All Quotes by Dan Rather
“Americans will put up with anything provided it doesn't block traffic.”
“As long as I have my health, I want to be reporting somewhere.”
“Good evening. President Reagan, still training his spotlight on the economy, today signed a package of budget cuts that he will send to Congress tomorrow. Lesley Stahl has the story.”
“He invented the job, the job of anchoring, did it himself for 40 years, and taught two generations of anchormen, including this one, how to do it. He's retiring, but he'll be with us in spirit, and he'll be a part of every broadcast we do.”
“[My job is] a very high trapeze act, frequently with no net.”
“To use tragedy to sow division is the hallmark of a despot.”
“A free and truly independent press - fiercely independent when necessary - is the red beating heart of freedom and democracy.”
“This much we know: Journalism is not a precise science. It's, on its best day, is a crude art. We make mistakes; I make mistakes. With more than 50 years as a journalist, I have at least had the opportunity to blow more stories, make more mistakes than maybe anybody in television.”
“A tough lesson in life that one has to learn is that not everybody wishes you well.”
“A free and truly independent press - fiercely independent when necessary - is the red beating heart of freedom and democracy.”