Walter Cronkite

NAME Walter Leland Cronkite Jr.

WHAT FAMOUS FOR Often called “the most trusted man in America,” Walter Cronkite was the defining face of American broadcast journalism in the mid-20th century. He anchored the CBS Evening News from 1962 to 1981 and became known for his calm, authoritative delivery of major historical events.

BIRTH Walter Leland Cronkite Jr. was born on November 4, 1916, in St. Joseph, Missouri, a city on the Missouri River north of Kansas City. He was the only child born to his parents.​

FAMILY BACKGROUND Cronkite came from a family of Dutch ancestry, with his paternal forebears tracing back to the early Dutch colony of New Amsterdam. His ancestor Herck Syboutzen Krankheijdt from Friesland married Wyntje (Wijntje) Theunis Quick from Naarden at the Dutch Reformed Church in New Amsterdam on November 16, 1642. This Dutch heritage remained important to Cronkite; at the end of World War II, when he first stepped onto Dutch soil, he recalled feeling like he was "coming home after 300 years".​ (1)

His father, Dr. Walter Leland Cronkite Sr., was a dentist, while his mother was Helen Lena Fritsche Cronkite. According to Cronkite's autobiography, his mother Helen had an intriguing personal history: she had dated Douglas MacArthur as a teenager, and the future general even proposed marriage, but her father refused because he felt MacArthur was too old for her. Years later, Cronkite mentioned this to MacArthur at a party, and the general responded wistfully, "Ah, yes. Helen Fritsche". 

His mother's background was German-Lutheran, giving Cronkite mixed Dutch-German ancestry. 

The family struggled financially, particularly after the Great Depression began in 1929, when his father became an alcoholic and money became so tight that the family was occasionally forced to eat dog food.​

CHILDHOOD Walter spent much of his early childhood in Kansas City, Missouri, before his family moved to Houston, Texas in 1927 when he was ten years old. He was naturally curious and observant, keeping a notebook throughout his youth to record daily observations and frequently researching subjects that interested him in encyclopedias. Even as a young boy, he displayed an instinct for news: at age six, he ran through his Kansas City neighbourhood spreading news of President Warren Harding's death, telling a friend, "Look carefully at that picture. It's the last picture you will ever see of Warren Harding".​ (2)

In Houston, though shocked by Southern racism, Walter thrived in his new environment. He worked on the staff of the school newspaper at Sidney Lanier Middle School, played piano, competed in various sports, joined the Boy Scouts (becoming deeply involved with a troop that met in an Episcopal church), kept a paper route for the Houston Post, rode with cowboys at a local ranch, and even built his own neighbourhood telegraph network. 

In 1928, at just twelve years old, he got his first real taste of politics when he attended both the Democratic National Convention in Houston and the Republican National Convention in Kansas City.​

EDUCATION Cronkite attended Woodrow Wilson Elementary School (now Baker Montessori School), Lanier Junior High School, and San Jacinto High School in Houston, where he served as editor of the high school newspaper. He was also a member of the Houston chapter of DeMolay, a Masonic fraternal organization for boys.​

In the fall of 1933, he enrolled at the University of Texas at Austin to study political science, economics, and journalism. While there, he worked on the Daily Texan student newspaper and became a member of the Nu chapter of the Chi Phi fraternity. To help pay his college tuition, he worked part-time as a reporter covering the Texas State Legislature for the Houston Press. However, his work at the state capitol appealed to him more than his studies, and in his junior year (fall term 1935), he left university without completing his degree to become a full-time general-assignment reporter at the Houston Post.​

CAREER RECORD 1935: Began his professional journalism career working in print media for the Houston Press after leaving the University of Texas at Austin.

1937: Joined United Press International (UP).

1939–1945 (WWII Era): Served as a UP war correspondent in Europe, covering major events:

1945–1946: Covered the Nuremberg trials after the war's conclusion.

1946–1948: Served as UP bureau chief in Moscow.

1950: Joined CBS News in Washington, D.C.

Early 1950s: Hosted and co-hosted early CBS programs, including the historical series You Are There and, briefly, The Morning Show.

