Comments on: Bob Novak (1931-2009), The Last Reporter

By: vfsv

vfsv — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 14:06:39 +0000

Maybe I’m old-fashioned, but if he was really “a hard-nosed, hard-working, shoe leather reporter,” doesn’t that imply he objectively reported facts?

If so, how does he justify manipulating press articles & TV guest appearances so that a particular political candidate is favored?

Where is the line between a personal opinion that one guy was better than another for a particular political job vs. being an objective “reporter?”

By: ToWi

ToWi — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 04:54:13 +0000

As I bent to pick up the morning paper I saw his picture and thought… ahhh… the world is a little bit better place now.
As I read what I expected to read, I smiled. I’m sad to admit that another’s passing gave me even a moment of pleasure, but sometimes it does and this is one of those times.

By: call me ahab

call me ahab — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 02:53:00 +0000

s trooper/rex

cold hearted and you both suck- this was a remembrance by someone who knew him and that’s all-

when you both die I can only hope that no-one says anything at all-

there is more to life than politics- fuckheads

By: Moss

Moss — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 23:33:44 +0000

No question he was a partisan, or an advocate for modern conservatism, but as long as you knew that then you could say he was honest. That was what he believed in. He was better than any of the current advocates.

By: Fredex

Fredex — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 21:57:40 +0000

Be a little more generous, rex. Don’t you think the great mainstream media can spare one reporter?

By: rex

rex — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 21:31:48 +0000

Novak was certainly hard-working. No beef with that. And I bet he was the salt of the earth, the greatest and most loyal friend a man could want.
But how do you reconcile this — “we conspired to advance the presidential candidacy of former California Governor Ronald Reagan” — with your claim that he was 1) a reporter; and 2) “maintained his integrity.”
Novak was a partisan, especially in his later days.
Real reporters work for Truth, Justice and the American Way, or try to. He worked for the GOP.

By: super_trooper

super_trooper — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 21:28:13 +0000

@call me ahab, and it’s “funny” how people, when they get older, predominantly remember positive things about their friends/peers. Calling Novak the last report and not a pundit is laughable. Crossfire was a sad element is the public discourse and clearly Novak’s ethic values were questionable. Novak exemplifies the sad state of main stream journalism. If I were to write a remembrance of a friend/collegue, I’ld write about the good stuff.

By: call me ahab

call me ahab — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 21:18:03 +0000

thanks for sharing Chris- heartfelt letter by your father- re the fishing story- it’s funny that as people get older they always remember the things they did and they people they knew- not the stuff they have or the things they own-

my condolences