ABSTRACT Title of Thesis: TELEVISING the SPACE AGE: a DESCRIPTIVE CHRONOLOGY of CBS NEWS SPECIAL COVERAGE of SPACE EXPLORATION
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ABSTRACT Title of Thesis: TELEVISING THE SPACE AGE: A DESCRIPTIVE CHRONOLOGY OF CBS NEWS SPECIAL COVERAGE OF SPACE EXPLORATION FROM 1957 TO 2003 Alfred Robert Hogan, Master of Arts, 2005 Thesis directed by: Professor Douglas Gomery College of Journalism University of Maryland, College Park From the liftoff of the Space Age with the Earth-orbital beeps of Sputnik 1 on 4 October 1957, through the videotaped tragedy of space shuttle Columbia’s reentry disintegration on 1 February 2003 and its aftermath, critically acclaimed CBS News televised well more than 500 hours of special events, documentary, and public affairs broadcasts dealing with human and robotic space exploration. Much of that was memorably anchored by Walter Cronkite and produced by Robert J. Wussler. This research synthesizes widely scattered data, much of it internal and/or unpublished, to partially document the fluctuating patterns, quantities, participants, sponsors, and other key details of that historic, innovative, riveting coverage. TELEVISING THE SPACE AGE: A DESCRIPTIVE CHRONOLOGY OF CBS NEWS SPECIAL COVERAGE OF SPACE EXPLORATION FROM 1957 TO 2003 by Alfred Robert Hogan Thesis submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of the University of Maryland, College Park in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts 2005 Advisory Committee: Professor Douglas Gomery, Chair Mr. Stephen Crane, Director, Capital News Service Washington Bureau Professor Lee Thornton. © Copyright by Alfred Robert Hogan 2005 ii Dedication To all the smart, energetic, talented people who made the historic start of the Space Age an unforgettable reality as it unfolded on television; to my ever-supportive chief adviser Professor Douglas Gomery and the many others who kindly took time, effort, and pains to aid my research quest; and to my special personal circle, especially Mother and Father, Cindy S. Spitzer, Gary M. Gately, Caroline J. Kweller, and Jill S. Leonard. iii Acknowledgements Literally hundreds of people contributed in various ways great and small to my research efforts, and I am thankful to them, one and all. Former CBS News anchor and correspondent Walter L. Cronkite inspired my boyhood interests in space, science, and journalism. Former CBS News space coverage executive producer and Cable News Network co- founder Robert J. “Bob” Wussler was especially encouraging of this project, vivid in his recall, and instrumental in opening numerous doors. Veteran librarian Carole Parnes of the CBS News Reference Library in New York City patiently, cheerfully, and enthusiastically filled request after request on visit after visit with an abundance of files and transcripts. Ace space producer Mark K. Kramer of the CBS News Special Events Unit generously let me peruse materials he retained from space coverage going back to Project Apollo. CBS Program Information’s John Behrens found and copied huge troves of crucial information stashed away down in the basement and elsewhere at CBS News World Headquarters. Face the Nation Associate Producer Kelly Rockwell in Washington DC emailed data on space-related guests from that broadcast’s half-century of programs. At ABC News World Headquarters in New York City, Joel Kanoff and Ana Villanueva nicely facilitated access to the ABC News “bibles” of television special events coverage and to material from ABC’s in-house MARS computer database. Former ABC News producer Justin Friedland made available for copying extensive space shuttle coverage records. Mary Ann Watson kindly FedEx-ed a collection of invaluable materials upon which she based the Project Mercury chapter of her enlightening and readable book, The Expanding Vista: iv American Television in the Kennedy Years. Professor Howard E. McCurdy of DC’s American University alerted me to a space–related CBS experimental telecast in 1932 in New York City. Space coverage hobbyist Thomas A. McKeever—who along with a school chum of his was invited by space correspondent Peter Hackes to visit the NBC News Space Center sets in New York City several times in 1968 and 1969—passed along an amazing and invaluable volume and caliber of tips and tapes. Related thanks also to Brad Johnson, Kyle King, David Coates, and Chris Chandler. Several dozen surviving participants in television and radio space coverage from both sides of the cameras and microphones spent hours sharing their recollections and perspectives in person and/or by telephone, mail, or email, among them Robert “Bob” Asman, Joel Banow, Jay Barbree, David Bohrman, Ronald S. Bonn, Clarence “Red” Cross, Sid Darion, Morton Dean, David Dow, Christopher Glenn, Jeff Gralnick, Jim Hartz, William “Bill” Harwood, Erin Hayes, George E. Herman, Jack Kelly, Mark