If we don't have an informed electorate we don't have a democracy.
So I don't care how people get the information, as long as they get it.
I'm just doing it my particular way and I feel lucky I can do it the way I want to do it.
-Jim Lehrer
 |
| James Charles Lehrer May 19, 1934 – January 23, 2020 |
In 1959, Lehrer began his career in journalism at The Dallas Morning News in Texas. Later, he worked as a reporter for the Dallas Times-Herald, where he covered the assassination of John F. Kennedy in 1963. There, he was a political columnist for several years, and in 1968 he became the city editor.
Lehrer began his television career at KERA-TV in Dallas, Texas, as the Executive Director of Public Affairs, an on-air host, and editor of a nightly news program. He moved to PBS in Washington, D.C., to become the Public Affairs Coordinator, a member of Journalism Advisory Board, and a Fellow at the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB). He worked as a correspondent for the National Public Affairs Center for Television (NPACT), where he met Robert MacNeil. In 1973, they covered the Senate Watergate hearings and the revelation of the Watergate Tapes broadcast, live on PBS. Lehrer covered the House Judiciary Committee's impeachment inquiry of President Richard Nixon.
In October 1975, Lehrer became the Washington correspondent for the "Robert MacNeil Report" on Thirteen/WNET New York. Two months later on December 1, 1975, he was promoted to co-anchor, and the program was accordingly renamed "The MacNeil/Lehrer Report". In September 1983, Lehrer and MacNeil relaunched their show as The MacNeil/Lehrer NewsHour, which was renamed The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer, following McNeil's departure in 1995. The program was renamed the PBS NewsHour in 2009.
Lehrer underwent a heart valve surgery in April 2008, allowing Ray Suarez to anchor in his stead until Lehrer's return on June 26, 2008.
Lehrer stepped down as anchor of the PBS NewsHour on June 6, 2011, but continued to moderate the Friday news analysis segments and be involved with the show's production company, MacNeil/Lehrer Productions.
Lehrer received several awards and honors during his career in journalism, including several Emmys; the George Foster Peabody Broadcast Award; a William Allen White Foundation Award for Journalistic Merit; and the University of Missouri School of Journalism's Medal of Honor. In 2004, he was awarded an honorary Doctor of Journalism degree by McDaniel College.
Lehrer was involved in several projects related to U.S. presidential debates, including the Debating Our Destiny documentaries in 2000 and 2008, which feature excerpts of exclusive interviews with many of the presidential and vice presidential candidates since 1976. Nicknamed The Dean of Moderators by journalist Bernard Shaw, Lehrer moderated twelve presidential debates, spanning from 1988 to 2012. As of 2016, Lehrer served on the board of the Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD).
Good Night Mr. Lehrer
Stay Tuned
Tony Figueroa
We’ll
drop by at 1164 Morning Glory Circle in our first hour as we welcome back 
Also
joining us this week will be 
Mark
Silverman will join us in our second hour as we continue our look at how
television has covered this year’s presidential campaign, including the first
presidential debate, the vice-presidential debate, the two political
conventions, and the “Rumble Inside the Air-Conditioned Auditorium” between Jon
Stewart and Bill O’Reilly. Mark Silverman, of course, hosts 
