Most Beloved TV Broadcasters

David Brinkley is one half of NBC’s storied “The Huntley-Brinkley Report” that became a TV news institution in the 1960s. The program distinguished itself with its political coverage, particularly during political conventions. Brinkley took his droll newscasting style to ABC, where he hosted “This Week with David Brinkley.”

Tom Brokaw brought a plain-speaking American heartland style to broadcasting that earned him 11 Emmy Awards and two Peabody Awards for broadcast journalism. He hosted the “Today” show from 1976 to 1982, and anchored “NBC Nightly News” from 1982 to 2004.

Connie Chung became the first woman to co-anchor the “CBS Evening News” in 1993. She won Emmy and Peabody awards over a 47-year career. During that time, Chung worked at NBC, CBS, ABC, and CNN. She also substitute anchored the morning newscasts for three legacy networks — the “Today” show on NBC, the “CBS This Morning,” and “Good Morning America” on ABC.

Katie Couric began her career in journalism at ABC before becoming a reporter at NBC, where she found success as a co-anchor on “Today.” She was inducted into The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Hall of Fame in 2004. Two years later, Couric became the first solo female anchor of “CBS Evening News,” and in 2012 she returned to ABC to host her own talk show, “Katie.”

Walter Cronkite reported on many of the nation’s most important moments during his 74 years as a newsman, including the Kennedy assassination and the Apollo 11 space mission. Cronkite — who was tremendously popular with viewers — was referred to as both the “father of television news,” and the “most trusted man in America.” He is also remembered for his iconic signoff, “And that’s the way it is.”

Hugh Downs was co-host of NBC News’ “Today” from 1962 to 1971 and ABC’s “20/20” from 1978 to 1999. He also hosted a number of other televised programs, including game shows and the PBS talk show “Over Easy.”

Now retired, Charles Gibson joined ABC News in 1975 and stayed there until 2009. Gibson held many positions at the network, including co-anchor of “Good Morning America” and anchor of “ABC World News.” In 2006, he was awarded the distinguished Paul White Award from the Radio and Television News Directors of America.

Greg Gumbel’s casual style propelled him from a position as a sports anchor on a local Chicago television station to host of the popular CBS show “The NFL Today.” Gumbel continues to work for the NFL on CBS.

Chet Huntley was first paired with David Brinkley at the 1956 political conventions. That led to their collaboration on NBC’s “The Huntley-Brinkley Report” that helped set the standard of how television news was broadcast. Huntley broadcast from New York City, and David Brinkley from Washington, D.C. Their signature signoff — “Good night, Chet, Good night, David” — was heard by millions for 14 years.

Peter Jennings was the anchor and senior editor of “World News Tonight” for more than 20 years beginning in 1983. The urbane, Canadian-born Jennings was a television journalist for five decades. He covered the Berlin Wall as it was built in the 1960s, and he was there when it was torn down in 1989. Jennings covered the civil rights movement in the U.S. in the 1960s and reported on the Solidarity movement in Poland.

Hoda Kotb cut her journalistic chops working as a correspondent for “Dateline NBC” in the late 1990s and early 2000s — covering events such as the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan — before co-hosting NBC’s “Today,” which allowed her high-energy personality to shine through. In early 2018, she replaced Matt Lauer — who had been fired — during the talk show’s more desired 7 a.m. and 8 a.m. hours. She also went public with her courageous battle against cancer.

Steve Kroft got his start in journalism working as a correspondent while in the Army during the Vietnam War. Nearly 20 years later, he would land a position as a correspondent on CBS News’ “60 Minutes,” where he’s remained to this day.

The balding and avuncular Charles Kuralt was not your archetypical television personality. But his rich, flowing voice and unparalleled storytelling ability made him a mainstay on the “CBS Evening News,” where he did more than 600 stories for his “On the Road” segment. Kuralt was the first anchor of “CBS News Sunday Morning” program.

Al Michaels worked at ABC Sports for nearly three decades and has been the play-by-play announcer for NBC’s “Sunday Night Football” for 13 years. He’s the first announcer to cover all four major team championships in American sports: NBA, NHL, MLB, and NFL. The eight-time Emmy Award winner is famous for his “Do you believe in miracles? Yes!” quote as the U.S. men’s hockey team upset the heavily favored Soviet Union team in the 1980 Winter Olympic Games.

