Ed Bradley R.I.P.

When we met, at an awards ceremony at Columbia University last year, I was struck by how frail he looked.

Frailty was not an adjective I associated with Ed Bradley, a correspondent who had been filing groundbreaking TV news stories from the time I was in elementary school.

From his story tracing new allegations about the murder of black child Emmet Till to his easygoing features of golfer Tiger Woods and jazz legend Miles Davis, Bradley was always an image of quiet strength -- laid-back but on point, with a touch of cool epitomized by the single diamond earring in his left ear. 

But as we stood together in June 2005 -- among an amazing group of folks honored by the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism for quality coverage of people of color -- Bradley looked thin, a little unsteady and tired. His coronary bypass surgery had been well-publicized in 2003, and I assumed he hadn't yet bounced back.

Then I noticed on his recent, groundbreaking story about the Duke Unveristy rape case, colleague Lesley Stahl introduced the package. That was notable, because full-time correspondents almost always introduce their own stories.

Now comes news that Bradley has died of leukemia, at age 65. Besides his  status as a high-profile journalist -- delivering a near-exclusive, attention-getting interview with Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh years ago -- Bradley was also widely admired among journalists of color as one of the highest-profile black journalists who seemed to succeed on his own terms.

Weird at it sounds, for me it came down to that earring he always wore - a single diamond stud, perched in his ear while interivewing heads of state, hanging with jazz musicians and competing with the biggest names in TV journalism.

It said to me that this child of Philadelphia's streets found success on his own terms -- no one else's.

"He gave up pride and he gave us hope," Bryan Monroe, president of the National Association of Black Journalists told me earlier today. "He did not have to compromise who he was. He did not have to downplay his Philadelphia upbringing, his street smarts, or his cultured experiences. He could be authentic and still succeed. Especially now, as it becomes harder and harder for black journalists to succeed. Many feel they’ve got to assimilate and compromise who they are. He is the beacon to say be who you are and succeed – you can do both."

Dan Rather, who pulled Bradley into his circle of trusted advisors during election coverage for many years, released a statement: "With the passing of Ed Bradley we have lost one of America's best. As a compassionate, sensitive person, as a gentle but strong man, as a lover of life and a great professional, he was an example of all a conscientious and dedicated journalist can be."

Rene Syler, co-host of the Early Show, remembered how supportive Bradley was when she came to the show from Texas, emailing her occasionally to note when she did a particularly affecting story.

"Not only did I think this was somebody who I wanted to emulate as a journalist -- he’s cool, too!" she said, laughing. "The thing about Ed was that it was an effortless cool. You got the sense that he wore the earring because he liked it and he was that comfortable with who he was. There’s a lesson in that...Forget about the TV cameras and lights and this and that – when he sat down across from you it was you and Ed. And I think that was the key to his success."

Here's CBS' initial obiturary:

"Ed Bradley, one of journalism’s brightest stars whose name was synonymous with the CBS News magazine 60 MINUTES on which he reported for the past 25 years, died a few hours ago in Mt. Sinai Hospital in New York City.  He was 65 and had leukemia.

             Bradley spent nearly his entire 43-year career with CBS News, where he rose to the pinnacle of journalistic achievement, at first on network documentaries and the CBS EVENING NEWS and then 60 MINUTES, where he solidified a body of work that featured a keen talent for the interview and an intense curiosity shown in his investigative work.   In one of his last 60 MINUTES segments, an investigation of the Duke University Lacrosse rape case, he broke new ground with the first interviews with the accused in a story that made headlines last month."

I'll have a fuller column on Bradley and his importance in tomorrow's paper. A giant truly has left us.

UPDATE: Here's some more thoughts on Ed Bradley that didn't make my story for tomorrow...

Terry Martin, a former story editor at "60 Minutes II" who now teaches in the School of Communications at Quinnipiac University: "If you’d known Ed for a while, you knew what a fitness nut he was -– he really took very good care of himself...No matter here he was, he always insisted on a getting a temporary pass to a gym so he could keep gdoing his workouts – or he would get a stairmaster put in his room.”

Martin on Bradley's biggest story: "His biggest legacy, which will always be uniquely his, is the plight of the boat people. After the war was over, all of a sudden we began hearing stories about these Vietnamese refugees trying to do anything to get away from the North Vietnamese. They ended up in the Philippinnes and were ignored by the government. It was Ed who found these refugees who were starving to death and he did a whole CBS Reports documentaryon them. He’s the one who brought the plight of those people to the United States. And 25 years later, they have made quite a successful mark on the U.S.”

