1977. The Problem with the ABC News Division

How to Fix a Third Place News Broadcast

ABC Evening News anchors Harry Reasoner and Barbara Walters on set (photo by Ray Stubblebine, Associated Press) (source)

From The Washington Post, March 9, 1977. "Will Arledge Preside Over ABC News?" by Sander Vanocur, p. B1:

Will Arledge Preside Over ABC News?

By Sander Vanocur

The problem with the ABC Evening News is not primarily Barbara Walters. Nor is it Harry Reasoner. The problem with the ABC Evening News is ABC News.

There has been much speculation and gossip about how Reasoner and Walters get along—whether he will leave the show, whether she will leave the show, or whether he will remain in New York and she will move to Washington. It fills the pages of newspapers and magazines and completely obscures the problem, which is ABC News.

The nightly news programs of the three networks are the final distillation of the daily activities of their respective news departments. Imagine the programs in your mind as what comes out of the small end of a funnel into which a large amount of wine is being poured. That is how it looks at CBS and NBC.

But at ABC, the reverse is true. Priorities have been reversed. They pour their news input in through the narrow end and what comes out the large end of the funnel is a tiny trickle of wine served to us by two very famous wine stewards.

Whatever else Walters has or has not done, she has focused the attention of ABC management on this fact: The network simply has not given its news department both the money and the support that the network has lavished on its entertainment and sports departments.

CBS was dominant in the early days of radio news because William S. Paley gave Edward R. Murrow a blank check to go out and hire the best: Howard K. Smith, William Shirer, Charles Collingwood, Eric Sevareid, David Schoenbrun, Winston Burdett, Bill Downs. A tradition was started. When major events happened, people turned their radio dials to CBS.

In the middle 1950s, Robert E. Kintner took two men named Huntley and Brinkley and used them to build a news department. For the remainder of that decade and the first part of the next, NBC dominated television news as CBS News had earlier dominated radio.

I had the pleasure of working for Kintner during that period. If you were a reporter at NBC News during his reign, you were treated as one of fortune's children. If major events happened, you would go on the air immediately because Kintner ordered entertainment shows replaced with major breaking news stories. His reasoning was simple: When something important happened, people knew that they could see it first and see it best on NBC.

That tradition has never existed at ABC. For the past 15 years, under Elmer Lower and William Sheehan, two of the most decent men in journalism, ABC management has not given its news department the attention and prominence that Paley and Kintner gave at CBS and NBC. For that reason, people do not associate ABC with being a leader in the news.

The lesson that seems to have now been learned at ABC is that the hiring of a star from another network to join with another star on the evening news simply will not raise ratings. Huntley and Brinkley were a pairing made in heaven. But they dominated the news ratings, both the nightly news and at a convention, because they were supported by a strong news organization that had the full backing and support of top network management.

Now there is talk that ABC Television President Frederick S. Pierce, who recently added the ABC News division to his field of responsibility, is going to make some changes in the division's management. Current speculation centers on making ABC Sports President Roone Arledge head of ABC News.

Arledge is the man who gave ABC Sports its commanding position not by wasting his energy returning phone calls. In an interview with Playboy magazine last hear he hinted that he had some ideas about what was wrong with television news.

While not confessing to Playboy that in his heart he lusted after the presidency of ABC News, it was a tip-off to some people in the industry that Arledge was looking for a new challenge in television.

Running ABC News would be a challenge, another summit to scale. But Arledge would be foolish to entertain the prospect, if it is offered to him, without assurances from ABC management that they will give him the same kind of backing that Paley and Kintner gave their news departments.

That means he would be allowed to preempt ABC's incredibly successful entertainment programming to present a news special when a major news story develops—to not, on occasions like last year's Fourth of July, be so shamefully outclassed by CBS and NBC.

If he gets that kind of commitment, then, in time, he may be able to provide the galvanizing energy which ABC News so badly needs. Without it, ABC will continue to be a bad third and we will continue to spend our time writing gossipy little tidbits about Walters and Reasoner which will titillate readers but obscure the real problem.

1955. Ambassador Clare Boothe Luce on Italy

Italy's Political Woes

Bill Downs (right) meets with Italian Prime Minister Mario Scelba in 1955

TO: Ed Murrow, John Day, Jim Burke

FROM: Bill Downs, Rome

March 1, 1955

I just had a long talk with Ambassador Luce over the general situation in Italy. Speaking off the record (although I didn't see why), she seemed fairly optimistic and said that, since the passage of the Western European Union program by the Bundestag, there should be little trouble getting the program ratified by the Roman Senate. There are signs that the Togliatti boys will make some noise before the present debate is concluded, but she believes this will be for the benefit of Moscow and to get the party on the record in the public mind here. Mrs. Luce does not believe Togliatti will go all out on an issue which he knows in advance he has little chance of winning.