Emmy and Peabody award winner Roger Mudd was an important member of the crack CBS news casting team that set the standard for broadcast news. He joined the Washington bureau of CBS News in 1961. Mudd covered Congress and reported on the famous Senate filibuster debate over the 1964 Civil Rights Act. From 1961 to 1992, he was a correspondent for CBS News, NBC News, and the “MacNeil/Lehrer Newshour” on PBS.

Edward R. Murrow spent 26 years in broadcasting, during which time he revolutionized the industry. Murrow first made a name for himself delivering reports across Europe during World War II, along with his team dubbed “Murrow’s Boys.” Murrow would later host television series, including “See It Now,” which was credited for contributing to the demise of Sen. Joseph McCarthy.

Jim Nantz joined the crew at CBS in 1985 and has since covered every major sport for the network. He’s won National Sportscaster of the Year five times and three Emmy Awards.

The dapper, bowtie-wearing Charles Osgood was the host of “CBS News Sunday Morning” for 22 years, succeeding Charles Kuralt. His storytelling segment was known as “The Osgood File,” and he was called CBS’ poet-in-residence. Osgood was inducted into the National Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame in 1990.

Jane Pauley became a correspondent on NBC’s “Today” show in 1976, where she built her name prior to launching “Dateline NBC” precursor “Real Life with Jane Pauley” in 1990. Pauley has been anchor of “CBS Sunday Morning” since late 2016.

Robin Roberts worked as a host on ESPN’s “Sportscenter” when she began making sporadic appearances as a reporter on ABC’s “Good Morning America.” In 2005, Roberts became full-time co-anchor on the show and, along with George Stephanopoulos, led the show in beating NBC’s “Today” show in ratings for the first time in 16 years. She’s won multiple awards, including a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Radio Television Digital News Association last year.

A longtime “Today” show broadcaster, Al Roker has followed the tradition of the jovial weatherman on the NBC morning program. He has been upfront about his struggle with his weight and went public in 2002 about gastric bypass surgery to lose more than 100 pounds. In 2014, Roker set a Guinness World Record for the longest uninterrupted live weather report broadcast at 34 hours. Roker has been at NBC for 40 years.

Over his nearly 70-year career, Andy Rooney became perhaps best known for his “A Few Minutes with Andy Rooney” segment on “60 Minutes,” during which he would make humorous, and oftentimes curmudgeonly, observations on everyday topics. Rooney won an Emmy for Lifetime Achievement in 2003.

Morley Safer began his television broadcasting career with the Canadian Broadcasting Company. He joined CBS News’ “60 Minutes” in 1970, where he worked until 2016 — retiring just one week before passing away.

Following her position in the White House press office under President Richard Nixon, Diane Sawyer would become the first woman to work as a correspondent on “60 Minutes.” Sawyer later became anchor of “ABC World News” until 2014, where she would close off with her signature, “I’ll see you right back here tomorrow night.”

Weatherman Willard Scott spent 65 years working at NBC, 35 of them with the “Today” show. Scott won hearts by wishing happy birthdays to American centenarians on the air.

Vin Scully broadcast Dodgers baseball games from Brooklyn and Los Angeles on radio and television for 67 years. He is revered by sports broadcasters who consider him the greatest play-by-play announcer of all time for his low-key, informed, and at times playful style of announcing. Among Scully’s most famous calls were Sandy Koufax‘s perfect game in 1965 and Kirk Gibson’s pinch-hit home run in the 1988 World Series.

Eric Sevareid worked at CBS for about 40 years and was one of a group of broadcasters known as “Murrow’s Boys,” named after pioneering broadcast journalist Edward R. Murrow, who recruited Sevareid to work at CBS. Sevareid was the first American broadcaster to report the fall of Paris in World War II to Nazi Germany. After the U.S. entered the war, he was assigned to cover the conflict in Asia. Sevareid later became a television celebrity with his trenchant commentaries on the “CBS Evening News.”

Bob Simon — who worked as a correspondent on “60 Minutes” for 19 seasons — won 27 Emmy Awards and four Peabody Awards before he passed away in a 2015 automobile accident.

Howard K. Smith was one of Edward R. Murrow’s famous wartime radio correspondents known as “the Murrow Boys.” He later acquired wider appeal for his televised work at CBS and then at ABC, although relationships with both networks ended over Smith’s insistence on editorializing.

“60 Minutes” correspondent Lesley Stahl has developed a reputation as a tough and driven interviewer and reporter, interviewing figures such as Margaret Thatcher, Boris Yeltsin, and Yasir Arafat. Stahl won numerous awards — including the 2015 Paul White Award for lifetime achievement — during her 26 seasons on “60 Minutes.”