1962–1981: Served as the long-running anchor of the CBS Evening News until his mandatory retirement at age 65.

Post-1981 (Retirement): Hosted and narrated numerous documentaries (e.g., Universe and Dinosaur).

Post-1981: Co-founded The Cronkite Ward Company, a production company for documentaries.

APPEARANCE Standing 5 feet 11¾ inches (1.82 m) tall, Cronkite had a distinctive, familiar appearance characterized by his silver hair, a strong jaw, expressive eyebrows, and a reassuring, slightly avuncular visage. His look was professional and trustworthy, fitting the image of a dignified news anchor.

His most distinctive physical feature was his trademark mustache, which he grew at age nineteen to look older. As he explained in an interview, "I grew my mustache when I was nineteen in order to look older. I never shaved it off even though it overran its usefulness many, many years ago. Once you get started in television, people associate you with your physical appearance—and that includes the mustache. So I can't shave it off now. If I did, I'd have to answer too much mail".​ (3)

Cronkite in 1983

FASHION Cronkite dressed in the conservative, professional style expected of broadcast journalists of his era. He typically wore suits with button-down or spread collar shirts. Early in his career, he favoured the Ivy League style but later transitioned almost exclusively to spread collars. 

In one memorable moment, on November 22, 1963, when he announced President Kennedy's assassination, he appeared on air without his jacket—considered shocking informality at the time, but somehow appropriate given the gravity of the moment.​

CHARACTER Cronkite’s character was shaped by a constellation of qualities that made him uniquely trusted by the American public:

Honesty and Integrity: At his core, he was a truth-seeker who believed in an objective reality—and in the journalist’s duty to uncover and report it. His integrity was not merely the absence of deception but a commitment to presenting the full, unvarnished truth. His famous sign-off, “And that’s the way it is,” reflected this aspiration toward accuracy and completeness.

Selflessness: He avoided self-promotion and refused to cultivate a public persona beyond the needs of his profession. As one observer quipped, “The Most Trusted Man in America didn’t get there by calling himself the Most Trusted Man in America.”

Professionalism and Discipline: Cronkite’s composure under pressure earned him the newsroom nickname “Old Iron Pants.” His calm, almost reserved demeanour never wavered, even in the face of national tragedy or breaking chaos.

Hard Work: He often joked that he had been “a workaholic from the very beginning,” juggling multiple jobs early in his career. His philosophy was simple: “Our deadline is when we leave the air,” a testament to the constant, last-minute revisions he made to ensure accuracy.

Intellectual Curiosity: A lifelong researcher, Cronkite maintained an encyclopedic range of interests and was known for digging deeply into any subject he covered. His curiosity gave his reporting both depth and authority.

Humility with a Self-Deprecating Streak: Despite his stature, he never took himself too seriously. He once described his youthful instincts as making him “predisposed to editorial work—to be both pontifical and wrong,” an example of the wry humour that helped keep him grounded. (2)

SPEAKING VOICE Cronkite possessed one of the most recognizable and authoritative voices in broadcasting history. He had a deep, smooth voice with a southern accent that became synonymous with trusted news delivery. 

He spoke with an authoritative cadence and rhotic dialect, enunciating hard "r" sounds clearly—a characteristic of traditional broadcast speech. The rolling rise and fall of his voice, combined with the rhythms and pauses he built into his prose, gave his reporting "the subtle weight of blank verse". His delivery was serious but good-humoured, paternal yet accessible—contributing to his nickname "Uncle Walter".​ (4)

SENSE OF HUMOUR Beneath Cronkite's serious on-air persona was a man with a ribald sense of humour who loved a good party. Ted Koppel recalled seeing Cronkite at parties "quite literally take a lampshade and put it on his head and do a striptease dance". He was known to be genuinely funny in social settings, quite different from his sombre television image.​ (5)

Cronkite credited humour as "probably the most important single element" of his 65-year marriage. He noted that his wife Betsy "had a delicious sense of humour" and that the funny things she did "could fill up one of those old Sears, Roebuck catalogs." He added that solving serious problems was often difficult because "humour would begin to creep in—which would save the day most of the time".​ (3)

