Ed Bradley -- Not forgotten

Ed Bradley was the best and most successful African-American Broadcast News Journalist at the time of his death. Ed Bradley was our trusted Sunday night story teller covering high leveel news stories for over 25 years with the top news magazine program "60 Minutes". America's multi-media short-term memory ritual, will not allow us to fully appreciate the contributions of Ed Bradley, nor will future aniversary programs magify what he meant to all Americans. Habitual weekly Sunday dinner time viewing of Ed Bradley by millions of Americans, brought to Ed the ultimate trust and respect for excellent journalism. His voice was often used as the set-ups and closing for the frequent promotion of 60 minutes on the daily CBS evening newscasts, and as the opening and closing of the 60 minutes program. All n All, Ed was considered by Americans of all races as a credible, viewable, and listenable reporter.

Ed Bradley's tenure at the helm of 60 minutes was longer than any of the National Newscasters on Cable-TV and the Television's Network Newscasters. The impressive list that he outlasted as a national reporter include: Tom Brokaw, Peter Jennings, Bryant Gumbel, Brian Williams, Cathy Koric, Dan Rather, and Walter Cronkite. Many argue that Ed Bradley should have been selected as the national news anchor of the daily evening newscast for ABC, CBC, and NBC. During Ed Bradley's career he was a weekend anchor for CBS's evening newscasts, while concurrently working on CBS reports - popular magazine program prior (and later rivaled) 60 minutes.


Frankly, who was Ed Bradley? My quick answer would be: "I don't know I never met him :0). Bill Cosby brilliant eulogized Ed Bradley, as both of these icons grew up in Philadelphia. Bill Cosby or Mike Wallace and the 60 minute reporters could better answer that question. I am a respected admirer of Mr. Bradley, and regrettably, I never shook his hand. While I am met and persued meeting many celebrities, I must say that I never aspired to make it a point to meet Ed Bradley. That is not a negative in any sense of the statement. Ed was frankly with me all the time on Sunday evening and had my full attention. But Ed Bradley never hyped his celebrity status. Ed Bradley remained a consumate professional, unwilling to lower his high standards to suit the trending un-important programing that we have witness since more specialized venues have availed themselves over the past twenty years.



The beginnings of Ed Bradley's career started out when his mother entered Ed Bradley in a program that brought a few exceptional Philadelphia student from the Black neighborhoods, into an upscale private boarder high school. While an adult may view this as an exceptional opportunity, the high school kid from Philadelphia named Ed Bradley detested being away from home during the school year and viewed his mother negatively as a teenager. His mother simply did not want the streets of Philadelphia to influence the young Ed Bradley in a negative way, which again is admirable. While going through true lonliness for the first time in the boarding school, Ed Bradley made the very best of his opportunity with grade scores in the 90's.

Off to Temple University, where he continued his education while working for low and no pay jobs doing top of hour newscasts at night at a music station WDAS in Philadelphia. Once he had enough of the low paying work as a radio newscaster -- at a music station, Ed Bradley decided to apply for a New York CBS News station where he could finally make a decent living in the 1960's. Hot local issues, 1960's changing Politics and Lifestyles, Vietnam War, and the assassinations of Martin Luther King and New York Senator Robert Kennedy in 1968 kept Ed Bradley busy to say the least. True Journalists and Broadcasters yearn for an eventful decade of that magnitude, a decade still reverred today. According to Ed Bradley, those turbulent years of the 60's were always intriquing, and yes, the intelligent Ed Bradley knew also that he had to first do his job, which was to first cover New York city for the "local" radio news station. Ed knew what his job was and from the early years through his death, we felt an intense focus from Ed Bradley that few maintain throughout their careers.


After a few years making a decent living at the CBS affiliate in New York, Ed Bradley decided to quit and "bum around" in Paris. Funny...after the previous statement to end the last paragragh on "focus", here we see that everyone -- including Ed Bradley -- needs a break in routine. In Paris, Bradley visited a friend while vacationing one year before making the "break" commitment to Paris. Not surprising that Ed was calculating with even his break from his career, saving money to make the ultimate break to Paris. Bradley spent two years in Paris, living with a few celbrity-type friends in Paris, so they went to the finest Resteraunts, travelled throughout Europe, and enjoying the finer things in life. After two years, Ed Bradley realized that you cannot retire in your 20's, and he had to get back to work. Bradley reached out to CBS and they hired Ed to do a few stories from France, before requested his services back in New York.