Italian political leaders in Premier Scelba's coalition government are back playing with their knives again. The right wing Liberal leaders deliberately brought up the agricultural law issue just the day Scelba and Martino returned from the London and Paris trips. The gambit apparently was to embarrass the Premier and grab the headlines from him. Foreign Minister Martino, who is a Liberal Party member, finally brought the dissidents into line but gained only a three month respite, when the issue will come up again. The Liberals, who include many wealthy landowners, want to modify the present law which prevents them from being able to discharge sharecroppers or tenant farmers and change the regulations to get people off their property after a set notice time. As you can see, it is a perfect issue for Communist propaganda.

Scelba and Martino will arrive in America about the 23rd of March. The exact itinerary is still being made up, but present plans call for a visit to Ottawa, then Washington, New York, Chicago, and Philadelphia. Scelba will return to Rome ahead of Martino, who is likely to extend his tour to San Francisco returning east via Texas. They want to go to Washington with ratification of WEU behind them, and the agenda of the formal talks with Eisenhower and Dulles will include the usual mutual defense and economic problems, with emphasis on increased trade and immigration. Incidentally, Mrs. Luce is leaving for the US on about March 18 ahead of the Scelba party. She's going to get an honorary degree from Georgetown University. I also am pressing for the exact dates on the Scelba-Martino itinerary with a view to getting Martino on some of our shows. Martino speaks fairly good English.

Mrs. Luce does not expect much that will cheer the West to come out of the Sicilian elections which will probably be held in June. The Communists and extreme left are expected to make further gains. The moderate and right wing political situation is complicated by splits in all parties, a proposed majority election law to replace P.R. which is being fought by the minor parties, a controversial issue over oil exploration and exploitation, and the usual personality battles for power. In other words, the Left is expected to make gains.

The Ambassadress continues to insist, however, that generally the Communists are losing some of their punch. She admits that she had little proof of this except scattered factory elections where the Red CGIL unions have lost votes. She admits that it may be all a farce to get US military contracts, "or it may be done with mirrors" but, she continued, "if I'm being fooled over this, I must say it's the way I want to be fooled." The biggest problem, she says, is to find a way to get the government off dead center. But even under the present "immobilissimo" government, things generally get slightly better from day to day. This progress by osmosis has already precipitated a split in the Communist leadership, and she says that if this somnambulant state of affairs can be continued, the West will stand to win in the long run.

The crisis period in Italian politics will come after the presidential election this summer. Depending on who gets the job—in the running are Martino, ex-Premier Pella, and possibly even Demochristian Party Secretary Fanfani—will depend on the men who will try to upset the Scelba government. Some gossip has it that Fanfani has been sitting back developing his own organization and will emerge with the power to give the country strong leadership of a New Deal kind. Another candidate being mentioned is Finance Minister Vanoni, the creator of the Vanoni Plan to give Italy full employment in the next ten years. Just about any man who emerges with personality enough to capture the imagination of the people can do the job. But not to be forgotten is Scelba himself, who seems to creep up on power or inherits it by default.

La Luce says that elections any time within the next two years would force a real polarization of the vote with both the right and the left gaining at the expense of the center. The Demochristians have no agreed program to present to the electorate and have little in the way of a positive record to point to as their past accomplishments.

In other words, politically things are normal here and we may have a government crisis in the summer, if not before.

Regards,

Bill Downs

1954. The Life and Canonization of Pope Pius X

Pope Pius X's Canonization

Pope Pius XII in a papal sedia gestatoria presiding over the canonization ceremony of Pius X on May 29, 1954 (source)

From The Story of Our Time: Encyclopedia Yearbook 1955 (1955), pp. 56-58:

A New Saint is Proclaimed

By BILL DOWNS

CBS Radio Correspondent

It was "pope's weather" as more than a quarter of a million people began early to gather in St. Peter's Square in Vatican City. Pilgrims and cardinals, bishops and lowly parishioners from all over the world stood for hours in the bright sunshine on May 29, 1954, to witness and participate in a solemn but joyous act of Roman Catholic history. At sundown, for the first time in 242 years, a pope of the Church was raised to sainthood. By nightfall Giuseppe Sarto, the humble son of an Italian postman, was proclaimed Saint Pius X.

It was the second time in the history of the Roman Catholic Church that such a ceremony had been held outdoors. There was a greater audience at this canonization than ever before. Uncounted additional thousands witnessed the event as it was broadcast on the Italian television network, and the Vatican radio retransmitted the ceremonies in more than twenty languages to the world.