K. Kramer, James Kitchell, Jack R. Lousma, Roy Neal, Joan F. Richman, Walter M. “Wally” Schirra, David Schoumacher, William Sheehan, Jim Slade, Robert Siegenthaler, and Robert E. “Bob” Vitarelli. Also contributing were librarians and archivists at such places as the NASA History Office in Washington, DC; the NASA Headquarters Library in DC; the National Air and Space Museum Archives in Suitland MD; the Library of Congress’s Motion Picture, Broadcasting, and Recorded Sound Division in DC (notable for its NBC-TV and NBC News records holdings); American University, Georgetown University, and George Washington University, all in DC; the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill; and the National Archives II in College Park MD. My journalism protégé Jennifer L. Money adeptly obtained photocopies of some documents for me from the papers of Charles Kuralt and Nelson Benton in Chapel Hill NC. From Idaho, former v producer Clarence “Red” Cross mailed me a boxful of fascinating folders full of revealing original materials about CBS News coverage of Project Apollo. University of California-Los Angeles (UCLA) film-television archivist Daniel Einstein’s two Special Edition reference books partially inspired and set precedent for my undertaking this endeavor. Murry J. Cohen, M.D., Patricia R. Bertron, R.D., and Bruce G. Friedrich, all good vegans, encouraged me to pursue journalism graduate school studies. Closer to home campus, I want to thank the staff at the UMCP Broadcasting Archives in Hornbake Library, most especially the well-informed and ever-cordial Michael L. Henry, and at McKeldin Library. The Journalism College’s Erik Ritzman and Clint Bucco provided computer formatting aid. Professor Kathy McAdams lent key logistical support. My advisor Professor Douglas Gomery and my other committee members—Professor Lee Thornton and Mr. Stephen Crane— are all widely respected in their fields and offered much helpful guidance and support. And my Mother and Father and my late Grandma and late grandfathers, key among others, consistently encouraged my academic interests and educational aspirations, and without their morale boosts and material aid I would never have arrived at this stage. A.R. Hogan Saturday 21 May 2005 College Park, Maryland, USA 301-277-7152; [email protected] vi Table of Contents Dedication..................................................................................................................................ii Acknowledgements...................................................................................................................iii Table of Contents...................................................................................................................... vi List of Tables ...........................................................................................................................vii Chapter 1: Introduction, Literature Review, and Methods and Sources.................................... 1 Chapter 2: CBS News Televised Space Coverage: An Overview........................................... 27 Chapter 3: Televised Space Coverage: Economic Factors and Public Interest ....................... 44 Chapter 4: CBS News Televised Special Events Space Coverage: Prelude Years and Project Mercury............................................................................................... 76 Chapter 5: CBS News Televised Special Events Space Coverage: Project Gemini................ 91 Chapter 6: CBS News Televised Special Events Space Coverage: Project Apollo .............. 106 Chapter 7: CBS News Televised Special Events Space Coverage: Project Skylab/ASTP.... 142 Chapter 8: CBS News Televised Special Events Space Coverage: Early Space Shuttles .......................................................................................... 155 Chapter 9: CBS News Televised Special Events Space Coverage: Later Space Shuttles........................................................................................... 166 Chapter 10: CBS News Televised Special Events Space Coverage: Robotic Missions........ 190 Chapter 11: CBS News Televised Documentary and Public Affairs Space Coverage.......... 203 Chapter 12: Findings, Conclusions, Discussion, and Further Research ................................ 229 Glossary: Selected Journalism and Space Terms................................................................... 239 Appendix 1: CBS News Televised Space Coverage: The Players ........................................ 244 Appendix 2: Space Exploration Key Dates Chronology ....................................................... 269 Bibliography .......................................................................................................................... 278 References.............................................................................................................................