While known for his serious approach to news, Cronkite occasionally displayed wit on air. During the Apollo 11 moon landing, he exclaimed "Wow! Jeez!" and later joked about his inarticulate reaction, saying he "was nothing if not human". He also delivered his sign-off "And that's the way it is" with varying inflections—ironic, satirical, doubting, or regretful—depending on the story.​

RELATIONSHIPS Cronkite met Mary Elizabeth "Betsy" Maxwell in 1936 while both were working at KCMO radio in Kansas City—she was an advertising writer. They were married on March 30, 1940 at Grace and Holy Trinity Cathedral in Kansas City. Their marriage lasted 65 years until Betsy's death from cancer on March 15, 2005. They often walked arm in arm and were rarely apart except during the war years.​

Walter and Betsy Cronkite with President John F. Kennedy

The Cronkites had three children: Nancy Elizabeth, Mary Kathleen "Kathy", and Walter Leland III "Chip". They also had four grandsons. One daughter became a Quaker because of her anti-war views; a son married a Roman Catholic.​

After Betsy's death, Cronkite began a relationship with Joanna Simon, mezzo-soprano opera singer, Emmy-winning PBS arts correspondent, and sister of singer Carly Simon. They lived in the same building and began keeping company in 2005. In a 2006 interview, Cronkite said they were "testing the possibility of eternal youth" and hinted at possible marriage, though he wanted to wait at least a year after his wife's death. They remained companions until his death in 2009, summering together in Martha's Vineyard and yachting off the East Coast. Notably, Cronkite did not include Simon in his will, which had been written in August 2005 before their relationship began.​ (3)

MONEY AND FAME Cronkite achieved substantial wealth through his broadcasting career. At the time of his death in 2009, his net worth was estimated at $20 million. His biggest contract came in 1981 when he signed a seven-year deal paying $1 million per year (equivalent to approximately $2.7 million today). After yielding his anchor slot to Dan Rather in 1988, CBS paid him $150,000 per year as a consultant—a somewhat ceremonial position.​

His Martha's Vineyard estate, purchased for $175,700 in 1974, sold after his death for $11.3 million in 2011—more than 60 times the original price. His New York City brownstone, purchased for $40,000 in the early 1950s, was later listed for $7.7 million.​​

Regarding fame, Cronkite was recognized 14 years after his retirement as more trusted than any serving broadcaster. As Larry King noted, Cronkite "could change public opinion. No one broadcaster could do that today". His influence was so profound that when he reported from Vietnam that the war was a stalemate, President Johnson reportedly said, "If I've lost Cronkite, I've lost Middle America".​

Despite his fame, Cronkite lived relatively simply. His influence far outstripped his salary, and he remained uncomfortable with celebrity culture.

Cronkite hosted the 61st Annual Peabody Awards Luncheon in May 2002 By Anders Krusberg

FOOD AND DRINK Cronkite enjoyed Rolling Rock beer while sailing, often regaling his crew with stories over a cold drink. 

In his autobiography, A Reporter's Life, he mentions a strong liking for good food and drink, consistent with his general enjoyment of life

MUSIC AND ARTS Cronkite took piano lessons as a child in Kansas City and received "a pretty good rating at a junior group" for his playing. He later persuaded his parents to let him take up the saxophone, which he later called "a terrible mistake"—he felt he should have stayed with piano.​ (6)

He was particularly passionate about band music, playing and marching with bands. Cronkite said he had "a natural talent to lead a band" and that if he could have made it an occupation, he "certainly would do so". He also owned a player piano, which surprised at least one visitor who didn't expect "the most trusted man in America" to have one.​ (6)

Cronkite's favourite musical was Oklahoma!, and he also loved songs from Showboat. He enjoyed the work of Gershwin and American standards. 

In his later career, Cronkite hosted and narrated numerous programs about historical and cultural figures and events, including documentaries on Louis Armstrong and Irving Berlin.

