[.ca] This Just In (ISBN 0399149716)

This Just in is a Just a Good Account of a Reporter's Life:
Bob Schieffer is a native of Fort Worth Texas, the host of Face the Nation and a season veteran reporter. In over 40 years the Texan has covered racial conflict in the South, the Vietnam War, several presidential campaigns and the horror of 9-11. Schieffer begins his fine book with the story of how he picked up Lee Harvey Oswald's mother on the way to the police station on that horrific November day in Dallas. Schieffer recounts his slow rise from a local Ft. Worth Station to a newspaper and local TV to the major leagues at CBS. Bob's book is filled with humorous anecdotes of his many jaunts in the presidential plane, intimate glimpses behind the scenes at CBS and his views of the men who have occupied the Oval Office. I have always been a fan of CBS News the "Tiffany Network" and Bob Schieffer in his warm writing style is like listening to an old pro give us the inside scoops on the biggest stories of our lifetimes. The life of a national reporter like Schieffer is no bed of roses. Constant commuting from Washington DC to New York; always on call with family needs placed on the sidelines and the in fighting of who gets the anchor and other good assignments in the studio all make for a good read. I found this book along with Tim Russert's excellent new book two delightful tomes to while away a summer day. This is a good book by a well respected, beloved and great newsman. We appreciate Bob Schieffer and thank him for his book!

Newsies Rejoice!:
The casual reader may not follow or care about the "behind the scenes" world of a successful broadcast journalist, but for those who do...this book is a fast and enjoyable read. The author communicates with wit, humor and humility..a real gentleman with an opinion, but without ever being boring or partisan. Truly a role model for up and comers. The chapters get better and better, perhaps because of the recent nature of current events. His take on Bill Clinton, the man and the politician, is the most honest and best presented I have seen.

Like spending an evening listening and learning:
From start to finish, Bob Schieffer, in his gentle way, sits us down and tells us what it was like over the last 40 plus years. From his early days as a Texas newspaperman finding himself in the company of Mrs. Oswald the day Kennedy was shot, to being sent to cover the war in Vietnam, then finally joining CBS TV and covering all aspects of Washingon from Watergate through the 9/11 attack on the Pentagon, he was there and his reportage then and his insight now gives us a greater understanding of what has been going on in the world over these four decades. His plum assignments at CBS kept him at the center of action: covering the presidential campaigns, the White House, the Pentagon, Capitol Hill, even the war in the Falkland Islands, and now continuing his moderating chores on Face The Nation which he began in 1991. The subtitle of this book is "What I Couldn't Tell You On TV," and he keeps that promise with many anecdotes that haven't been widely reported before this book. He also describes the movers and shakers of the U.S. during this period. He got to meet and know them all and he shares his thoughts on such as Lyndon Johnson, Nixon, Carter, Ford, Laird, Cronkite, Rather, the list goes on and on, even includes Agnew. His take on the changes that have infuenced political races, the Congress, and network TV, and what happened when CBS TV and everybody else blew it on election night 2000 makes for fascinating reading and gourmet food for thought. Throughout the book he gives us stories of his personal life and glimpses of his day-to-day working routines to give us a feel of what it is like to be a reporter at the center of activity. This is a fine book. On a few occasions he breaks from his chronological telling of the story, and I found that momentarily confusing. And a few more dates sprinkled in would have been helpful. But, I'm ready to sit down again and hear more of the adventures in journalism from this gentleman and scholar.

His story, not history, is what he couldn't tell you....:
The title alludes to all kinds of 'secrets' to be told, and at a time when the debate over journalism itself is as much the topic of controversy, you would expect views and opinions relating to this as well as events throughout history. He covers historical events, but only as they effect him and his career. I would say there is a fair balance of insights on the news, and insights on himself. I kept waiting for something new on events of the past, but for the most part it was the same old stuff rehashed. This is due mainly because a lot of the story is about how he had been somewhere else as big news was taking place. You can't be everywhere at once, but he was rarely 'in the thick of things', and most of the 'inside' stuff was about the history makers he knew on a 'personal' level, though you get the impression it wasn't as personal as he makes it out to be. I stopped looking for deep secrets when he referred to Al Gore's irrelevant statement about the Internet as 'a tall tale'. Anyone that doesn't take the media for granted and actually investigates this statement in context can see he doesn't think he 'invented' the Internet. The fact that Bob would make such a statement illustrates why his career took the course it did, and puts all the excuses throughout the book in their true light. Still, if you want to know about the man, the book is very informative.

Entertaining:
This book deserves a very high rating, but it will be most appreciated by readers who have been interested in politics for quite a few years. The author, Bob Schieffer, has been reporting for what seems like a long time, and some of his funniest, revealing stories happened early in his career. One of his oddest happened the day JFK was shot; he was then a reporter on the big Ft.Worth daily paper, and he got a call from Oswald's mother, asking for a ride to Dallas. Yes, he was surprised, and he still has no explanation why such a call was made to the newspaper. But, being a young, gung-ho reporter, he immediately got a car and took her to the Dallas jail where Lee Harvey was being held, all in the hope of course of getting a nice interview. But he concluded the Oswald mother wasn't quite mentally 100%, so he worked his reporter magic and got into a room with Oswald's wife, hoping for an interview with her. Then it turned out Maria could only speak Russian! His big break wasn't going anywhere, then an FBI agent finally asked him who he was with, and he was finally thrown out. All without any real story. And his early days were filled with stories like that, and he relates them with humor and warmth. He is almost a throwback, when the men and woman on TV were real reporters and journalists, so what we usually see on TV now is a shallow image of what we used to get. Schieffer also shows considerable honesty by admitting that most political reporters do, in fact, have personal views and prejudices that sometimes creep into their reporting and commentaries. Most TV people refuse to admit such an obvious fact, and Schieffer deserves credit for telling the truth. He is from a Democrat family in Texas, and he married a woman from a prominent Ft.Worth Democrat family, and those facts have to color his thoughts at times. And, somewhat oddly in view of his concern for honesty, he admits that the Presidents he personally liked most were LBJ and Clinton, the 2 most sleazy, self-centered, dishonest men to ever hold that office. But he also says he always liked Ford, and he has to admit that his admiration for Clinton became more diminished as time went on. But Schieffer has been among the most thoughtful, and most traveled, reporters with CBS, and he relates stories from most hot spots in the world, and some of his most interesting stories are from his days of being the Congressional correspondent, as well as his days as Pentagon correspondent. He worked with nearly everyone in both places, and his observations are all but amazing against today's backdrop of high concern for security. You need to read about the time when he could just walk into the Pentagon without question, and he relates he didn't even bother to get press credentials for a long time, because they weren't needed in those days. You can gain some nice insights from reading of all the hours he spent waiting in the White House press room, and his relationships with various staff members connected with several Administrations. He also relates several stories about his family relationships and how difficult they were to handle along with his very demanding job. Read about his work schedule when he was constantly flying back and forth between Washington, DC and N.Y., and most of us will wonder how in the world he managed to keep up. He has put in tremendous hours and effort trying to get the best story and supporting the others at CBS, and it shows here. For "political junkies," this is an absolute must. And if you are interested in charting some of the changes in the concept of journalism, here is a good source. Schieffer's writing style reflects his training in old-fashioned reporting, where every word counted, and his stories just flow on from one funny story to another, fascinating, story. His personal interest in getting the facts, and the best stories, show here, and this is a fun and easy book to read.