posted 06-18-2012 11:43 PM               

The Space Review's Jeff Foust has reviewed the book with an eye toward what is written about NASA.

...was Cronkite, in his coverage of NASA, acting as a journalist or, instead, more of a promoter and publicist for NASA? Brinkley's book suggests he was more the latter. Cronkite "didn't respect critics of Apollo 11," Brinkley writes, describing how he cut ties with Norman Mailer for several years after Mailer's Of a Fire on the Moon appeared to belittle the Apollo astronauts. "Walter had so bought into space that any criticism of the moon launch in 1969 was anathema to him," recalled Bill Plante who, as part of CBS's coverage of Apollo 11, reported on how some people on the street in New York thought the space agency's efforts were a waste of money. (Plante added that Cronkite still let that report air.) Another reporter, ABC's Lynn Sherr, concluded that Cronkite "was more of a cheerleader than a reporter."

Brinkley appears to agree with that assessment, saying that Cronkite "publicly embraced Kennedy's moon pledge with the ardor of a convert" and that he was "more NASA collaborator than reporter." Cronkite "became deeply trusted at NASA; he was uplifting, controllable, willingly submissive, part of the NASA team, the facile voice of a fellow player."

Cronkite said he regretted one time when he did become more journalist than publicist when covering the space program. Interviewing the Apollo 11 crew a few weeks after their mission, he pressed Neil Armstrong on what, if any, religious affiliation he had, in response to claims (that Armstrong denied) that he was an atheist. Afterwards, Brinkley writes, "Cronkite felt like a bum. Had it really been necessary to push Armstrong on religion?" Another CBS colleague, Ed Bradley, recalled that Cronkite told him that interview was "the biggest on-air mistake he'd ever made."

But while Cronkite's relationship with NASA may have generated criticism — or at least jealousy — from other journalists, the public loved the enthusiasm he had for the space program. Shepard's flight made Cronkite a "mega TV star" that became even bigger with his launch-to-splashdown coverage of Glenn's flight. "Looking fit and feisty," Brinkley writes, "Cronkite soared to TV newsman fame on the exhaust of John Glenn's Redstone [sic] rocket."

posted 06-19-2012 06:18 AM               

Brinkley mentions in the endnotes that he had the assistance of A.R. Hogan, who wrote the really good master's thesis I mentioned on here several years ago about CBS News coverage of the space program, so that was neat.