Some of my earliest memories were that of the PBS NewsHour theme song going off right after I watched a couple episodes of Arthur. At the time I didn't realize that I was hearing the introduction of greatness.
Jim Lehrer started his career right after he finished his time with the United States Marine Corps. Beginning in 1959 as a member of The Dallas Star, he slowly worked his way up, and eventually covered stories such as the J.F.K assassination as well as becoming a political columnist for several different news corporations. Lehrer achieved his modern day status by joining forces with Robert McNeil (a respected journalist and colleague of Lehrer) in order to start The McNeil/Lehrer report which had its humble beginnings in 1975. Eventually with the departure of McNeil the show was solely Lehrer's and was renamed in such accordance. For over 40 years, Jim Lehrer has covered stories with class and reliability that rivals even former giants such as Walter Cronkite and Edward R. Murrow. In 2011 Lehrer stepped down form his full-time post at PBS, but continues to appear on the Friday news analysis segment. In the past, Lehrer was given the right to moderate one of the 2012 Presidential Debates. A fitting role for one of the pioneers of modern day journalism.
4. David Muir - ABC World News with David Muir
A relatively new guy on the seen, David Muir is on his fast track to become one of the evening new's "Big Three", if and only if Diane Sawyer decides to step down.
David Muir began his career as a weekend correspondent for a local news station, surprisingly while still a senior at Ithaca College. He later continued his education by attending University of Salmanca, in Spain, while becoming fluent in Spanish. For about five years, he was one of the leading anchors in his hometown of Syracuse New York, and covered major stories such as the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin. After winning numerous awards for his journalism work later in his career in Boston, Muir was eventually hired by ABC in 2003, at the age of 29 to anchor the overnight newscast World News Tonight. Currently, Muir is the anchor of the weekended news (ABC World News with David Muir) and has been praised numerous times for his presence and the rise in ratings for the weekend broadcast. He is due for a promotion.
3. Peter Jennings - World News Tonight with Peter Jennings
A legend in his own right, Peter Jennings was a face many Americans could depend on, no matter how shady the news got.
Although Jennings was a friendly face to many Americans, he was actually born in Canada. His father was a famous radio broadcaster for CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Cooperation) so as you can imagine, journalism was in his blood. Although being a smart guy, Jennings failed the 10th grade and as a result dropped out of high school. Even though that was a major setback, he did not let that stop him from wasting his talent. He eventually proved to Carleton University he was worthy, and they accepted him, however he dropped out shortly. After working as a bank teller for a few years, he got his big break in 1959 at a local radio station, and eventually worked his way up and was recognized by CBC, his father's company. Jennings got an even bigger break however when ABC was looking for a permanent guy to anchor the evening news that would rival competitors NBC and CBS, as a result they turned towards Jennings, and never turned back. For over 30 years, Jennings was the face of evening news, dominating the competition, his fellow rivals Tom Brokaw and Dan Rather. This high-school dropout showed millions, that if you know your worth something, just keep trying and everything will work out in the end. In 2005, Jennings died of lung cancer at the age of 67, as a result, the evening news has never been the same.
2. Anderson Cooper - Anderson Cooper 360º
The son of Gloria Vanderbilt, a famous actress and heiress to the fortune of Cornelius Vanderbilt, the billionaire railroad mogul, Anderson Cooper had the life many could ask for. This however was not enough for him, and instead of living in the shadow of his ancestors, Cooper decided to make a name for himself and has successfully done so, becoming one of the trailblazing anchors of the past decade as well as a dominating force in social media.
Born into such wealth, Cooper made several appearances with his mother on various talk shows and for a brief period of time Cooper was a child model. Eventually growing up from his illustrious childhood, Cooper attended Yale University and graduated in 1989 with a degree in political science. Cooper started is career with ABC as a telephone corespondent, but decided soon that he would not be satisfied until he was broadcasting the news. Cooper was eventually promoted to the co-anchor of the over-night news, World News Now, but deiced to switch to another show on ABC called The Mole, a reality game show. Eventually, Cooper decided to leave this position as well and was soon picked up by cable news giant, CNN. Currently, Cooper is the host of his own syndicated news program Anderson Cooper 360º which broadcasts every night on CNN as well as being a corespondent on CBS's 60 Minutes. Cooper has redefined the role of a typical news anchor, by not just reporting news, but also taking a stance of certain controversial issues.
1. Brian Williams - NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams
Reigning as the current champion of evening news, Brian Williams is a face that most Americans look forward to everyday to hear their news. While not getting caught up in the glitz and glamour of being anchor and managing editor of his show, NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams, Williams continues to show a sort of class and sophistication while reporting the news, which is often lost in many modern day broadcasts.
Williams grew up in and around the Northeast corridor of the United States, mostly in New Jersey and New York. Williams first attended college at Brookdale Community College then transferring to The Catholic University of America, then transferring to George Washington University. Although receiving 18 credits in college, he decided to dropout and pursue an internship with President Jimmy Carter and his staff, a decision that would turn out to be the right choice. In 2004, Williams took over the position of NBC Nightly News after his predecessor and evening news legend Tom Brokaw deiced to call it quits. Williams has displayed excellent journalism thoughout his career by reporting on such stories such as Hurricane Katrina and the death of Osama bin Laden. Hailed as the modern day Walter Cronkite, Williams has continued to dominate the scene as face of evening news for this generation and in all likeliness, many more to come.
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