The canonization ritual, which usually takes about five hours, was streamlined and condensed in deference to the present Pope's health. During the winter, the seventy-eight-year-old pontiff had suffered a severe attack of gastritis which caused concern for his life. However, his voice and actions were firm, and he showed no signs of tiring as he went through the difficult and wearing ceremonial. The rites marked a high point of the Catholic Marian Year and were one of the most impressive events in the fifteen-year reign of Pius XII.

At no time in modern history has any pope had the opportunity to confer sainthood on a man who was his friend and benefactor. Eugenio Pacelli, as the present Pope was born, was a protégé of the sanctified "Papa Sarto." Pius X recognized the outstanding qualities of the studious Father Pacelli and in 1904, when Pacelli was only twenty-eight, made him a monsignor.

It was Pius X who ordered him to refuse the chair of Roman law at Catholic University in Washington, D. C., and it was he who launched him on his successful Vatican diplomatic career which is credited with being an important factor in Cardinal Pacelli's elevation to the papal throne during the difficult days of 1939.

Thus it came about that the pupil bestowed on his teacher the highest posthumous honor the Roman Catholic Church offers.

It is barely forty years since Giuseppe Sarto died. His friends speak of him not as a legend but as a remembered personality. They recall that money never mattered to him—a rare quality in a man who was born poor and who was raised on the meager salary of a Treviso postman. Sarto was interested in finances only as they affected his various churches. In fact, Cardinal Sarto had to borrow money for his railroad fare from Venice to Rome to attend the Consistory of the College of Cardinals that elected him to the papal throne in 1903.

Pius X was used to hard work. After his ordination to the priesthood in 1858, he spent seventeen years as a parish priest. He performed his parish duties, among the most difficult tasks in Catholicism, with enthusiasm and skill. He refused the bishopric of Treviso, but four years later accepted that of Mantua when Pope Leo XIII commanded him to do so. Although he was created a cardinal in 1893 and was made a patriarch of Venice, he never lost his interest in the day-to-day work of the parish priest. Cardinal Sarto believed that a successful churchman is one who knows and understands his people. As patriarch of Venice, he always kept his office door open, and he brought his open-door policy with him when he moved into the Vatican as Pope Pius X.

Churchmen remember his great humility. When it was announced that he had the two-thirds vote of the Consistory and was the new Pope, Sarto fainted. He reluctantly accepted the papal crown, in his words, "as I would accept the Cross."

During his reign Pius X condemned "modernism" and tightened many church regulations. He established a special commission, of which Eugenio Pacelli was secretary, to codify canon law. He was interested in church music and decreed that Gregorian chant should be used in church services. It was during his pontificate that children were permitted to make their First Communion upon reaching the age of reason (seven).

The tragedy of Pius X is that of the present Pius XII. Despite their unceasing efforts, both men have failed to bring peace to the world.

International tensions were increasing during the last years of his reign—1913-1914. It became clear to Pius X that war would soon tear the continent of Europe to pieces if something was not done. By this time the Pope had contracted a serious illness which was sapping his strength. He dramatically offered to sacrifice his life if it would but reconcile the nations. One of his last acts was to reject a request from the Emperor of Austria, shortly after World War I broke out, that he bless the Austrian cause. The pope replied caustically: "I do not bless war: I bless peace." He died, a heart-broken man, on August 20, 1914, just three weeks after the war began.

What is the significance behind the canonization of Pius X? Some Catholic authorities explain it this way.

The first saints of the Christian church were the martyrs who suffered persecution and death for their belief in a single, all-merciful God. The most illustrious of these martyrs was St. Peter, who is said to have been put to death at the very spot where St. Pius was canonized. It was through the veneration of these early saints that the practice grew for the faithful to seek their protection and intercession in matters of the spirit.

Over the centuries the qualifications for sainthood have become increasingly stringent. A saint is created only after a suit at law before a special court of cardinals called the Congregation of Rites. The reigning pope is, however, the supreme judge of the matter.

In the legal procedure, a postulator or solicitor presents the case for the candidate. He furnishes the proofs of his virtues, attempts to establish his reputation for sanctity and presents the evidence of the working of the miracles.

Another ecclesiastical lawyer, the "promoter of the Faith," or more popularly, "the devil's advocate," points out the weak points in the arguments.

Canon law requires that before a man can become a saint he must pass the test of beatification. This is a necessary step toward canonization. Pius X was beatified in June 1951. After beatification two major miracles must be attributed to the candidate.

Vatican officials issued a decree early in 1954 recognizing the validity of Pius X's two miracles.

The first was said to have occurred in Naples on the night of August 26, 1951. Francesco Belsani, a lawyer, offered prayers to the beatified Pius. According to the Vatican report, his doctors confirmed that a dangerous lung abscess that had afflicted the lawyer was cured immediately. Lawyer Belsani lived to see his benefactor sanctified.

