Peter Jennings

Peter Charles Archibald Ewart Jennings, CM (July 29, 1938 – August 7, 2005) was a Canadian-American journalist and news anchor. He was the sole anchor of ABC's World News Tonight from 1983 until his death in 2005 of complications from lung cancer. A high-school dropout, he transformed himself into one of American television's most prominent journalists.

Jennings started his career early, hosting a Canadian radio show at the age of nine. He began his professional career with CJOH-TV in Ottawa during its early years, anchoring the local newscasts and hosting a teen dance show, Saturday Date, on Saturdays.

In 1965, ABC News tapped him to anchor its flagship evening news program. His inexperience was attacked by critics and others in television news, making for a difficult first stint in the anchor chair, and Jennings became a foreign correspondent in 1968, honing his reporting skills in the Middle East.

He returned as one of World News Tonight's three anchors in 1978, and was promoted to the role of sole anchor in 1983. Jennings was also known for his marathon coverage of breaking news stories, staying on the air for 15 or more straight hours to anchor the live broadcast of events such as the outbreak of the Gulf War in 1991, the Millennium celebrations in 2000, and the September 11 attacks in 2001. In addition to anchoring, he was the host of many ABC News special reports and moderated several American presidential debates. Having always been fascinated with the United States, Jennings became a naturalized United States citizen in 2003.

Along with Tom Brokaw at NBC and Dan Rather at CBS, Jennings formed part of the "Big Three" news anchors who dominated American evening network news from the early 1980s to 2005. His death, which closely followed the retirements of Brokaw and Rather, marked the end of the "Big Three" era.

On August 7, 2005, just after 11:30 pm EDT, Charles Gibson broke into local news in the Eastern US and regular programming on ABC's western affiliates to announce Jennings's death from lung cancer. He read a short statement from the family, and disclosed that Jennings had died in his New York apartment with his wife, two children, and sister at his side.[82] The anchor's ABC colleagues, including Barbara Walters, Diane Sawyer, and Ted Koppel shared their thoughts on Jennings's death. The next morning, Brokaw and Rather fondly remembered their former rival on the morning news shows. "Peter, of the three of us, was our prince," said Brokaw on Today. "He seemed so timeless. He had such élan and style."[83] American President George W. Bush and Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin offered statements of condolence to the press.[84][85]

On August 10, 2005, ABC aired a two-hour special, Peter Jennings: Reporter, with archival clips of his reports and interviews with colleagues and friends. The special drew over 9 million viewers, and was the most watched television program of the night.[86] For the week of his death, World News Tonight placed number one in the ratings race for the first time since June 2004.[87]

Jennings's widow, Kayce Freed,and family held a private service in New York. Jennings was cremated and his ashes split in half. Half of his ashes remained in his home in Long Island and the other half was placed in his summer home in the Gatineau Hills, near Ottawa.[90] The 57th Primetime Emmy Awards on September 18, 2005 included a tribute to Jennings by Brokaw and Rather.[91] A public memorial service for Jennings was held two days later at Carnegie Hall. Notable journalists, political leaders, and other friends of Jennings attended. Jennings left a $50m estate, half went to Freed; most of the rest to his son and daughter. On December 5, 2005, after much speculation, and nearly eight months after Jennings stopped anchoring, ABC named Vargas and Bob Woodruff co-anchors for World News Tonight.