Remembering Walter Cronkite
One of the few who held on to his reputation.
The recent passing of Walter Cronkite has resulted in a flurry of media coverage on the life and legacy of “The Most Trusted Man in America.”
Indeed, Cronkite was a true pioneer in the world of journalism who forged the path of frontline reporting with a courage and integrity unprecedented in the mainstream media, often daring to speak out against the government without exception or apology. His tremendous influence had a heavy impact on the profession of journalism, raising the bar for journalists everywhere and earning him the trust of people around the globe. From the death of JFK to Watergate to the Iran Hostage Crisis and The Space Race, Cronkite’s voice filled living rooms across the United States with his no-holds-barred reporting style. But, by far, his most influential and ground-breaking work was his coverage of the Vietnam War.
Cronkite’s 1968 report following the Tet Offensive is quite possibly one of the most influential war-time reports in history. It was in part due to Cronkite’s report that the Tet Offensive soon came to be known as the turning point of the Vietnam War. Cronkite documented and transmitted harshly realistic depictions of the war, grotesque images of militant brutality that US citizens did not want to believe their own soldiers capable of. Not only did his report showcase the inhumanity taking place in southeast Asia, but, more importantly to the mothers and fathers watching and waiting at home, the harsh reality that their sons were being sent to die in vain. The report forced the public to come to terms with the fact that the possibility of a US victory in Vietnam was merely a pipe dream. In Cronkite’s own words: “We have been too often disappointed by the optimism of the American leaders, both in Vietnam and Washington, to have faith any longer in the silver linings they find in the darkest clouds. For it seems now more certain than ever that the bloody experience of Vietnam is to end in a stalemate…To say that we are closer to victory today is to believe, in the face of the evidence, the optimists who have been wrong in the past.” The night of the broadcast, Lyndon B. Johnson told his closest advisors, “If I’ve lost Cronkite, I’ve lost middle America.” Shortly thereafter, Johnson’s public approval ratings plummeted to an unprecedented 36%. Four weeks later, Johnson declined his party’s nomination to run for another term as president.
Cronkite went on to pursue an intense career in the field of journalism, and it seemed that no amount of mainstream pressure could shake him. And while it is easy to revere such a hero with great awe, especially in the aftermath of his death, it is important to note that Cronkite had a lot working in his favor which enabled him to gain the status he earned. There were many other frontline journalists working during this time: for example, African American reporters Wallace Terry and Mike Marriot for CBS, and Vietnamese-American Associated Press photographer Huyn Cong “Nick” Ut. As a white man with tremendous screen presence and charisma, however, Cronkite clearly had advantages which other journalists did not, and succeeded in taking control of the spotlight with no contest.
Another important thing to note is that Cronkite was very lucky in that he was coming up at a very opportune time in history. Cronkite skyrocketed to fame at a time when modern technology had advanced faster than government stipulations on warzone media coverage. Technology had advanced far beyond the days of World War II, which was primarily covered via radio. The development of cameras and video equipment had enabled the power of images to take over, and the speed with which these images could be transmitted aided the process tremendously. No longer did we have to wait days for information from the front line via telegraph. As Mike Marriott stated, “We were free to go to a unit, any unit, we asked. I don’t remember ever being stopped from covering a unit.”
That was a time when journalists had power: a power that government bodies had not yet fully realized. Journalists’ freedom from the censorship of government-controlled mainstream media corporations allowed them to report stories as they saw them, without influence from the players in Washington. The reaction this uncensored coverage incited from world audiences was immense.
Consequently, by the 1970’s, control of media outlets was overtaken by world governments. Regulations and stipulations were quickly applied, including limitations on how close journalists could get to the fighting and what images were and were not allowed to be broadcast. No longer were journalists given free reign within war zones; by the time of Operation Desert Storm, warzone bureaucracies had fully set in. Worst of all, the mainstream media corporations had seized total control of all image transmission, so that even the footage that warzone journalists were able to capture were sent to station networks in major cities, where they were cut in the editing room by corporate-sponsored, highly-paid editors so that the broadcast could tell whatever story the station wanted it to tell. Today, the mainstream media sources in the West are controlled by a dozen or so very powerful corporations, so that even journalists with the highest level of integrity are not always able to distribute the stories they stand behind. For the past quarter of a century or so, the media has been almost exclusively controlled by the strong hand of the right-wing sponsored media and their imperialistic agendas.
Hence, it is important to note that, while Cronkite was certainly a pioneer of his field, he was not alone in his beliefs, courage, or journalistic integrity. Of course, Cronkite was the best of the bunch, but he was, in fact, a mainstream journalist and as such, was initially in support of the Vietnam War. It was not until he had traveled to Vietnam and saw what was happening for himself that he changed his tune. Regardless, it took a great deal of fortitude to speak out against the war, especially while reporting from within the mainstream. But again, he wasn’t alone. Many have tried to follow in his footsteps, or even pave their own way in their commitment to reporting objective, balanced journalism, but have not been able to in the face of the corporate media. There are many journalists currently working from within the mainstream who want to do the right thing and simply are not able to. Cronkite was indeed a gifted reporter, but also had the heavy advantage of being able to strike while the iron was hot.
Yet the iron has never been hotter than it is today. With the immense advancements in technology in the past decade or so, opportunities for independent journalists to get their stories out to the world are more abundant than ever before. This has opened up a wide array of opportunities for independent journalists to take the reigns. With the relatively affordable cost of a video camera and the widespread accessibility of the internet, independent coverage of world events is a field ripe for the picking. If we are then to revere the life and career of Walter Cronkite and other like-minded revolutionaries, it is best to do so by moving forward with the work they set out to establish. This is how Walter Cronkite can best be remembered – by carrying his legacy forward. It’s high time we televised the revolution, and the independent journalists seem to be the only ones capable of making that move.
1st August 2009