Veteran newsman longs to tell the truth

Font Size:

| Monday, January 10, 2005 12:25 AM CST | () comments

Mary Louise Speer

The best advice Daniel Schorr, an award-winning journalist of more than 60 years, could give to a fledgling reporter would be the same philosophy he adheres to in his work.

"Tell the truth, and don't let anyone keep you from telling that truth," he said.

Schorr, 88, shared tales from his long career with a rapt audience of 650 people at "Staying Tuned � A Life in Journalism," at St. Ambrose University, Davenport. He has been a senior news analyst for National Public Radio since 1985.

"I'm old enough to remember when there was no television. There was no Internet. The radio was fairly young when it came to (covering) news," he said. "I haven't saved the world, but I have tried to make it comprehensive."

The event was sponsored by Genesis Health System, Center for Active Seniors Inc. and St. Ambrose University.

Schorr's wife, Lisbeth, came with him to the Quad-Cities. She is a writer and lecturer in social medicine. The couple is celebrating 38 years of marriage this weekend. They have a son and daughter who are "spectacular kids," she said. Being married to a journalist is rewarding. "We always have something to talk about," she said.

Schorr was part of a CBS News team brought together by journalist Edward R. Murrow.

"He's been a constant source of the truth. You can always count on his story being straight and factual," audience member Kevin O'Brien of Davenport said.

The two greatest things that happened in his career involved Russian Premier Nikita Khrushchev and President Richard Nixon, Schorr said.

Schorr joined the CBS News team in 1953 and established the CBS bureau in Moscow in 1955. Khrushchev served as secretary of the Soviet Union from 1953-64 and premier from 1958-64. Schorr was the first person to interview him on TV. The premier was an earthy, coarse and intelligent man who liked baiting foreign correspondents, Schorr said. He recalls a conversation with Khrushchev after trying in vain to pinpoint the time and place of an important Central Committee meeting.

"My capitalist boss told me I might not be able to go on vacation because of rumors that your Central Committee might be meeting," he said.

"I will tell you. You can go on vacation. If absolutely necessary, we will have the meeting without you," the Russian leader said.

The relationship between the two men took a downturn in late 1957 when Schorr was arrested on bogus charges of Soviet censorship and booted out of the country, according to Schorr's biography on the www.npr.org Web site.

Years later, Schorr unexpectedly found himself in the thick of publicity during the Watergate hearings after discovering his name was included on a list of Nixon's enemies.

He faced an even tougher spot several years later in 1976 after publishing an advance copy of congressional intelligence report that members of the U.S. House of Representatives had decided to repress, he said.

Trouble swiftly followed. He was suspended by CBS and threatened with jail time if he failed to disclose his source during an investigation by the House Ethics Committee.

Schorr refused, citing the First Amendment's guarantee of freedom of the press. "If a reporter is forced to reveal his source that will dry up sources for (reporters for) generations to come," he said. The committee voted 6-5 against citing him for contempt.

At 88, Schorr stays involved in journalism as a contributor to National Public Radio programs. He vehemently disagrees with the way the Bush administration handles news coverage.

"This administration makes a specialty of trying to manipulate the press," he said. "There is a code of ethics in journalism. You don't write for pay for the people you're writing about. In other words, you're supposed to be a watchdog � not a lap dog."

The city desk can be contacted at

(563) 383-2245 or newsroom@qctimes.com.