The former president of ABC News, who was behind the hiring of Peter Jennings, Ted Koppel and Sam Donaldson, among other well-known news broadcasters, has died, the Associated Press reports. Elmer Lower was 98.
Lower tripled the size of ABC’s news department during the 1960s and 1970s, growing the division from 250 employees to 750 people. He also expanded the evening news broadcast from 15 minutes to 30 minutes during his tenure as president, which ran from 1963 until 1974.
Lower, who retired from news in 1978, was the recipient of a lifetime achievement Emmy Award in 1975. He died Tuesday in Vero Beach, Fla.
UPDATE July 27, 11:50 PM., PM. Story updated to remove picture of Glenn Beck. One of our editors inadvertantly posted a picture of Beck with this story instead of a picture of Elmer Lower. We apologize and regret the error. We have replaced the picture with one of Lower. He is the man holding the paper in the middle of the photo:
Dear Elmer looks a lot like Glenn Blechhhh.
Wow- I want to look THAT good at 98!!!
Wishful thinking on someone’s part. That picture of the man you have posted is still alive, he is well and he is one of the most courageous people in the entire world. God bless you Glenn!
LOL! Do they call this “Glennphobia?”