Logo

Novak Blazed the Trail for Cable’s Outspoken Pundits

Sep 29, 2009  •  Post A Comment

By Elizabeth Jensen

When Robert D. Novak died Aug. 18 at the age of 78 from a malignant brain tumor, his rueful prediction came true: The journalistic uproar he unleashed late in his career by disclosing the identity of CIA operative Valerie Plame Wilson dominated his obituaries.

The 2003 controversy — which brought down I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby, Vice President Dick Cheney’s chief of staff — overshadowed other aspects of Novak’s career, including his pioneering role in cable television.

The syndicated newspaper columnist appeared on CNN — with his longtime writing partner, Rowland Evans — from the cable network’s first week in 1980. Perfecting in subsequent years the role of in-your-face TV punditry, Novak helped spawn a genre that was well suited to cable networks with unlimited air time trying to grab viewers’ attentions.

He became a co-host of CNN’s “Crossfire” in 1985, and founded CNN’s “The Capital Gang” in 1988 after a falling out with John McLaughlin, host of the similar broadcast TV shout-fest, “The McLaughlin Group.” (His feuds were legendary: Fellow TV pundit Mort Kondracke once called Novak “the troll under the bridge of American journalism.”)

Born in Joliet, Ill., in 1931, Novak began his professional journalism career at the Associated Press, eventually landing in Washington, D.C. He jumped to the Wall Street Journal then joined forces in 1963 with New York Herald Tribune correspondent Evans, who was as cool and collected as Novak was contentious. Their widely distributed column, “Inside Report,” broke news. When CNN launched, “Evans and Novak” (later, “Evans, Novak, Hunt and Shields”) became a fixture.

 Evans retired in 1993, and died in 2001.

Novak, conservative and contrarian, proudly wore his nickname “The Prince of Darkness,” which he appropriated for the title of his 2007 memoir. But his outrageousness got the better of him: In 2005, under pressure from his Plame disclosure, he got in a verbal fight on CNN’s “Inside Politics” with Democratic strategist James Carville, uttered an expletive and stormed off the set. He never appeared on CNN again, and later became a Fox News Channel contributor.

In August 2008, Novak disclosed the brain tumor. He is survived by Geraldine, his wife; a son; and a daughter.

35 Comments

  1. Very informative article, I have saved it and showed to to some of my friends already.

  2. Good post, thanks

  3. Thanks for your visiting this http://www.watchau.com online store.

  4. Well said, mostly, but don’t you feel you’re oversimplifying?

  5. Thank God we have a common interest, thank you for sharing, you’re a good author. Hope to see more of your articles. Juno sincere.

  6. Way to focus and straight to your point, i love it. Keep up the work people. Dont let anyone stop us bloggers.

  7. Sorry for the huge review, but I’m really loving the new Zune, and hope this, as well as the excellent reviews some other people have written, will help you decide if it’s the right choice for you.

  8. Sorry for the huge review, but I’m really loving the new Zune, and hope this, as well as the excellent reviews some other people have written, will help you decide if it’s the right choice for you.

  9. Between me and my husband we’ve owned more MP3 players over the years than I can count, including Sansas, iRivers, iPods (classic & touch), the Ibiza Rhapsody, etc. But, the last few years I’ve settled down to one line of players. Why? Because I was happy to discover how well-designed and fun to use the underappreciated (and widely mocked) Zunes are.

  10. The Zune concentrates on being a Portable Media Player. Not a web browser. Not a game machine. Maybe in the future it’ll do even better in those areas, but for now it’s a fantastic way to organize and listen to your music and videos, and is without peer in that regard. The iPod’s strengths are its web browsing and apps. If those sound more compelling, perhaps it is your best choice.

  11. If you’re still on the fence: grab your favorite earphones, head down to a Best Buy and ask to plug them into a Zune then an iPod and see which one sounds better to you, and which interface makes you smile more. Then you’ll know which is right for you.

