Alex Pareene Quotes

My journalistic heroes are Peter Jennings and Ted Koppel and Tim Russert and Edward R. Murrow, among others, because they were tough.

I think Shep Smith is probably the premier anchor/journalist of my generation. He's terrific, and he does the news straight and let the chips fall where they may.

There have been two Geraldo Riveras through his long career. One of them was a reporter who has done some remarkable work. The other was a television show host who did what it took to get an audience.

Wolf Blitzer is an excellent reporter, but he's not a star.

Anderson Cooper every night dreams about getting my job permanently really.

My dream job is to be the Robin to Anderson Cooper's Batman.

Rereading A.J. Liebling carries me happily back to an age when all good journalists knew they had plenty to be modest about, and were.

CBS's Ed Murrow may have been over-celebrated as the principled observer for the masses, fair yet unafraid to take on the bullies.

The essence of American journalism is vulgarity divested of truth.

I'm a member of the media. I'm America's Anchorman.

I like 'MacNeil/Lehrer.'

Bill O'Reilly is smooth. He's one of very few broadcasters I know who can squeeze a weeks-long news cycle from one incident and make it entertaining regardless the time stamp.

I enjoy watching Chris Matthews a lot. He reminds me of a throwback to the older school kind of pundits like Tim Russert.

Journalists like to give themselves credit for being on the hunt for 'the truth.' But if we embrace this undoubtedly noble but somewhat haughty interpretation of a calling, we inevitably become susceptible to slam dunk answers.

Journalists always explain that people are mad at them because they tell the truth, which is often unpleasant or uncomfortable to hear. However, they fail in situations where there is more than one truth.

The level of journalism in this country is just so pathetically poor, and I've, in a sense, gone over the top of them, which they don't like.

I'm going to be the next David Frost.

I worked for CBS News in the aftermath of all the greatness. I actually brought coffee to Edward R. Murrow.

Katie Couric is one of my favorite people.

As anchorman of the CBS Evening News, I signed off my nightly broadcasts for nearly two decades with a simple statement: 'And that's the way it is.' To me, that encapsulates the newsman's highest ideal: to report the facts as he sees them, without regard for the consequences or controversy that may ensue.

I always imagined myself doing what Barbara Walters did on '20/20.' That, essentially, is what inspired me to go to journalism school.

Most journalists are idiots.

Bret Baier is a hard-news guy. He does the debates. He's not biased.

We cannot forget about Rachel Maddow. She is the Peter Pan of MSNBC. But instead of never growing up, she never gets to the point.

I've been doing 'America's Newsroom' and lots of other news shows and writing over the years. That's my thing.