Brian Williams

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NBC's new anchor Lester Holt talks news, race and Brian Williams — but what about his faith?

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What makes Lester Holt tick?

The new permanent anchor of NBC's "Nightly News" has been making the interview rounds, discussing his high-profile gig with media ranging from The Daily Beast to USA Today.

In the interviews, Holt has talked about the news business:

When Lester Holt was a young broadcast journalist, he dreamed of one day sitting in the chair of the renowned news anchor Walter Cronkite.
That grand ambition faded over the next three decades, even as Mr. Holt’s career took off. He worked a string of local jobs across the country — in Sacramento, Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York and Chicago — before landing at MSNBC, and then, in 2003, at NBC.
By that time, Mr. Holt said in an interview on Monday, the anchor’s chair was “something that I hadn’t thought about for many, many years. It was part of a young guy’s dream.”
On Monday evening Mr. Holt, 56, ascended to the position he had all but given up on, delivering the NBC “Nightly News” broadcast for the first time as its permanent anchor.
Mr. Holt had been serving as “Nightly News” anchor on a temporary basis since February, when Brian Williams was suspended for fabricating a story about his experience during a helicopter attack in Iraq.

He's talked about his race:


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Anchor for his soul: NBC's Lester Holt described as 'a humble and loving Christian'

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Lester Holt, who is filling in for suspended NBC anchor Brian Williams, is generating some media attention of his own.

A source in a New York Times story described Holt as "a total pro, pleasant, unflappable, intelligent." 

USA Today cited Holt's "versatility and zeal to jump on assignments." 

A producer quoted by the Washington Post characterized Holt as "a terrific anchor ... an excellent reporter and a great team leader."

Over at "The Deacon's Bench," blogger Greg Kandra — a Roman Catholic deacon who spent three decades as a writer and producer for CBS News — was curious about Holt's religious background:

When Lester Holt took over for Brian Williams on the NBC Nightly News last week, little was said about his personal life — or one aspect of it that plays a prominent role: his faith.
I was curious about what his religious background might be, so did a little Googling and came upon this interview from a few years back. I have to say: I’m impressed. This sort of unabashed piety and public profession of faith is rare in journalism — and, I think, almost unprecedented for the anchor of a network news cast.

Kandra linked to a 2010 story from The Christian Chronicle headlined "Anchor for his soul: Lester Holt reflects on faith and journalism."  I'm familiar with that story because I wrote it. 

 


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Brian Williams, Saint John Paul II, Charlton Heston, Kevin Bacon and, well, me

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Remember that game that was so hot a few years ago, the whole "Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon" thing? One of the fun things about hanging out with experienced journalists is that you can play a similar game, based on who has interviewed who.

For example, as a religion writer I have interviewed Billy Graham. That puts me one degree of separation away from, what, half of the famous people in world culture in the second half of the 20th century? Or, in music, I have interviewed Dave Brubeck. Stop and think about that one, in terms of links to music royalty dating back into the early 20th century.

However, journalists do like to sweat the details.

For example, I have asked Tom Hanks a question in a live press conference. Is that the same thing as "meeting" Hanks? Perhaps you shook hands with the Archbishop of Canterbury and asked a quick question. Is that the same thing as "interviewing" him? How about a telephone interview with Robert Duvall? Twice? Is that the same as "meeting" him?

I attended the 1987 meeting between St. John Paul II and media leaders in Hollywood and greater Los Angeles, sneaking in with a pass from a Rocky Mountain News editor (a national officer in a press association) who was not able to attend. At the end, the pope moved down the aisle greeting people and shaking hands. I had a chance to shake his hand but, well, I let Charlton Heston get in front of me. You can't fight the voice of God, right? I did speak a greeting to the pope and he nodded. But is that "meeting" the pope?

Where am I going with this? To the latest wrinkles in the sad story of Brian Williams, of course.


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