  12. This is getting a bit more subjective, but I much prefer the Zune Marketplace. The interface is colorful, has more flair, and some cool features like ‘Mixview’ that let you quickly see related albums, songs, or other users related to what you’re listening to. Clicking on one of those will center on that item, and another set of “neighbors” will come into view, allowing you to navigate around exploring by similar artists, songs, or users. Speaking of users, the Zune “Social” is also great fun, letting you find others with shared tastes and becoming friends with them. You then can listen to a playlist created based on an amalgamation of what all your friends are listening to, which is also enjoyable. Those concerned with privacy will be relieved to know you can prevent the public from seeing your personal listening habits if you so choose.

  13. If you’re still on the fence: grab your favorite earphones, head down to a Best Buy and ask to plug them into a Zune then an iPod and see which one sounds better to you, and which interface makes you smile more. Then you’ll know which is right for you.

  14. Apple now has Rhapsody as an app, which is a great start, but it is currently hampered by the inability to store locally on your iPod, and has a dismal 64kbps bit rate. If this changes, then it will somewhat negate this advantage for the Zune, but the 10 songs per month will still be a big plus in Zune Pass’ favor.

  15. If you’re still on the fence: grab your favorite earphones, head down to a Best Buy and ask to plug them into a Zune then an iPod and see which one sounds better to you, and which interface makes you smile more. Then you’ll know which is right for you.

  16. Between me and my husband we’ve owned more MP3 players over the years than I can count, including Sansas, iRivers, iPods (classic & touch), the Ibiza Rhapsody, etc. But, the last few years I’ve settled down to one line of players. Why? Because I was happy to discover how well-designed and fun to use the underappreciated (and widely mocked) Zunes are.

  17. I’ll gear this review to 2 types of people: current Zune owners who are considering an upgrade, and people trying to decide between a Zune and an iPod. (There are other players worth considering out there, like the Sony Walkman X, but I hope this gives you enough info to make an informed decision of the Zune vs players other than the iPod line as well.)

  18. Sorry for the huge review, but I’m really loving the new Zune, and hope this, as well as the excellent reviews some other people have written, will help you decide if it’s the right choice for you.

  19. Apple now has Rhapsody as an app, which is a great start, but it is currently hampered by the inability to store locally on your iPod, and has a dismal 64kbps bit rate. If this changes, then it will somewhat negate this advantage for the Zune, but the 10 songs per month will still be a big plus in Zune Pass’ favor.

  20. I’ll gear this review to 2 types of people: current Zune owners who are considering an upgrade, and people trying to decide between a Zune and an iPod. (There are other players worth considering out there, like the Sony Walkman X, but I hope this gives you enough info to make an informed decision of the Zune vs players other than the iPod line as well.)

  21. Sorry for the huge review, but I’m really loving the new Zune, and hope this, as well as the excellent reviews some other people have written, will help you decide if it’s the right choice for you.

  22. Love the blog here. Nice colors. I am definitely staying tuned to this one. Hope to see more.

  23. I love the expression. Everyone needs to express there own opinion and feel free to hear others. Keep it up 🙂

  24. I love your blog.. very nice colors & theme. Did you create this website yourself or did you hire someone to do it for you? Plz reply back as I’m looking to create my own blog and would like to know wheere u got this from. thanks

  25. This is the best blog I’ve ever seen in my life! I really appreciate you taking the time out of your busy day to share your this with everyone.

  26. I would like to start my own blog one day. This was a really nice blog that you made here. Keep up the success 😛

  27. Great blog!! You should start many more. I love all the info provided. I will stay tuned 🙂

  28. Wow, amazing blog layout! How long have you been blogging for? you make blogging look easy.

  29. Way to focus and straight to your point, i love it. Keep up the work people. Dont let anyone stop us bloggers.

  30. You make blogging look like a walk in the park! I’ve been trying to blog daily but I just cant find writing material.. you’re an inspiration to me and i’m sure many others!

  31. Kudos to you! This is a really good blog here and I love your style of writing. How did you get so good at blogging?

  32. I love the expression. Everyone needs to express there own opinion and feel free to hear others. Keep it up 🙂

  33. Dreamin. I love blogging. You all express your feelings the right way, because they are your feeling, focus on your blog it is great.

  34. Kudos to you! This is a really good blog here and I love your style of writing. How did you get so good at blogging?

Leave a Reply to seksi Cancel Reply

Email (will not be published)