BREAKING: NBC News' Tim Russert is Dead from Heart Attack

Reports say that NBC News Washington Bureau Chief and host of Meet the Press Tim Russert has died. It's believed he had a heart attack. A source told the NY Post he collapsed in the Washington Bureau. NBC News now confirms Russert's death and says he was recording voiceovers for Sunday's Meet the Press.

The NY Times reports that at 3:39 p.m., retired anchor Tom Brokaw went on the air to announce Russert's death.

“Our beloved colleague,” a grave Mr. Brokaw called him, one of the premier journalists of our time. He said this was one of the most important years in his life, with his deep engagement in the network’s political coverage, and that he “worked to the point of exhaustion.” Mr. Brokaw said Mr. Russert was a true child of Buffalo and always stayed in touch with his blue collar roots and “the ethos of that community.”

He said Mr. Russert had just moved his father, who is in his late 80s, from one facility to another in Buffalo. He said he loved his family, his Catholic faith, his country, politics, the Buffalo Bills, the New York Yankees and the Washington Nationals.

“This news division will not be the same without his strong, clear voice,” Mr. Brokaw said.

Video of Brokaw announcing his death below. Russert had just returned from a trip to Italy with his family. His survivors include wife Maureen Orth, a writer for Vanity Fair, and son Luke; they had been celebrating Luke's graduation from Boston College.

Russert, who started in politics working for Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan and Governor Mario Cuomo, was hired by NBC in 1984 and became Washington bureau chief in 1988. He had hosted Meet the Press since 1991, but his insightful political analysis reached even broader audiences during the 2000 election: When it was unclear how the election would turn, Russert used a dry erase board to explain the electoral college count. His use of a dry erase board was selected by TV Guide and TV Land as one of the 100 Most Memorable moments (#68) back in 2004.

Also in 2004, the Washington Post's Howard Kurtz wrote a feature on him, "Tim Russert is the quintessential Washington insider, a man with tentacles deep into the political and media worlds, one of the few journalists in a puffed-up, preening profession who really matter." This year, Time magazine named him one of the 100 most influential people.

NBC News recently revealed ambitious plans for covering the Democratic and Republican conventions--20 hours of live coverage each day; Russert would have provided coverage and analysis of the vice-presidential and presidential candidates' acceptance speeches. Here's how Russert predicted electoral maps for the 2008 election back in April, looking at possible Obama vs. McCain and Clinton vs. McCain matchups.

Russert, who regularly contributed to radio station WTOP, had discussed the Obama's campaign's new website to fight myths about Obama this morning (MP3).

Contact the author of this article or email tips@gothamist.com with further questions, comments or tips.

By Jen Chung in News on June 13, 2008 4:25 PM

Comments [rss]

emilydickinson

Tim Russert was a real quality journalist. MTP is one of the few places whereyou actually get the chance to hear a politician in a format that allows for something more than a 30 second sound bite. I think his interviews always showed a lot of integrity, he asked a lot of hard questions and was interesting to watch. There aren't many decent journalists left who had the reach of Tim Russert. It's sad.

matty

Check out what these psycho-bitches are saying

http://www.hillaryis44.org/?p=655#comments

Albert Sharpton

it's one of obama's terrorist attack on america

TheKlaus

I don't give tow, or even three shits about what has been commented above me.

For what it's worth around here (very little), Tim Russert's death is pretty much the most devastating person-I-never-knew death since Stanley Kubrick. This guy tackled politics with the absolute most subjective eye ever. It was never 'attack the left' or 'attack the right'; it was always 'here's the situation' and he approached it from all sides with a completely impartial approach; no agenda. Just honest discourse. This upcoming election, and the primaries and whatnots thus far, have been super-historical and I have enjoyed and have been looking forward to Russert's involvement in the process. The fact that his voice of reason will be gone from this point forward in this most historical election process is devastating to me. This guy was our final line of defense between us and the completely party-loyal media bullshit. As far as I am concerned, we've lost the last voice of impartiality.

What kills me is that his death has produced a huge sigh of relief for shitty, slanted journalism.

jenspellnogood

there is definitely blood on hillary's hands.

who's next?

MFer

Big fucking deal. People die every day. He was nothing special. Worst. People think he was something special. Brain fart meats [sic] heart attack.

