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February 7, 2008

John McWethy

I'm just catching up with this tragic news now, so apologies for the late file, but John McWethy, ABC's former Pentagon reporter, was killed in a skiing accident in Colorado.jm1.jpg

Here's the top of the AP piece filed late yesterday:

KEYSTONE, Colo. — John McWethy, a retired ABC News correspondent who had to flee the Pentagon after the 2001 attacks but continued reporting live, died Wednesday after a skiing accident. He was 61.

Witnesses said McWethy was skiing fast on an intermediate trail when he missed a turn and slid chest-first into a tree, Summit County Coroner Joanne L. Richardson said. McWethy died of blunt force injuries, she said."

David Westin, ABC News president, also released a statement which read (in part): "He was one of those very rare reporters who knew his beat better than anyone, and had developed more sources than anyone, and yet, kept his objectivity."

My recollections of McWethy: as an extraordinarily solid and meticulous pro, who helped make "World News Tonight" (now just called "World News") probably the best of the three nightly news programs for the better part of a decade. He was closely allied with Peter Jennings' broadcast (naturally) over those many years, so I - and I'm sure you - best remember him from Sept. 11. But there were many, many other instances; he was one of those reporters who would come on screen - another is CBS's David Martin - and instantly capture your attention, because you knew that what you were about to hear was both momentous and absolutely, unerringly accurate. He was just a flat-out first-rate TV correspondent.

For more on McWethy, go to Poynter.org, where Bob Steele has posted a personal tribute.

Also, here's Bob Zelnick - ABC's former Pentagon legman, now a prof at BU, on McWethy:

“I helped recruit Jack from U.S. News in the late 1970s and assigned him to the Pentagon beat. There, along with competitors Fred Francis of NBC and David Martin of CBS, he transformed the beat from a sleepy understaffed outpost to the most competitive center for enterprise reporting in Washington.

“Jack was a gifted journalist. He had great sources and knew issues relating to both theory and hardware. He reported with neither fear nor favor. When he chose to transfer to the State Department as Chief National Security Correspondent, I replaced him at the Pentagon and remained there for eight years until Jack returned.

“He was a valuable and valued colleague whose integrity adorned him like a tailored cloak. He will be missed.”


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