The clamor of more than 1,000 excited guests filled a ballroom of the Sheraton Phoenix Downtown Hotel Monday morning in anticipation for Charlie Rose. Later, the veteran journalist accepted the Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Journalism to a standing ovation.
Rose began his speech thanking his colleagues — who he referred to as his “heroes” — and acknowledged the legacy of Walter Cronkite, who he had worked with.
“I’m deeply honored, and for my name to be in the same sentence as his, well, I think my parents would appreciate it,” he said.
Rose used his speech as an opportunity to deliver more general commentary about the field of journalism.
“Journalism is a broad arena where there are battles for ideas and a commitment to recognize the power of ideas,” Rose said. “Journalism is an arena where, everyday, men and women go out to tell a story that informs us and helps us define ourselves in our time.”
Rose elaborated on his passion for these ideas after the event, as he showed his propensity to interview academics, artists and politicians similarly on his show “Charlie Rose”.
Rose commented on his personal connection to the history of great journalists at CBS, citing Mike Wallace, Bob Simon and Walter Cronkite as figures who he felt embodied that legacy.
“To walk in those halls, for me, I feel honored to do it,” Rose said. “The fact that I have sat at the set that Cronkite sat at … that my reporting led to the premier show of 60 minutes this fall … you always think about the people who came before you and you try to maintain — and hopefully improve — the standard that they set.”
Rose took a moment to dedicate his award to journalists who put themselves in harm’s way by risking their lives in locations without protection of the press.
“Each life of a journalist lost in doing what he or she loved to do is a painful reminder of the price we pay to live in a free society,” Rose said.
Cronkite School Dean Christopher Callahan said he does not think the selection of the award recipient should relate to their network affiliation, “but when you have somebody like Charlie who has been part of CBS for so long, I think that does make it a little bit more special.”
Callahan said that Rose’s selection adds an extra meaning to the award’s legacy, which already has tremendous significance in the journalistic community.
“This (luncheon) is a way to celebrate journalism: all the great things and why we do what we do,” he said. “That’s neat, to be able to take even a couple hours out of the day once a year to remember that.”
Callahan said he refocused the purpose of the event beyond the context of the award’s recipient as being a time specifically for the Cronkite School students. To him, the luncheon exposes the students to a role model, celebrates the school and raises funds for student benefit.
He emphasized this idea by commenting on the value of students, alumni and faculty as forming what he referred to as the “Cronkite family.”
“At the core of the family is our students,” said Callahan. “It’s all the focus on our students and, by extension, alumni.”
“There is a definite community and a family feel at the Cronkite School because everyone is willing to help out, especially the older students,” said Cronkite freshman Victoria Grijalva.
Grijalva felt that sense of celebration successfully come across as an attendee of the luncheon.
“The entire event was awesome and really inspiring as a whole — not only in a sense of seeing Charlie Rose and hearing his opinions about journalism, but as a way of inspiring me and reaffirming my choice that I want to be a journalist,” she said.
Contact the reporter at csmannin@asu.edu
