Walter Cronkite's Last Broadcast

Known as “the most trusted man in America,” Walter Cronkite graced the screens of thousands of American families each night on the CBS Evening News. His straightforward and calming demeanor put viewers at ease with the world around them for over 19 years.

Cronkite was born in St. Joseph, MO on November 4, 1916. His family would soon move to Kansas City, where they stayed until he was 10. The family then moved to Houston, Texas where he would discover his love of journalism. He worked as an editor for his high school newspaper, moving on to work at his college newspaper in 1933. He never finished his college education, opting instead to drop out and fully devote himself to the journalism field in 1935.

Cronkite worked several reporting jobs, including being a sports announcer for KCMO in Kansas City, working his way up the reporting ranks. He took a fortuitous position with United Press International in 1937. With the breakout of WWII, he became a war correspondent covering events in North Africa and Europe, including Operation Torch and the Battle of the Bulge. He was also one of eight journalists chosen by the U.S. Air Force to be part of the short-lived Writing 69th squadron to fly raids over Germany. After the war, he stayed to cover the Nuremburg Trials and helped re-establish several United Press bureaus in Europe.

Impressed by Cronkite’s skills, CBS News recruited him to their budding television broadcast division in 1950. He started with short Sunday evening broadcasts, political convention coverage, and hosting various programs. It was in 1962 that Cronkite would become an anchor on television’s first nightly half-hour news program, CBS Evening News.

As the anchor, Cronkite gained popularity with the American people, bringing them the news of the day in a steady and easy-to-understand style. He reported on many major events throughout his tenure, including the Vietnam War, the Apollo 11 lunar landing, the Watergate Scandal, and he was the first to report on the assassination of President Kennedy.

“Uncle Walter,” as he was affectionately called by the public, would give his last broadcast upon his retirement as the Evening News anchor on March 6, 1981, concluding with a sign off of “old anchormen, you see, don’t fade away, they just keep coming back for more. And that’s the way it is.” True to his word, he would continue to broadcast occasionally as well as hosting, doing voiceovers, and guest-starring on television until he passed away in 2009 at the age of 92.

NOTE: This article was originally published in the Beyond the Stacks newsletter. View more "This Month in Missouri History" articles on our newsletter archive!