Martin on Bradley's roots: "Ed was like Bill Cosby...a Philadelphia boy brought up by a strong mother. He was no-nonsense -- He had no time for people who didn’t put as much effort into whatever they chose to do. And he never wore his pioneering status on his sleeve...It’s the passing of an era – the business has changed. Those guys, Raer, koppel, jenniongs Brokaw, every one of them worked in what is going to be looked back as the golden age of broadcast journalism – when there were three networks and the world was their oyster."

Connie Chung, former CBS anchor: "He was quite the bon vivant. He’s tall, handsome and what an outstanding dresser. Wearing the coolest of the cool clothes...leather andblack before other people werewearing black...We heard lots of stories about his long list of girlfeidns and how they could never, ever catch him. He was a bachelor for a long, long time."

Chung on her early days with Bradley, Lesley Stahl and Bernard Shaw as young minorities and women hire to diversify CBS News: "Ed would be told he was supposed to cover something hat ivolved the first lady and he would tell the assignment editor in no uncertain terms that he was not going. Then, the assignment editor would go down the line and order the rest of us to do it...I really adored ed because...he was not caught up in being a star. Unlike everyone else in the television news business...(he had) this strong, streak of independence that he would not play the network game and do what the suits wanted him to do." 

Comments

[GlennS.]

Very nice tribute. So many TV journalists are from same cookie cutter, but Bradley was one of a kind.

[stephanie s.]

This is certainly a sad day in the journalism field. I started watching 60 minutes BECAUSE of Ed Bradley. I always made it a point to watch. As a Black female, it was always a pleasure to watch him. I said this man is smart, intelligent, articulate, he's fine, super sense of humor and always looked good in his attire and does the best interviews. Had all the makings of a superstar. always asked the questions we really wanted to know the answers to. I will truly miss him.

I always noticed the earring for a different reason. I thought it was really unprofessional, looked ridiculous on an old man, and wondered why, as a very visible black man, he would choose to set himself apart in that way. Seriously, do we have to hear the nonsense about "coming from the street" even when talking about a distinguished journalist? He should have grown up, celebrated his hard work and opportunity - not the ghetto he sprang from, and put a good face on blacks in journalism. Not a big fan.

[Eric Deggans]

Pay no attention to the guy who doesn't get it.

As a 40something guy who started wearing an earring about the same time Ed did -- I was in college, in a band in the mid-'80s -- I've always enjoyed the look, on both him and me.

The coolest thing about Ed is that he didn't conform to others' notions about what he should look like or how he chose to reflect his background. If you had a problem with the earring, it was yours; an attitude I share regarding the diamond stud I still wear.

It's a constant struggle for black folks in media to decide, to use an unfortunately crude phrase, how black they want to be in their jobs. The coolest thing about Ed, to me, is that he found a wonderful balance in a way that made sense to (almost) everyone that seemed unerringly true to who he was and what he was about as a journalist.

That he made it all look so easy was another testament to his quiet, powerful talent.

That's right, pay no attention to the guy who disagrees with the fuhrer. You will agree with herr Deggan... OR ELSE. He was a black guy who asked people questions. While that may be more impressive than the overpaid teleprompter readers on the nightly news, it's no great accomplishment. The earring was just goofy. Didn't that go out 15 years ago?

Too bad Ed didn't have the gumption to place the blame for the boat peoples plight where it belonged - on the leftist America-haters who undermined our war effort. Those same people are around today, again bashing America, and again they will ensure that we leave behind a disaster.

Pretty much sums up the American left. We fight oppressive communists; the left waves viet cong flags. We fight terrorists and brutal dictators; the left waves palestinian flags. Then the left blames America for what happens when we abandon the war that it insisted we lose. Gotta love em'

[Ed]

Dear Annonymus,
Clearly, "Herr Eric", isn't trying to stifle your voice, or else it wouldn't be hosted on his blog. Your accusations and rantings say far more about you than they do about Bradley. Say what you want about the man, at least he had the courage to end every report with his name, which you don't.

[Eric Deggans]

Thanks for the backup Ed. But Mr. Anonymous just wants to argue. Usually, I try to shrug off his postings, but a couple of them had some pretty personal insults, which is where I draw the line.

I just hope others of you who want to join a rational discussion don't let his rants put you off. Because some of you have posted some wonderful, insightful comments..

[Laura Young]

Eric, I'm right with you. Lovely tribute and I smiled when I read your line about the earring. I felt the same way about that. He was just cool in such an unpretentious way. Authoritative, uncompromised, understated cool. Must have been something to meet him.