Letter of the day: The closest to a Cronkite heir can be heard on Air America

[a kennedy]

A July 24 letter writer says conservative talk radio hosts compare favorably to the great Walter Cronkite because they both tell "the truth." However, the host whose demeanor and content remind me of Cronkite is Thom Hartmann of Air America (950 AM).

Like Cronkite, Hartmann talks with his audience, not at them. Hartmann has traveled all over the world and speaks intelligently on many subjects. But like Cronkite, he will admit when he does not know an answer, and will promptly admit when he has made a mistake. Hartmann is liberal but encourages different points of view and will even have guests on who disagree with him. His guests are always treated respectfully and his callers are never hung up on.

rest of the letter: <http://www.startribune.com/opinion/letters/51816657.html?elr=KArksLckD8EQDUoaEyqyP4O:DW3ckUiD3aPc:_Yyc:aUUsZ>

[tekisui]

1. Hartmann is my fav of all the talkers and pundits.

He shows how a confident, unapologetic Liberal wins debates. I wish the Democrats in office would take some cues from him.

[patrice]

2. Thom actually makes me a little uncomfortable with how friendly he is with people I disagree with.

But, Unlike most other media, His shows are FULL of I - N - F - O - R - M - A - T - I - O - N .

[KharmaTrain]

3. Hartmann Is No Cronkite...Sorry

I listen to Tom and enjoy his show, but he's not in the same league with Uncle Walter. His show is mostly commentary and opinon...not true journalism or "news".

There is no "new" Cronkite out there...Walter was from a different time and media than we have now. Walter didn't have anywhere near the right wing hate machine than Hartmann has to deal with, thus a good portion of his show is spent debunking the talking points. Walter never let his critics get to him...he just did his thing and let the listeners/viewers decide if the information was credible.

[tex-wyo-dem]

4. I'll agree with you that there are no "new" Cronkites out there...

and the main reason, IMO, is that the landscape for real news and real journalists has changed dramatically since Cronkite's era. In his prime the news business was considered a loss-leader and a public service rather than a "revenue stream." Once the motive became profit, the "news" literally became nothing less than tabloid. Today the well is so poisoned with opinion being couched as fact that finding a venue where information is truly disseminated without being infected with opinion is nearly impossible.

Thom's show is most definitely opinion, but I think he does what he does in the spirit of Cronkite in that his opinions are almost always presented with the facts to back them up.

[rhett o rick]

5. Thom is my favorite on the radio since Rachel left. It was a tie when she was on the radio. nm