LITERATURE Cronkite was an avid reader from childhood, devouring books, magazines, and newspapers. He kept notebooks to record observations and frequently consulted encyclopedias to learn more about subjects that interested him.​

He authored several books, most notably his autobiography A Reporter's Life (published 1996/1997), a 384-page memoir chronicling his decades of reporting. The book received generally positive reviews, with the New York Times calling it "the story of a modest man who succeeded extravagantly by remaining mostly himself". He also co-authored nautical books with artist Ray Ellis, born from their experiences aboard his yacht.​

Cronkite was a vocal advocate for libraries, famously stating: "Whatever the cost of our libraries, the price is cheap compared to that of an ignorant nation".​

NATURE Cronkite's love of nature was most evident in his passion for sailing and the sea. He described sailing as being "at one with nature" and noted that unlike other outdoor activities, "with sailing you're not only at one with nature but you've got to use nature to progress and you've got to be able to get along with nature because she can be a pretty tough old lady out there at sea".​ (7)

Post-retirement, he hosted the documentary series World of Nature: The Holy Land (1994) and served as narrator for nature-focused programs.

PETS The Cronkite family kept dogs over the years, reflecting his fondness for animals and domestic life.

HOBBIES AND SPORTS Cronkite's greatest passion outside journalism was sailing. He was a lifelong sailor who "preferred the deck of a yacht to the glare of the TV studio". He owned a succession of sailboats named Wyntje (pronounced WIN-tee, after his Dutch ancestor). His boats included a customized 43-foot Westsail 42 cutter-yawl designed by William Crealock, and later a 48-foot Sunward ketch designed by Al Mason—a heavy vessel of 48,000 pounds with four separate cabins. He sailed extensively off Martha's Vineyard and the East Coast, participating in races including the 1981 Marion to Bermuda Race.​ (8)

Before taking up sailing, Cronkite was an avid sports car racer. He bought an Austin Healey on impulse, then a Lotus 11 Club, and attended a track-driving school at Lime Rock in 1957. He raced Volvos and competed at Sebring in 1959, driving a Lancia Appia Zagato and finishing 40th. Cronkite joked that he "passed Stirling Moss—of course, he was walking back toward the pits at the time". 

He also participated in the American International Rally with a Triumph TR3. After a collision between a TR3 and a lake raised safety concerns from his wife and CBS, the network persuaded him to give up racing—it was deemed too dangerous for their star anchor—so he turned to sailing instead.​

Cronkite was deeply involved in Scouting as a youth in Houston.​

He played piano and saxophone, and harboured a love of band music.​

SCIENCE AND MATHS Cronkite was fascinated by science and technology, particularly the space programme. He became the most recognizable chronicler of America's space exploration, covering every major mission from the early Mercury launches through Apollo 11 and subsequent moon landings. His enthusiasm was infectious and genuine—he famously shouted "Go, Baby, Go!" as Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin lifted off for the moon.​

During the Apollo 11 landing, Cronkite spent 27 out of 30 hours on the air during the most critical periods. At the moment of touchdown, he was left speechless, managing only "Wow!" and "Oh Boy!" before regaining composure. His marathon coverage earned him the best ratings and made CBS the most-watched network for the missions.​

In 2006, Cronkite became the first non-astronaut and only non-NASA individual to receive NASA's Ambassador of Exploration Award—a moon rock sample encased in Lucite. He donated this to the Briscoe Center at the University of Texas, which already housed his professional papers.​

An asteroid, 6318 Cronkite, is named in his honor,

Cronkite demonstrated the Reduced Gravity Walking Simulator, that was used for astronaut training before the Moon landings (see below). 

