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August 8, 2005
Passages: Peter Jennings
It was with great sadness that I learned this morning that ABC anchor Peter Jennings had passed away from lung cancer. ABC's Charlie Gibson apparently made the announcement late yesterday evening, and it was the big story on all the networks today.
While I grew up on Walter Cronkite, I didn't really become a news junkie until the era of Peter Jennings. For whatever reason, Jennings always resonated with me better than Tom Brokaw or Dan Rather. He was urbane and articulate; even when something went wrong on the set, like a producer's mistake, he always handled it with grace, panache and dignity. The truth definition of grace under pressure.
Learning more about his death today, various news reports commented on how he died at home, surrounded by his family. Jennings was diagnosed with lung cancer barely four months ago, so his death last night suggests a very swift descent. It makes me wonder if he eventually stopped treatment, deciding that the suffering caused by severe chemotherapy would likely not save him in the long run. And the fact that he died at home, surrounded by family makes me wonder if he made a pre-emptive strike, choosing assistive suicide so he would die with that same grace, panache and dignity he displayed as an anchor, rather than lingering hopelessly on various machines at a hospital. I've heard no mention of this, nor do I have any evidence. But given the circumstances, he certainly wouldn't have been the first terminal cancer patient to take matters into his own hands.
Whatever happened, what matters is that in the end, he was at home, surrounded by loved ones. I imagine it's exactly how he would have wanted it. -andy
Posted by acarvin at August 8, 2005 5:04 PM
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