NYCSniper

Lesson: Don't cross the Clintons

NYCSniper

Hillary’s revenge. She executed her payback for Russert asking that question about the law for drivers licenses for illegals.

Russert’s question at that first debate — and Hillary’s horrible answer — started her slide into defeat.

Earlier this week, news reports surface of a "Clinton Hit List" -- persona non grata. Coincidence.

You Gothamists who write me off are like ostriches with your head in teh sand. I guess you believe building #7 wasn't demolished after all?

Early in the election during a Clinton campaign conference call with several journalist on the call, a Clinton surrogate made sure to say that Russet should be shot... Basically, the Clintons always knew that Russert would be a problem for them.

Kojak

You have to be somewhat diplomatic when offering to interview the most powerful people in Washington and the World. Do you think anyone would agree to be interviewed by the man if they thought he was going to bust their balls continuously? He did pull some punches when interviewing people like Bush but he was pretty stern with Rummy, Rice, and even Colon, but he didn't go overboard. He was no patsy and was a straight shooter. He'll be missed.

Karen

I didn't become a faithful watcher of Tim Russert until I moved to Indiana, from Lockport, NY. I started watching him every Sunday morning, to get my dose of that wonderful Buffalo accent! (if I hear IN-surance, or DE-troit one more time...). I found him to be one of the more balanced inteviewers, so much so, that it was hard to tell what his personal politics were.

And, it was nice to see someone respected, on national tv, who had the same faith as me, that the Bills and Sabres are one day, gonna do it.

I'm sure everyone back in Buffalo, heck, back in Erie and Niagara Counties in NY, feel like they just lost a buddy.

nik13

Awful news. Russert was the last honest journalist left.

babyhitler

Tim and Pat Kiernan are my favorite anchormen. I always liked Tim Russert cause he looked like phil collins and spoke well about politics. The only thing I didn't like about Tim was that he believed a Jewish Cosmic Zombie was his lord and Savior and protector and was a crazy religious zealot. I guess dying at 58 from a heart attack disproved that theory dude. Anyway, Now he's one with the earth. RIP dude.

Anna_Merkin

I never used to understand how people from my parents' generation would get so emotional about public figures. Lately, I've begun to understand a lot more.

RIP, Tim.

Roger McDowell

His journalism was top notch but he was also open about who he was. As a huge Bills fan, we lost one of our great spokesman as well. This is honestly very sad news.

sonyactivision

Having lived in buffalo, all I can say is we got punched in the gut again...hard.

S.D.

Rocknrope, it's the apparent anonymous nature that inspire some people to act like that...

Rocknrope

I'm always amazed at how the internet makes people willing to sound like insensitive douchebags. Didn't your mothers teach you better than that?

eyekantspel

okay, representing the leftwing nuts, JT10000 thinks Russert was a patsy for the Bush administration, and for the rightwing nuts, NYCSniper thinks the Clintons had him killed.

Looks like pretty much everyone else can agree that Russert was one of the best we had, and will be missed.

JGNY

RIP Mr. Russert. My Sunday mornings will never be the same.

Peter Trinkle

How especially sad that this happened right before Father's Day. RIP Tim, you will be missed.

jt10000

One other thing - I'm sorry if I seem to be singling out Russert -- there are far worse journalists that Russert working for our national media that have let the Bush administration push through its agenda over the last seven years.

jt10000

eyekantspel, I'm not commenting on how well-informed Russert was, but on the role he played in society, pretending to be seeking truth when he was being played in return for access to Washington powerbrokers.

Here's an indictment of Russert, from notes taken by Cathie Martin, Cheney's communications director about the value of having Cheney go onto Russert's show, from an article in the Washington Post:

---begin quote from Washington Post---

Flashed on the courtroom computer screens were her notes from 2004 about how Cheney could respond to allegations that the Bush administration had played fast and loose with evidence of Iraq's nuclear ambitions. Option 1: "MTP-VP," she wrote, then listed the pros and cons of a vice presidential appearance on the Sunday show. Under "pro," she wrote: "control message."

"I suggested we put the vice president on 'Meet the Press,' which was a tactic we often used," Martin testified. "It's our best format."

