
Show 8 more facts
Commons category
Walter Cronkite
date of birth
1916-11-04
date of death
2009-07-17
birth name
Walter Leland Cronkite, Jr.
catchphrase
And that's the way it is.
start of work period
1935-00-00
name in native language
Walter Leland Cronkite
end of work period
2009-00-00
Sources (9)

via Wikidata · CC0

~40 min read

Article

Walter Leland Cronkite Jr. (November 4, 1916 – July 17, 2009) was an American broadcast journalist who served as anchorman for the CBS Evening News from 1962 to 1981. During the 1960s and 1970s, he was often cited as "the most trusted man in America" after being so named in an opinion poll. Cronkite received numerous honors including two Peabody Awards, a George Polk Award, an Emmy Award, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Cronkite reported many events from 1937 to 1981, including bombings in World War II; the Nuremberg trials; combat in the Vietnam War; the Dawson's Field hijackings; Watergate; the Iran hostage crisis; and the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy, civil rights pioneer Martin Luther King Jr., and Beatles musician John Lennon. He was also known for his extensive coverage of the American space program, from Project Mercury to the Moon landings to the Space Shuttle. He was the only non-NASA recipient of an Ambassador of Exploration award. Cronkite is known for his departing catchphrase, "And that's the way it is," followed by the date of the broadcast.

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