PHILOSOPHY & THEOLOGY Cronkite came from a Lutheran family that became Presbyterian during his boyhood in Kansas City. His father later became involved with the Unitarian Church in Houston. As a boy, he joined a Boy Scout troop that met in an Episcopal church with a minister as scoutmaster, who encouraged his faith. He became deeply involved with that church, became an acolyte, and remained an Episcopalian throughout his life.​

Cronkite once considered entering the ministry while working as a newspaper church editor, but "journalism prevailed". At his death, his family planned a private service at St. Bartholomew's Church in New York City, where he was a member.​

He expressed views on the relationship between religion and democracy, noting "a great national interest in the proper role of religion" and emphasizing that "all churches are important". He received the Walter Cronkite Faith & Freedom Award from the Interfaith Alliance.​ (10)

His core professional philosophy was summed up in his definition of journalism: "The conceit of the powerful is not the reporter's concern. A good journalist has only one job—to tell the truth". He was "an absolute fanatic about objectivity," viewing it as telling things straight without preconceptions or personal emotions.​

CBS EVENING NEWS ANCHOR Walter Cronkite anchored and presided over the CBS Evening News from 1962 to 1981, a stretch of time in which he didn’t so much deliver the news as gently tuck the nation in with it. For 19 years he embodied the very idea of what a network news anchor should be—calm, unflappable, and possessed of that peculiar Cronkite gift for making even the grimmest headlines sound like they might turn out all right if everyone would just behave themselves.

Cronkite arrived at CBS in 1950, back when television sets were mostly wooden cabinets that glowed in the dark and seemed faintly surprised to be broadcasting anything at all. By the late ’50s, he’d earned his stripes anchoring conventions and election nights—television’s equivalent of being handed the car keys by your parents and told not to hit anything expensive.

On April 16, 1962, he officially took over the nightly newscast from Douglas Edwards. It was then a 15-minute affair called “Walter Cronkite with the News,” which sounds charmingly quaint today, like something you’d tune in just after the farm report. A year later, in September 1963, CBS boldly expanded the broadcast to 30 minutes—an act that made television history and slightly complicated dinner times across America. The inaugural half-hour featured Cronkite’s interview with President Kennedy, as if to prove CBS wasn’t messing about.

Cronkite’s delivery was measured, precise, and entirely free of the dramatic flourishes that later anchors would adopt in an attempt to appear meaningful. He specialized in emotional restraint—he let the news have the feelings while he remained the adult in the room. That approach made the CBS Evening News the nation’s definitive nightly appointment, and—thanks to his famous sign-off, “And that’s the way it is”—he became something of an oracle in rimless glasses.

By the early 1970s, public opinion polls had dubbed him “the most trusted man in America,” which is a level of trust normally reserved for surgeons and the people who design roller-coaster safety harnesses. NBC’s ratings fell further after Chet Huntley retired in 1970, and Cronkite’s quiet authority only grew.

Cronkite anchored nearly every major moment of American life in the ’60s and ’70s. He guided viewers through the assassination of President Kennedy and the somber four-day vigil that followed; he fronted marathon broadcasts of the Apollo missions, including the Apollo 11 moon landing with astronaut-turned-commentator Wally Schirra. Those broadcasts drew record audiences and may well have prompted a generation of children to attempt lunar exploration using an upturned cardboard box.

He covered the Vietnam War, Watergate, Nixon’s resignation, the Iran hostage crisis—keeping a nightly count like a weary innkeeper tracking overdue guests—and the remarkable diplomacy of Sadat and Begin.

Cronkite almost never ventured into explicit commentary, which made it all the more seismic when he did. In February 1968, after returning from Vietnam, he announced that the war seemed “mired in stalemate.” Legend has it that President Lyndon Johnson, upon hearing this, remarked that if he had “lost Cronkite,” he had lost Middle America. Whether Johnson actually said it is debatable; that he believed it is not.

In 1980, with CBS’s mandatory retirement policy looming, Cronkite announced he would step down. His final broadcast aired March 6, 1981, after which Dan Rather took the reins. Cronkite stayed on for documentaries and special reports, but the nightly ritual—the steady voice telling America that this, definitively, was “the way it is”—belonged now to someone else.

Looking back, Cronkite’s tenure feels like a fortuitous alignment of personality and era. At a time when television was becoming the nation’s window to the world, he was exactly the sort of person you wanted at the sill: calm, curious, and capable of explaining the day’s calamities without making you feel that civilization might unravel before breakfast.