Ed returned to New York to continue his broadcasting career. One day, Bradley jokingly told his direct supervisor that he wished that he could cover Vietnam. What Bradley did not realize with his joke is that the supervisor had a job to fill in Vietnam. Once that position became available, Ed's supervisor reminded Bradley of his jokingly remarks Ed made to cover Vietnam. Bradley later, yet reluctently, accepted the Vietnam reporter post. Peole whom were allive during the Vietnam era remember Ed Bradley reports on CBS with Walter Cronkite as the leading news anchor on the CBS evening newscast. We recall Ed routinely reporting from Vietnam and the other participating countries in Southeast Asia.

Some of Bradley's reports from Vietnam that we recall most are:

1. The time where Ed was shot in the leg with a tear rolling down his bearded face while medics attends to his grazing bullet wound,
2. Bradley helping the "boat people" arrive safely to Southeast Asia's shoreline, and
3. The last vivid memory of the Vietnam War was Ed Bradley reporting as thousands of Vietnamese attempt to evacuate their dethroned country by desperately climbing a tall fence, hitching limited rides on American helicopters.

An intense experience in one reporters lifetime, just a few years after roaming freely for two years near the Eiffel tower. I recall watching as Walter Cronkite often deferring to Bradley's Vietnam reports in shocking amazement, despite Cronkite negative critiques of the US Government's involvement in the Vietnam.

Once -- the now highly touted Journalist -- Ed Bradley returned to the State's, his assignments and career continued it national ascension. Bradley became the weekend anchor for CBS evening news (Cronkite weekdays), while a reporter for CBS Reports. 60-minutes came on the scene a few years after CBS Reports, and an opening availed itself at 60-Minutes, as 60-minutes reporter Dan Rather took over the daily evening newscast for a retiring Walter Cronkite at CBS. Ed Bradley was also a leading candidate for Cronkite's CBS Evening News Anchor position, but Rather got the eventual node. Bradley went on to replace Dan Rather as 60-minutes reporter.

Off the subject for a moment. Note the date that this Blog was first written. You may wonder why it has taken me so long to complete this blog? The answer is simple: Fear. My adult life has been spent with the day to day operations of radio stations, announcing radio shows, producing radio programs/promos/ID's/commercials and the like... I dabbled in newscasting, but news for a long period of time. Sixteen years of Education kept my eyes open to local, national, and world affairs, but never have I become as full-time news journalist. I felt un-qualified to write about a mentor of mine. During the month or two or eight, following the first date I begin writing this tribute log to Ed Bradley, I read all I could on Ed Bradley and viewed several specials dedicated to Ed Bradley, and reports. The most impressive was a 10-hour video biography on Ed Bradley with Bradley telling his own story, complete with video footage of his works. I felt more and more confident as I learned more about the man behind the reporter. You would think that I was well equipped. Well, even with all of the ammunition, I was still intimidated by Ed Bradley stature, intelligence, mannerism, class, and sophistication. There was not one African-American like Ed Bradley in the history of American Media. I, now wish that I had met him, as I probably would not be so intimidated. I recall meeting both of the Gumbals -- Brian and Greg, at different locations and the conversation came down to earth after years of my admiration for the two successful Journalist. I recall my crushed feelings when I heard of Ed Bradley's death. I had taken Ed Bradley's reports for granted, and realized that that type of excellence would not be matched for years to come from another African-American. Ed Bradley was the cream of the crop....period.

