*Includes pictures. *Includes Cronkite's quotes about his life and career. *Examines Cronkite's most legendary coverage of important events like the Kennedy assassination. *Includes a bibliography for further reading. "And that's the way it is.†– Walter Cronkite A lot of ink has been spilled covering the lives of history’s most influential figures; but how much of the forest is lost for the trees? In Charles River Editors’ American Legends series; readers can get caught up to speed on the lives of America’s most important men and women in the time it takes to finish a commute; while learning interesting facts long forgotten or never known. The rise of cable media in the 21st century has seen news programming become more opinionated and partisan than ever before; and it has led many nostalgic Americans to yearn for the news programs of earlier times; with the seemingly objective anchor just giving viewers the facts. While that bygone era is no doubt idealized and romanticized to a certain degree beyond what it actually was; nobody epitomizes that era like Walter Cronkite; America’s most famous news anchor. Still a household name today; decades after he went off air; Cronkite is still remembered as the kind of trustworthy broadcaster whose reports could be taken as truth. His outsized influence on the American viewing public is best remembered in one of the more memorable anecdotes of Cronkite’s career; which came during the Vietnam War when he opined near the end of one broadcast; “But it is increasingly clear to this reporter that the only rational way out then will be to negotiate; not as victors; but as an honorable people who lived up to their pledge to defend democracy; and did the best they could.†President Lyndon Johnson allegedly said in response; “If I’ve lost Walter Cronkite; I’ve lost Middle America.†It’s still debated whether or not the president said that; but it was certainly an apt representation of the news anchor’s influence at the time. Cronkite’s influence is perhaps rivaled only by the lengthy scope of his career; which spanned nearly 50 years and covered everything from World War II and Vietnam to the assassinations of President Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. His reports on the big news events of the 20th century are still iconic clips that remain intimately associated with the events they covered; and the sheer length of his career and the countless appearances on television screens in American living rooms helped make him “the most trusted man in America†by the end of his career. American Legends: The Life of Walter Cronkite examines the life and career of America’s most famous news anchor. Along with pictures of important people; places; and events; you will learn about Walter Cronkite like never before; in no time at all.
#142309 in Books Rowman Littlefield 2016-01-01Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.41 x .73 x 6.22l; .0 #File Name: 1493008463240 pagesRowman Littlefield
Review
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful. What a great find!By oregon readerI love stories about unknown people who contributed to projects we know about. What's a bigger project than the White House and early America? Finally putting a name to some of the slaves; some of the people; who lived and helped our first Presidents is incredible. There are concrete stories that may change your mind a little about some of those Presidents. All through the book is woven freedom. The contradictory story of the Founding Fathers and how the early Presidents (except the two Adamses) couldn't reconcile their love of freedom with their financial or racial need to put Africans; and later; African-Americans; in a different category. And how all the slaves; no matter how well treated and comfortable their lives were would have traded everything for freedom.There is also history about the introduction of slavery into America that I didn't know and some history about the early US I didn't know. Really an important read.42 of 43 people found the following review helpful. A good book for stories; not so much as history.By LOSI don't remember where I heard about this book; but I was excited to hear about it. The book is a pretty quick read; I managed to knock it out over the course of a couple of days. I do appreciate this book as it attempts to present an oft-unheard facet of U.S. history. I do not agree that everything in the book was "untold." While some of the information was new; a lot of it was a condensed version of narratives which could be found elsewhere.The book was also lacking in the sort of academic rigor that one may expect from a history book. The bibliography was scant and there were virtually no citations. It's impossible to reference his sources or verify that the information presented is even correct. This was perhaps the most problematic part of the book for me. Sometimes; the author would say where the quotes came from; a newspaper article; or letter; etc. Most commonly though; quotes were inserted into the text with no means of knowing where they were sourced. Similarly; the author would often use phrases such as "it is thought that" or "some researchers say." Who thinks that? What researchers say that?There was little to tie each chapter together. While interesting on their own; the book read more as a series of stories or essays with no relation to one another. It would have been nice to see the author weave a common theme through the chapters so that they were cohesive and complementary to one another. Therein lies a big issue with the book. What was the author's argument? Did he have an argument? I hate to be so constructive in my criticism; but a history book needs some thesis. What is the author's claim? How will he prove the claim? What source material will he draw from?Lastly; I wasn't too impressed with the prose. Many times; it was difficult to know whom or what the author was speaking about. Pronoun references were confusing at times; and I was forced to read sentences or paragraphs a few times before I could figure out what the author was trying to present. It was a little surprising; given the author's background in nonfiction writing.Now; all of that said; this is a great book as it does present information that is often overlooked in the story of the U.S.A. As a student of history; much of the information in the book wasn't new; so much as an amalgam of other histories in one place. For people who aren't history nerds; this book will provide a lot of new information relating to slavery in the United States. The sheer dearth of narratives dedicated to slaves as individuals; as human beings; means that even with its few shortcomings; The Invisibles serves an important purpose in providing context to a complicated time in the nation's history; and the complicated men who led from its founding.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Good Read; Important BookBy LFL8812I really enjoyed this. It is well researched well written I learned a lot. It had never occurred to me that there had been slaves in the White House; I don't know why. It's obvious; when you think about it. There was one story that I was disappointed was missing; tho. I saw it on Finding Your Roots. My memory is no longer good I can't remember a lot of the details. It was the ancestry of a young fella currently in the music industry. I had heard his name but do not keep w up w/ popular music so I was unfamiliar w/ him. But; his ancestor had been a slave butler in the WH. Someone came took him away saying he was free but he went back to continue being the butler; much to the disbelief of his descendant. There was even a photo of him. Unfortunately I don't remember his name or who that president was. I believe this is an important book. The author hopes to update it one day as he uncovers more stories I look forward to that. I've been reading a lot of slave stories lately think this is something we all need to know more about so I appreciate that this book was written.
