Charles Bierbauer, longtime CNN correspondent, – Business News
Charles Bierbauer, former CNN correspondent and a previous president of the White House Correspondents Association who later grew to become dean of the University of South Carolina’s journalism program, has died. He was 83.
Bierbauer died Friday at his home in Spruce Pine, NC, the place he had been residing in retirement, based on college spokesman Jeff Stensland. No direct trigger was given, however the household’s obituary mentioned “his generous heart gave out after a good, long life.”
Bierbauer’s journalism profession started in his native Pennsylvania, the place early on he was a weekend reporter for media outlet WKAP.
Charles Bierbauer joined CNN a 12 months after the community’s inception and coated the Pentagon, White House, Supreme Court, politics and presidential elections over the following 20 years. University of South Carolina
CNN reporter Charles Bierbauer reads over the Supreme Court ruling whereas producer Matthew Byrne talks to the studio in entrance of the United States Supreme Court in Washington, December 12, 2000. REUTERS
After a 12 months as a reporter for the Associated Press in Pittsburgh, Bierbauer labored for a number of different retailers, successful an Overseas Press Club Award in 1973 for his reporting on the Yom Kippur War.
According to his household, Bierbauer was as soon as detained in Moscow’s Red Square whereas filming an anti-Soviet demonstration. While overlaying Muhammed Ali’s 1978 travels within the Soviet Union, Bierbauer was denounced by the Soviet press for “asking impertinent questions.”
After 4 years with ABC News, Bierbauer started twenty years at CNN, beginning simply a 12 months after the community’s inception.
Over the following 20 years, Bierbauer would cowl the Pentagon, White House, the US Supreme Court and an array of political tales and presidential campaigns. He additionally hosted the weekly present occasions show “Newsmaker Saturday” for a decade and often traveled with presidents throughout the nation and to dozens of international nations.
Afterward, Bierbauer moved to South Carolina, the place he grew to become the primary dean of the state flagship college’s College of Information and Communications, a merger of the mass communications and library science packages. Launching Cocky’s Reading Express, a childhood literacy initiative, Bierbauer additionally led a multimillion-dollar fundraising and renovation effort that moved the varsity from the outdated Carolina Coliseum to a state-of-the-art building on South Carolina’s historic Horseshoe.
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While in academia, Bierbauer continued his ardour for broadcasting by internet hosting a weekly present occasions program and moderating scores of debates amongst political candidates vying for workplaces within the state, by way of a partnership with SCETV.
Jay Bender, a former legal professional for the South Carolina Press Association and retired professor who served below Bierbauer, remembered him as a distinguished broadcaster and educator.
“His contributions to the USC Journalism School as dean were significant,” Bender mentioned, particularly mentioning the project that modernized the varsity and moved it to its present location.
Charles Bierbauer moderates a debate that includes then-Supreme Court Justices Antonin Scalia (left) and Stephen Breyer (proper) earlier than the South Carolina Bar Association in 2012. AP
Tom Reichert, who succeeded Bierbauer as communications dean, echoed Bender’s sentiments, recalling his predecessor’s “profound impact on the program.”
“He is fondly remembered for many achievements, including fundraising and supporting students who went on to win Pulitzer Prizes,” Reichert mentioned in a assertion to the Associated Press. “He will be deeply missed.”
Bierbauer was married to Susanne Schafer, a longtime navy affairs reporter for the AP. He earned levels in journalism and Russian from Penn State University and is survived by Schafer, in addition to 4 kids, a number of grandchildren and a great-grandchild.
In a assertion to the AP, a community spokesperson remembered Bierbauer as “a cherished member of the CNN family” and a “tireless reporter and wonderful colleague.”
“Charles inspired me and helped me throughout my assignments at the Pentagon and the White House,” Wolf Blitzer, Bierbauer’s former CNN colleague, informed the AP in a assertion. “He was a good friend, colleague, and mentor, and I will certainly miss him.”