The second miracle recognized by the Vatican occurred when a Sicilian nun, Maria Luisa Scorcia, was cured of a serious attack of meningitis on May 14, 1952, after praying to Blessed Pius for aid.

The Congregation of Rites and the Pope decided that Giuseppe Sarto had fulfilled all the rigid requirements for sainthood and would be canonized in May 1954.

Although the occasion was one of the greatest solemnity, the exuberance of the native Romans added something of a festive atmosphere to the proceedings. They cheered their favorite cardinals as they walked in the papal procession chanting the haunting litany of the saints. The crowd burst into a roar when Pius XII appeared, accompanied by the colorful Swiss guards and the nobles of the papal court. People dropped to their knees by the thousands when the Pope raised his hand in blessing as he was carried in the sedia gestatoria (portable throne) to St. Peter's throne.

For the 400,000,000 Catholics throughout the world, the meaning of the action and of the canonization goes far deeper than the mere performance of the ceremonies. Proclaiming sainthood for a man whose living memory is still fresh in the minds of his followers confirms the continuity of the Church, its miracles and mysteries which have kept the religion alive for two thousand years.

As an act of devotion and faith, the ceremonies were timed to restore confidence to the Catholic world in a society now being shaken and threatened with a philosophy that denies Catholic belief.

The certification of miracles attributed to St. Pius X is a gesture symbolizing the original miracle of Christ's birth and resurrection and a confirmation of the hope of peace for all mankind.

This, then, was the significance of the final gesture at the end of the ceremonies when the silken curtain was drawn aside revealing the new saint's picture affixed to the balcony over the door of the basilica. The cheers were loud and happy when the crowd saw St. Pius X wearing his new halo.

1940. Edward R. Murrow Reports the Dunkirk Evacuation

Edward R. Murrow Reports from London on the Evacuation of Dunkirk

Edward R. Murrow

CBS London

June 2, 1940

EDWARD R. MURROW: This is London. The Allied rearguard is still holding Dunkirk against increasing German pressure. Heavy German field guns are pounding the beaches, and efforts to remove more men are continuing.

According to Mr. Anthony Eden, more than four-fifths of the British Expeditionary Force has been evacuated. The Air Force claims at least 125 German planes shot down in the Dunkirk area during the last two days. Today's score has given us thirty-five Germans down and eight British fighters lost.

Yesterday I spent several hours at what may be tonight—or next week—Britain's first line of defense: an airfield on the southeast coast. German bases weren't more than ten minutes flying time away across that ditch that has protected Britain and conditioned the thinking of Britishers for centuries.

I talked with pilots as they came back from Dunkirk. They stripped off their life jackets, glanced at a few bullet holes in wings or fuselage, and as the ground crews swarmed over the aircraft refueling motors and guns we sat on the ground and talked. Out in the middle of the field the wreckage of a plane was being cleared up. It had crashed the night before; the pilot had been shot in the head, but it managed to get back to its field. The Royal Air Force prides itself on never walking out of a plane until it falls apart.

I can tell you what those boys told me. They were the cream of the youth of Britain. As we sat there, they were waiting to take off again. They talked of their own work, discussed the German air force with all the casualness of Sunday morning quarterbacks discussing yesterday's football game. There were no nerves, no profanity, and no heroics. There was no swagger about those boys in wrinkled and stained uniforms. The movies do that sort of thing much more dramatically than it is in real life.

They told me of the patrol from which they'd just returned. "Six Germans down. We lost two."

"What happened to Eric?" said one.

"Oh, I saw him come down right alongside one of our destroyers," replied another.

The Germans fight well in a crowd. They know how to use the sun, and if they surprise you it's uncomfortable. "If twenty or so of them catch five of us, we stay and fight," they said.

"Maybe that's why we got so many of them," added one boy with a grin.

They all told the same story about numbers. "Six of us go over," they said, "and we meet twelve Germans. If ten of us go, there are twenty Germans." But they were all anxious to go again. When the squadron took off, one of them remarked quite casually that they'd be back in time for tea.

About that time a boy of twenty drove up in a station wagon. He weighed about 115 pounds. He asked the squadron leader if he could have someone to fly him back to his own field. His voice was loud and flat. His uniform was torn; had obviously been wet. He wore a pair of brown tennis shoes three sizes too big. After he'd gone I asked one of the men who'd been talking with him, "What was the matter with him?"

All he replied: "He was shot down over Dunkirk on the first patrol this morning. He landed in the sea, swam to the beach, was bombed for a couple of hours, came home in a paddle steamer. His voice sounds like that because he can't hear himself. You get that way after you've been bombed a few hours," he said.

An air gunner with grease and powder marks on his cheek and neck walked in from his plane, unwound his scarf, had a smoke, and sat down to talk over things with his companions.

I return you now to Columbia in New York.