Billy Don Moyers
Bill Moyers was born on June 5, 1934, in Hugo, Oklahoma. Moyers grew up in
Marshall, Texas and went to North Texas State College. After his second year at North Texas
State College, Moyers had a summer job working for Senator Lyndon B. Johnson in his summer
office. For his third year Moyers, following Johnson’s advice transferred to the University of
Texas at Austin. Moyers graduated from the University of Texas in 1956. After graduating from
the University of Texas Moyers studied abroad for a year at Edinburgh. When he returned from
Edinburgh he went to Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He graduated from seminary
with a divinity degree in 1959. After graduating from seminary he took a job with Johnson’s staff
as a personal staff. He rose quickly through the ranks and soon became an executive assistant.
During the 1960 presidential election Moyers directed Johnson’s vice presidential campaign and
served as a liaison with the Kennedy camp. In 1961 Moyers left Johnson’s staff to take a position
as publicity director of the Peace Corps. In that position he helped win popularity in Congress
and in public for the creation of the Peace Corps. Moyers was promoted to deputy director of the
Peace Corps in 1963. After Kenendy’s assassination Moyers left the Peace Corps and became a
special assistant to the President and one of Johnson’s principle advisers. In his new position
Moyers worked as a liaison with the Kennedy hangovers and helped explain Johnson’s new style.
Moyers was also heavily involved in establishing the task forces that the Johnson administration
used to work on Great Society legislative proposals. In creating the task forces Moyers made it a
point to combine both government officials and outside specialists, to prevent bureaucratic
hostility that occurred during the Kennedy Administration. During the 1964 elections Moyers
became the main route for ideas for Johnson’s campaign. He helped write the Democratic
platform and ensured a strong stand on civil rights. In October 1964 Moyers became Johnson’s
chief of staff after Walter Jenkins resigned. He resumed his work on the task forces and the
renewal of his work coincided with a great amount of success as a number of bills were sent from
Congress to the President for his signature. While maintaining his duties as chief of staff he also
assumed the position of White House Press Secretary in July 1965, after George Reedy resigned.
As press secretary Moyers main task was to shift media focus from Johnson’s personality and
refocus it on the Administration’s legislative success. As press secretary Moyers became known
as a dove on the Vietnam issue. Moyers became increasingly frustrated with his job as access to
the President was cut off and as the amount of detail work involved in serving as press secretary
began to mount. Finally in December 1966 Moyers resigned to become publisher of the Long
Island newspaper Newsday. As publisher of Newsday Moyers helped shed the conservative
image that the paper was known for. Moyers also went on to write Listening to America: A
Traveler Rediscovers His Country, which became a best-selling book in 1971 and host Bill
Moyers’s Journal on television. Finally in 1976 he took a job with the Columbia Broadcasting
System.