Dan Rather

Given his distinguished record and his long exposure on television around the globe, Dan Rather may be the most famous journalist in the world. He has covered virtually every major event in the world in the past 50 years. His resume reads like a history book, from his early local reporting in Texas on Hurricane Carla to his unparalleled work covering the assassination of President John F. Kennedy; the civil rights movement; the White House and national politics; wars in Vietnam, Afghanistan, the Persian Gulf, Yugoslavia and Iraq. From his first days as the Associated Press reporter in Huntsville, Texas, in 1950, Rather has more than earned his reputation as the “hardest working man in broadcast journalism.”

Now the anchor and managing editor of Dan Rather Reports, which started broadcasting on HDNet in November, 2006, Rather has regularly landed the biggest interviews with the world’s most important and compelling figures, from the famous to the infamous. Rather’s passion for the news, for getting the story and for taking on the most challenging assignments in journalism is unmatched. He has dedicated himself to delivering to the American public coverage that is fair and accurate, no matter the size and scope of the story. He has interviewed every United States president from Dwight D. Eisenhower to George W. Bush and virtually every major international leader of the past 30 years. He landed two news-breaking interviews with Saddam Hussein, in 1990 and in 2003. In 2004, as a correspondent for 60 Minutes II, Rather also broke what was arguably that year’s biggest story—the abuse of prisoners at Iraq’s Abu Ghraib prison.

Among the landmarks of his illustrious career was his tenacious and critically acclaimed live reporting on the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. Rather spent 53 hours and 35 minutes on the air over less than four days beginning the morning of the attacks. In 2000, he anchored Election Night 2000, a marathon that kept him on the air continuously from 6:00 PM on Tuesday, Nov. 7, to 10:00 AM on Wednesday, Nov. 8.

Rather served as anchor and managing editor of the CBS Evening News from March 9, 1981 to March 9, 2005, the longest such tenure in broadcast journalism history. He anchored and reported for 48 Hours from its premiere on Jan. 19, 1988, through September 2002. He was a correspondent for 60 Minutes from October 1975 to September 1981, and again from March 2005 to the summer of 2006. Rather served as a correspondent for 60 Minutes II from its debut on Jan. 13, 1999, to its final edition in September 2005. His regular contributions to CBS News Radio included "Dan Rather Reporting," a weekday broadcast of news and analysis on the CBS Radio Network from March 1981 to November 2004.

During his four-plus decades with CBS News, Rather held many other prestigious positions, including anchor of CBS REPORTS and of the weekend editions of the CBS Evening News. He served as the CBS News bureau chief in London and Saigon and was the White House correspondent during the Johnson and Nixon administrations.

Rather joined CBS News in 1962 as chief of its Southwest bureau in Dallas. In 1963, he was appointed chief of the Southern bureau in New Orleans, responsible for coverage of news events in the South, Southwest, Mexico and Central America. During that time, he reported on racial conflicts in the South and the crusade of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., as well as the death of President Kennedy. Rather began his career in journalism in 1950 as an Associated Press reporter in Huntsville, Texas. Later, he was a reporter for United Press International (1950-52), KSAM Radio in Huntsville (1950-53), KTRH Radio in Houston and the Houston Chronicle (1954-55). He became news director of KTRH in 1956 and a reporter for KTRK-TV Houston in 1959. Prior to joining CBS News, Rather was news director at KHOU-TV, the CBS affiliate in Houston.

He has received virtually every honor in broadcast journalism, including numerous Emmy Awards, a Peabody Award and citations from critical, scholarly, professional and charitable organizations.

In 1994, Rather was honored by his alma mater, Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, Texas, which named its journalism and communications building after him. On a more personal note, 1997 also saw the dedication of Dan's birthplace as part of the Wharton County Historical Museum.

Dan Rather was born Oct. 31, 1931 in Wharton, Texas. In 1953, he received a bachelor's degree in journalism from Sam Houston State Teachers College (now Sam Houston State University), where he spent the following year as a journalism instructor. He also attended the University of Houston and the South Texas School of Law.