Edward R Murrow

From PublicDiplomacyWiki

The name Edward R. Murrow is synonymous with responsible journalism throughout the world. Born on April 25, 1908, in North Carolina, Murrow was responsible for shaping radio and television journalism in its infant stages.

Murrow served as the director of overseas European operations for CBS in 1937, and began reporting in 1938. With the start of World War II, Murrow became a regular voice in wartime correspondence, gaining fame for his honest and uncompromising reports and signature sign off, “Good night, and good luck.� Murrow would unabashedly describe the atrocities of war, particularly during his visit to the Buchenwald camp during its liberation.

After the war, Murrow made the transition from radio to television in the 1950’s, beginning with small pieces on CBS Evening News to eventually his own show in 1951 called See it Now, a take-off from his radio program Hear it Now. Murrow, along with his crew from See it Now, was best known for their aggressive scrutiny and criticism of the Red Scare and Senator Joseph McCarthy (Wis-R). Using the new media outlet of television, Murrow was outspoken in lambasting McCarthy, while using clips of the senator contradicting himself. Eventually, Murrow challenged McCarthy to meet him on the program. While the senator released a statement to the program, his popularity quickly dwindled and he was censured by the senate in 1954.

Edward R. Murrow emphasized the importance of television as a tool of public service in his speech at the Radio and Television News Directors Association in Chicago (1958). This ominous speech on the future of television shed light on the effect of commercialism and the imperative responsibility of maintaining an informed citizenry through media.

In 1961, Murrow was appointed the director of the US Information Agency (USIA). While serving in the Kennedy Administration, he was granted the most access of any USIA director, regularly sitting in on National Security Council meetings. During his three year tenure, Murrow aimed to make a distinction between public diplomacy and propaganda by ensuring full disclosure of information, which was vital during the height of the Cold War.

He is considered by the journalism community to be the forerunner in championing the engagement of public diplomacy through broadcast. The Murrow Center of Public Diplomacy was established at Tufts University in his honor, after his death in 1965. He had received the Presidential Medal of Freedom as well as honorary titles from various nations, including an honorary knighthood from Great Britain.

External Links and References

Radio and Television News Directors Association Speech (http://www.turnoffyourtv.com/commentary/hiddenagenda/murrow.html)

New York Times Obituary (http://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/bday/0425.html)

Murrow in the Public Interest: From Press Affairs to Public Diplomacy (http://usinfo.state.gov/products/pubs/murrow/snow.htm), USINFO