POLITICS Cronkite strove throughout his career to maintain strict journalistic neutrality, though his personal political views emerged more clearly after retirement. He described himself as "a liberal" in the classic sense, explaining: "I think being a liberal, in the true sense, is being nondoctrinaire, nondogmatic, non-committed to a cause—but examining each case on its merits". He added that "most newspapermen by definition have to be liberal; if they're not liberal... then they can hardly be good newspapermen".​

However, even privately, his stance was complex. One family acquaintance claimed Cronkite was actually "60/40 conservative" and that his daughter became liberal partly in reaction to his conservative positions—though he kept his reporting "straight down the middle, ALWAYS".​

His famous 1968 commentary declaring the Vietnam War a “stalemate” is credited with influencing public opinion—and even President Johnson’s decision not to seek re-election.

SCANDAL Cronkite's career was remarkably scandal-free, contributing to his reputation as the most trusted broadcaster in America. However, a 2012 biography by Douglas Brinkley revealed some ethical lapses that would likely not be tolerated today:

Manipulated LBJ Interview (1969): Shortly before President Johnson's death, Cronkite's producer edited interview footage in a misleading manner, re-shooting Cronkite's questions so he appeared to be nodding or raising his eyebrows in disapproval while Johnson discussed Vietnam. LBJ viewed a rough cut and called it "dirty pool." Under pressure, CBS reversed the misleading edits before broadcast.​

Denial of Management Pressure: During the Watergate era, Cronkite publicly denied that CBS executives had instructed the evening news to "go easy on Nixon" during the president's resignation. However, he later acknowledged this was untrue—CBS management had indeed called correspondents the night of the resignation to tell them "that was not the time" for "editorializing remarks".​

These revelations dented but did not destroy his legacy, with media analyst Howard Kurtz noting he still admired Cronkite despite these flaws.​

MILITARY RECORD Walter Cronkite never served in the military, but his work as a civilian war correspondent during World War II placed him in harm’s way again and again. He covered Operation Torch, the Allied landing in North Africa in 1942, where he first began reporting from active combat zones.

In early 1943, he was selected as one of just eight journalists in the so-called “Writing 69th,” a press corps experiment that embedded reporters directly into bombing missions over Germany. Cronkite flew aboard B-17 Flying Fortresses with the Eighth Air Force, undergoing the same intensive training as the crews—including learning how to use parachutes and even fire .50-caliber machine guns, despite their technically illegal use for civilians under the Geneva Convention.

The danger was very real. His fellow journalist in the group, Robert Post of The New York Times, was killed on one of the missions they trained for.

Later in the war, Cronkite landed in a glider with the 101st Airborne Division during Operation Market-Garden in the Netherlands, another perilous assignment that placed him directly in combat territory. He also covered the Battle of the Bulge in December 1944, reporting from the front lines of one of the war’s most brutal winter campaigns.

Though a civilian, he was trained in aerial gunnery to be able to lend a hand in combat if needed, despite the Geneva Convention.

After Germany’s surrender, Cronkite’s wartime service continued in the courtroom rather than the battlefield. He served as chief correspondent at the Nuremberg trials, documenting the prosecution of Nazi war criminals and the effort to establish a new international standard of justice.

In mid-February 1968, Cronkite journeyed to Vietnam with a couple of other journalists to cover the aftermath of the Tet Offensive. 

Cronkite reported on location during the Vietnam War in 1968.

HEALTH AND PHYSICAL FITNESS Cronkite maintained an active lifestyle throughout his life, particularly through sailing, which provided both physical activity and mental engagement well into his later years.​

In his final years, he suffered from cerebrovascular disease for several years. His family announced in June 2009 that he was not expected to recuperate and he died the following month.