I was unusually floored by his death. I made sure -- following my immediate mourning for that stunning day when Ed Bradley's death was announced -- as a News/Talk Production Director that I inputted Ed Bradley's most memorable segments (plenty of them as I researched) into Syndication One's (a News/Talk Network) imaging, continually reminded the talk show hosts to discuss Ed Bradley. I made sure that we aired the brilliant eulogy live from Bill Cosby with scheduled repeats afterwards. Al Sharpton -- one of Syndication One's talk show hosts -- and his show producer Fatiyn Muhammed were equally respectful of Ed Bradley, which made my job more enjoyable and kept my creative juices flowing in my commitment to get as much as I could on Ed Bradley, knowing Sharpton and Fatiyn's admiration and respect for the Broadcast Journalist giant. The listeners and guests were equally respectful of Ed Bradley achievements and the famous Bradley class. The conversation about Ed Bradley kept going and going as his legend was sealed in the hearts and minds of this majority African-American audience. CBS's News programming came to a hault as they paid tribute to Ed Bradley, and their majority White audience was even more respectful as our Syndication One's majority Black audience.

Bradley's co-workers -- that included Broadcast Journalist legends Mike Wallace and Andy Rooney -- were visibly mourning on the many talk shows they went on including the most memorable hour spent on CNN's Larry King show. They were so moved by Ed Bradley's stature and moreso Bradley's absense, as they could not believe that Bradley had suddenly left them. Ed Bradley never told even his closest colleagues that he had leukemia. Bradley worked out often, and his lost of weight they attributed to him wanting to lose weight as so many do. We all saw that Ed Bradley was lighter than before in his weekly 60-minutes reports, but never detected that Bradley had a fatal disease.

Ed Bradley's hidding his illness is a testament of how competitive and hard-working Bradley was. The broadcasting field does not allow to take extensive vacations, as the field if filed with your replacements that get a shot to show their talents when you are on that extended vacation. Don't think of sick days. I see folks come and go often, when they look at this business as if it is a State or Federal Government job. Bottom line in this business is to stay healthy and mentally alert everyday. No sick days and no vacation longer than a week at a time. Marriages, courting, rest and relaxation, and parenting are secondary. Please folks, do not tell me about other industries, none are as cut-throat as Broadcasting. In fact, what you are seeing in other industries over the last 20 years, took it's floor plans from Broadcasting. I have seen the most respected Entertainers and Politicians come into Broadcasting with their highly touted shows, and at the end of their show's run, those same Entertainers and Politicians exit the Broadcast field...never to return.

The tough Broadcast Industry "setting" is what makes Ed Bradley's consistent high level of success, even more admirable. I purposely chose not to write another blog, until I pay my full respects to Mr. Ed Bradley. I promised that to the reader in my last blog prior to this one, and I was determined to follow thorough. Eight months later yes, but I keep my word. Other life problems, twist and turns came forward as well, but the fact of the matter was that I had to step back and conquer my fear of the status that I placed on the head of Ed Bradley. All of the opportunities to write on the many things that have happened were tempting to blog, but I prevailled.


Back to Mr. Ed Bradley. With all of the interviews that Bradley conducted, and the many investigative reports, the one that stuck out the most in Bradley's mind was the interview with Lena Horne. I saw the interview when it first aired -- as my mother was a huge Lena Horne fan. The Lena Horne interview did not strike me as the most impresive interview to me, but I was not old enough to see Lena Horne in her prime from the 1930's to the 1950's, while Bradley (and Redd Foxx) was. I do recall that the interview showed them holding hands while walking down the street, adn ed Bradley flirting with Lena Horne. Flirting to the point where Lena Horne stated: "Sex is even beteter in your 60's".

Ed Bradley was always well prepared and excelled in setting people up for the tough qustions, without the interviewee knowing. It seemed so effortlessly to the point where the guests eventually 'wanted' to reveal uncomfortable moments in their lives. Whether it was Lena Horne, Aretha Franklin, Michael Jackson, or the Oklahoma bomber, it seemed that the revealing responses were never given with fear or a sense of feeling uncomfortable. Despite the guests knoewing that the interview would hit tabloids the next day, or in today's fast world, with internet bloggers five minutes later.

In closing, I know that another African-American journalist will reach the levels of Ed Bradley, but will they have the Cal Ripken effect as Ed Bradley had. In other words, will they sustain that high level for 40 years as Ed Bradley did. Unfortunately, I will probably not see that day as unfortunately not one African-American Broadcast Journalist is currently at that basic high level now.

Ed Bradley...Impressive!