Tom Brokaw on Terrorism and Flag-Wearing

Appearing on the NBC late night show on Wednesday evening, the NBC Nightly News anchor outlined how he hopes the nation will change in the wake of the terrorist attacks:

I wrote a piece in the New York Times, on the op-ed page, reflecting on when I was a young reporter and John Kennedy was killed and I knew then that we would change but I had no idea how.

That set off a chain reaction: Vietnam and the social upheaval of the '60s and led to Watergate and a lot of other things. We hope that this will be more beneficial in terms of change, that we'll, that we'll have a greater faith in our political system, that we will take more seriously these threats that exist in the world and that we'll think more carefully about how this great country — and it is the greatest country — but how it relates to other people who have a good deal less than we do in terms of the protections that we have and the material wealth that we have and how we fit into their vision about what their place is in the world.

An October 2 story in Northwestern University's Daily Northwestern, highlighted by Jim Romenesko's MediaNews, related the content of an October 1 conference call Brokaw had with Medill Graduate School of Journalism students. Reporter Justin Ballheim relayed:

Brokaw said he came home at 2 a.m. on Sept. 12 and had 'a couple of stiff drinks.' Moments later, he found himself breaking down in what he called “a cathartic exercise.”

“I would hate to think that I've lost so much of any personal feelings that I could go on and report something like this without being affected by it,” he said.

At the same time, Brokaw said journalists should not be overly influenced by the recent surge of American patriotism.

“I wear the flag in my heart,” he said. “I'm a patriot, and I think being a patriot means: Love your country but think you can always improve it. And part of my role as a journalist is to ask questions and to examine the issues that will lead to some improvement of the country. I don't think a journalist ought to be wearing a flag because it does seem to be, to me at least, a sign

of solidarity toward whatever the government is doing, and that is not our role.”

On Conan O'Brien's show he identified his “stiff drink” as scotch.

Brokaw also promised the Medill students: “We will not broadcast anything that will jeopardize American lives.”

For the Daily Northwestern article in full, go here.

(This update courtesy of the Media Research Center.)