HOMES Cronkite maintained residences in several locations:

New York City (1950s–1999): He purchased a four-story brownstone in Yorkville on Manhattan's Upper East Side for $40,000 shortly after moving to New York in the early 1950s. The 4,000-square-foot property on a tree-kissed street near Carl Schurz Park featured period details including plaster ceilings, a large fireplace, and Juliet balconies. He and Betsy raised their children there before selling in 1999. The home was later listed for $7.7 million.​​

Manhattan Apartment: Later, Cronkite lived in an apartment in the same building as Joanna Simon on East 52nd Street. He also had connections to a United Nations Plaza address.​

Martha's Vineyard (1974–2009): The Cronkites purchased a six-bedroom Dutch Colonial home on Green Hollow Road in Edgartown in 1974 for $175,700. Located on 1.3 acres with a deep-water dock at Edgartown Harbor capable of accommodating a 100-foot yacht, this became his beloved summer retreat. The property sits where, according to Island legend, the first white settlers wintered on Martha's Vineyard in 1632. After his death, the property sold for $11.3 million to financier David Brush and his wife.​

TRAVEL Cronkite's career took him around the world. As a war correspondent, he covered battles across North Africa and Europe, was stationed in Moscow as UP bureau chief during the early Cold War, and worked in Brussels. He reported from Vietnam in 1968, producing his influential assessment of the war.​

His sailing adventures fulfilled his wanderlust in retirement. He dreamed of sailing around the world, though he acknowledged this might remain "just a dream". Instead, he sailed extensively along the East Coast, to Bermuda (1981 Marion to Bermuda Race), and spoke of hopes for trips to Europe, the Mediterranean, and the Caribbean. In 1989, he served as honorary sail master aboard the Star of India, the world's oldest merchant ship still afloat, sailing from San Diego.​​

DEATH Walter Cronkite died on Friday, July 17, 2009, at 7:42 p.m. at his Manhattan home, surrounded by family. He was 92 years old. The cause of death was cerebrovascular disease (cerebral vascular disease), from which he had suffered for several years. His longtime chief of staff, Marlene Adler, announced the death.​

Poignantly, his death coincided with the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission—the moon landing that represented one of his career's greatest moments. A private funeral service was held at St. Bartholomew's Church in New York City.​  His resting place is Mount Moriah Cemetery in Kansas City, Missouri.

APPEARANCES IN MEDIA Beyond his work as a newsman, Walter Cronkite made a surprising number of appearances across television, film, and audio—often lending his unmistakable voice to projects far outside the newsroom.

On television, he took on several acting and voice roles. He voiced Benjamin Franklin in the PBS animated series Liberty’s Kids from 2002 to 2003, appearing in 40 episodes. A decade earlier, he voiced Captain Neweyes in the animated film We’re Back! A Dinosaur’s Story (1993). Cronkite also popped up as himself on The Mary Tyler Moore Show in 1974, and made brief cameo appearances on Murphy Brown, where his presence added an extra wink of authenticity to the fictional newsroom.

Cronkite also made his way into films. He appeared in All the President’s Men (1976), the celebrated Watergate drama, and later featured in the 2008 documentary Milk, adding historical context with his usual authority.

Documentary work remained a natural extension of his journalism career. He produced and appeared in the autobiographical series Cronkite Remembers (1997), sharing reflections on decades of reporting. He also hosted The Cronkite Report on the Discovery Channel, which included specials such as Christianity Reborn: Prayer and Politics (1994). Over the years, he narrated numerous documentaries on space exploration and major historical events, and was frequently featured in retrospectives about the moon landing, the Kennedy assassination, and Watergate.

Cronkite’s voice also found a home in audio projects. He narrated the 1969 record album Man on the Moon, timed to the Apollo 11 landing. In 2000, he earned a Grammy nomination for Best Spoken Word Album for The Diaries of Adam and Eve: Translated by Mark Twain, solidifying his status as one of the most recognizable—and respected—voices in American media.

ACHIEVEMENTS Defined the modern role of the news anchor

Called “the most trusted man in America” following 1960s–70s opinion polls

Anchored the CBS Evening News during the most pivotal events of the 20th century

Won numerous journalism awards, including Peabodys and Emmys

Authored influential books and narrated major documentaries

Left a lasting legacy of credibility, clarity and public trust in journalism

Sources: (1) The Netherlands America Foundation (2) Time (3) Esquire (4) Deseret News (5) NPR (6) PBS (7) YouTube (8) Yachting Monthly (9) Justacarguy (10) The Observer (11) Texas Monthly (12) Good Reads (13) Reddit