Tom Brokaw
Nate McGinnis
Journalism 503
May 2, 2007
Family Life
• Born 1940 in Bristol,
S.D.
• Oldest of three boys
• Moved to Yankton,
S.D. in 1955
• Father, Anthony,
worked construction
for the Army Corp of
Engineers
• Mother, Jean,
worked at the
Yankton post office
College Years
• Enrolled at the University
of Iowa for his freshmen
year, transferred to
University of South
Dakota after first year
• Graduated with BA in
political science in 1962
• First TV job was at KTIV
in Sioux City, Iowa (19601962)
• Worked for KMTV in
Omaha as a morning news
editor (1962-1965)
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Network Jobs
• In 1965 scored first anchor job at
WSVB in Atlanta, an NBC
affiliate
• Moved to Los Angeles to anchor
for KNBC in 1966
• In 1972 became NBC White
House correspondent
• Floor reporter for both party
conventions in 1976
• Joined cast of the “Today Show”
as a co-host in 1976
NBC Nightly News
• Left the “Today Show”
in 1981 to become coanchor of NBC Nightly
News
• Paired with Mudd who
was based in Washington
• Became sole anchor in
1983
• Signed to a seven year
contract for $18 million
at 42 years old
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Ratings in the 1990s
Famous Firsts
• Conducted first US
interview with Russian
President Mikhail
Gorbachev
• Only anchor to report
at the fall of the Berlin
Wall
• In 2000, he conducted
the first American TV
interview with Russian
President Vladimir
Putin
Other Projects
• The Greatest Generation
(1998)
• The Greatest Generation
Speaks (1999)
• An Album of Memories
(2001)
• A Long Way from Home:
Growing Up in the
American Heartland
(2002)
Awards and Honors
Awards
• Alfred I. duPont Columbia
University Award
• 2 Emmy Awards
• Television Academy Hall
of Fame
• Sylvanus Thayer Award
• Walter Cronkite Award for
Journalism Excellence
• Edward R. Murrow
Lifetime Achievement in
Broadcasting Award
Honorary Degrees
• Notre Dame
• Boston College
• Washington University
• Duke University
• Syracuse University
• Hofstra University
• University of South
Dakota
Final Sign-Off
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December 1, 2004
Sources
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Balholm, Hutch. "Tom Brokaw." YouTube. 11 Apr. 2007. Arizona State University. 28 Apr. 2007
<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BwcXwS_kuGA>.
Brokaw, Tom. A Long Way From Home: Growing Up in the American Heartland. New York:
Random House, 2002.
"NBC Nightly News Brokaw Promo 1984." YouTube. 24 Nov. 2006. 28 Apr. 2007
<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F8jkuMAB4ko>.
Goldberg, Robert, and Gerald Goldberg. Anchors: Brokaw, Jennings, Rather and the Evening News.
New York: Carol Group, 1990. 37-62.
Lind, Michael. "The Class of '45." The New York Times Book Review. 27 Dec. 1998. The New York
Times. 29 Apr. 2007
<http://www.nytimes.com/books/98/12/27/reviews/981227.27lindt.html?_r=1&oref=slogin>.
Negra, Diane. "Tom Brokaw." The Museum of Broadcast Communications. The Museum of
Broadcast Communications. 29 Apr. 2007
<http://www.museum.tv/archives/etv/B/htmlB/brokawtom/brokawtom.htm>.
"Tom Brokaw." MSNBC. 29 Apr. 2007 <http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4364148/>.
"Tom Brokaw." Wikipedia. 29 Apr. 2007 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Brokaw>.
Tyndall, Andrew. "The State of the News Media 2004." Journalism.Org. 2004. Project for Excellence
in Journalism. 30 Apr. 2007
<http://www.stateofthenewsmedia.com/2004/narrative_networktv_audience.asp?cat=3&media=4>.
"Yankton, SD." Wikipedia. 29 Apr. 2007 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yankton%2C_SD>.