--end quote---

Note that statement well eyekantspel: "control message"

Russert's show was the best format for the VP to spin the American people.

theevilone

That's a damn shame. I always enjoyed watching him for his clear love and enthusiasm for the electoral process.

Tim N.

brooklynbs... yes, I was just thinking about that, he was great.

Damn.

Tim N.

#28... if it's a joke, it's not funny.

If it's not, it's just sadder.

Hitting [report this] now...

Think2wice

Rest in peace Tim. May God bless and keep your family and co-workers.

brooklynbs

Very sad. Russert was great at his job and an important voice in American politics.

If you ever watched the underrated NBC show "Homicide: Life On The Street," they payed tribute to Russert. A detective played by Isabella Hoffman was named Megan Russert and her backstory was that she was from Buffalo and Tim Russert's cousin. Russert once made a guest appearance on the show as himself and was pretty funny in his brief stint as an actor.

nycat

This is so sad.

NYCSniper

And by the way, this IS truly the loss of a GREAT newscaster.

NYCSniper

@eyekantspel: please educate yourself re: allegations of myurder re: The Clintons.

"Heart attack" is one of the many causes of death that befall their adversaries.

Are you saying that chemicals that can trigger accelerated heart rates leading to death do not exist?

eyekantspel

name someone better jt10000.

Lazy journalism?

I'm sure you are much better informed than Tim Russert was on the issues.

idiot.

jt10000

Fake balance

"He was THE MOST reasonable and balanced reporter/interviewer of the lot,"

We live in a world where balance is letting two sides of political discussions state their case, without looking at what is true.

Is giving balance between, say Dick Cheney and people who point out how he's ridden roughshod over the constition good journalism? It's lazy journalism.

matty

"Russert was a calm voice of reason in what is normally a shouting war between the left and the right."

you mean a shouting war between HRC and anyone within 30 feet of her?

JenChungsBaby

Wow. Shows you how fragile life is.

eyekantspel

NYCSniper, the guy died of a heart attack.

Who cares what some random HRC supporter said? It's as irrelevant as that McCain supporter calling HRC a bitch.

Seriously, it's hard enough for candidates (or in HRC's case, ex-candidates) to control what THEY say over the course of a long campaign, and ridiculous to try to hold them accountable for whatever any one of their millions of supporters might say on any given day.

It it too much to ask to just reflect on what a shame it is that one of the few balanced voices out there is gone?

Russert was a calm voice of reason in what is normally a shouting war between the left and the right.

S.D.

Wow, a man dies and nut cases pop out for attention...

Back on topic, this is horrible for his family. Did he even have a history of heart problems?

Steven

RIP Russert. Sad day for his family and NBC news.

mcc32

JacqueMehoff: nbc delayed the news of his death because they could not locate Tim's wife to inform her. She and his son were/are still in Italy.

Neil Epstein

Wow, I'm really shocked and saddened by this. He was the whole reason I watched NBC!

eyekantspel

Tim Russert was a democrat by background, but his coverage as far as I could see was not biased in either direction. He was THE MOST reasonable and balanced reporter/interviewer of the lot, and it's a real loss, even more so just a few months before a big election.

He will be missed, and I can't even think of anyone else out there who can fill his shoes.

TimSPC

Goodnight, funnyman.

Golly Jee

He was a very good interviewer even though he was a liberal.

He was a bit too tough on the Clintons which did not go UNnoticed by the left wing new world order group determined to put a black man in the highest office in the world. They did not want any hard questions put to Obama. Tim will be replaced with a black reporter.

jt10000

Matty, are you talking about the same Russert that Cheney would go to to get soft coverage that appeared incisive?

Sad that he died so young, but on the reporting side of things we was very accepting of conventional wisdom and the current administration.

meL

RIP Tim. How John McLaughlin managed to outlive you we'll never know.

dimshine

didn't he invent the Russert potato?

miss_mess

Tim N: my thoughts exactly re: Buffalo Bills.

Phineas Gage

People still watch TV news? Why?

Tim N.

And he never lived to see the Bills win the Super Bowl.

This is very, very sad.

His thoughts were always sharp, his analysis was fresh, and the fact that he used to piss off both sides of an argument usually indicated he was telling the truth.

I know I'll miss him.