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Former NPR "Talk of the Nation" host Neal Conan has died
New York Times obituary:Neal Conan, a radio virtuoso who as a rigorous journalist and congenial raconteur anchored NPR’s flagship call-in program, “Talk of the Nation,” for 12 years, died on Tuesday at his farm in Hawi, Hawaii. He was 71.
His wife, the travel writer, poet and essayist Gretel Ehrlich, said the cause was brain cancer.
In a broadcasting career that began when he was 17 and lasted five decades, Mr. Conan worked for NPR in New York, London and Washington as an executive producer, foreign editor, managing editor and news director.
He helped shape the network’s pioneering newsmagazine, “All Things Considered.” In 1991, while covering the Persian Gulf war, he and Chris Hedges of The New York Times were held hostage for nearly a week by the Iraqi Republican Guard.
His wife, the travel writer, poet and essayist Gretel Ehrlich, said the cause was brain cancer.
In a broadcasting career that began when he was 17 and lasted five decades, Mr. Conan worked for NPR in New York, London and Washington as an executive producer, foreign editor, managing editor and news director.
He helped shape the network’s pioneering newsmagazine, “All Things Considered.” In 1991, while covering the Persian Gulf war, he and Chris Hedges of The New York Times were held hostage for nearly a week by the Iraqi Republican Guard.
6 replies
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RIP, sir. 
He was my companion so often with "Talk of the Nation" - I remember being sorely disappointed with NPR when his show went away.
RIP, Neal.