When the News Went Live

PRAISE FOR THE FIRST EDITION
The first accounts of how the Kennedy assassination happened came from the local radio and TV reporters of Dallas. For the first time, some of the best of those reporters tell the gritty tale of how they did it. The story they tell is riveting, insightful, and full of new detail about that awful weekend that changed America.

Here, finally, is the view from the street about November 22, 1963. This reporters' account of the Kennedy assassination brings to full focus the personal anguish as well as the professional pressure endured that day by those who could not take the time to cry. This book will become part of the real and permanent history of a dark day for America.

People often ask me what it was really like to be in Dallas on the day Kennedy was shot. . . . When the News Went Live provides an eloquent answer to that tough question, as four newsmen who were there, on the ground, tell how it ‘really was’ through their eyes and ears.

This book has more legs than the Rockettes. The slim page-turner possesses a crisp, objective quality that, like a good movie, never stops moving.

'The President has been shot!' It has been more than forty years, and everyone old enough remembers what he was doing the day Kennedy died. And then Oswald. But few were close enough to see the whole terrible story unfold. This book brings us a version few have ever seen. Bill Mercer, Bob Huffaker, Wes Wise, and George Phenix lived this story minute by minute, hour by hour, day by day. Now they take us live and in living color back to those blood-dimmed days in Dallas. A stunning set of recollections.

As each of the authors gives his account of the segment of the Kennedy assassination he was most involved with—the race to get the injured president to the hospital, Oswald's flight and capture, Ruby's shooting of Oswald and Ruby's trial—he opens a window into the earlier era of broadcast history. The integrity and dedication of these four veteran journalists is impressive, as is their ability to make a 40-year-old event come alive again.

TV reporters Bob Huffaker, Bill Mercer, George Phenix and Wes Wise combine to recall the assassination of President Kennedy in When the News Went Live: Dallas 1963. These four describe what it was like when reporters did everything, including process and edit, in time for the next newscast.

Their account of reporting events surrounding Kennedy's death goes beyond the mere retelling, reflecting on issues such as ethics and duty in the presentation of news. A fast-paced recounting of what they witnessed, accompanied by 43 evocative black-and-white photos. Thought provoking.

The account of reporting the events surrounding Kennedy's death goes beyond mere storytelling, reflecting on issues such as ethics and duty in the presentation of news. A fast-paced recounting of what they witnessed.

Noteworthy.

[A] riveting account not only of the assassination but of TV's transformation into America's most dominant news source.

Well-documented and credible. A story that needed to be told.

Huffaker . . . as the main writer of the book, his accounts of that day, and the events following, are both dramatic and detailed.

. . . one of the more engaging books I've come across in some time. . . . Had these four chosen different professions during their younger days, we would all be the poorer for it. This is a first-class account of a tragic historical moment that still has an impact on our nation.

This work brings immediacy and intensity to events that shook the nation. You are there with the four, on the streets, at the hospital, along the flower-strewn Grassy Knoll the day after, in the jail as Oswald is paraded for the press and then for murder live on TV. Interwoven with this is the perspective of [fifty] years from men grown old, who still live with November 1963.

Theirs is a compelling first person account that is being praised for its depth, authority, and readability.

Their account of reporting the events surrounding Kennedy's death goes beyond mere retelling, reflecting on issues such as ethics and duty in the presentation of news.

The reporters . . . have truthfully written about what it was like to be there and witness history at the end of a microphone and live on camera.

When the News Went Live is more than just a compelling read. It is an account of incredible from-the-streets reporting of history. . . . [R]eaders will appreciate the opportunity to read transcripts of live reports, such as Huffaker confirming the assassination by saying, ‘This is one of the quietest crowds that will ever assemble—the crowd with pity, sorrow, horror and shame in its heart.’ No less moving is Huffaker explaining to us . . . years later, ‘I hated having to speak when I felt like weeping.’

In those terrible days they shared a common bond to report the news as they lived and witnessed it. . . . Still committed to the same principle, they offer the reader . . . a fascinating text.

[T]hese four local journalists were changing the face of news minute by minute.

It is always helpful to get a look back to see how we got to where we are today, and these gentlemen have done an excellent job of that in light of the Kennedy assassination.

If you are going to read one book about the events of November 22, it might as well be this one. It is a great book.

[A] fast-paced recounting of what they witnessed. . . . It concludes with two thought-provoking chapters about the business of news and its uncertain future.

…[F]eatures invaluable detail of the Dallas Police headquarters during these extraordinary days…His discussion of the security procedures in place for the transfer of Oswald from police headquarters to jail is remarkable. What emerges is all the detail necessary to explain what otherwise looks impossible—that two lone wolf gunmen could have approached and killed two of the best protected men in the world within 48 hours (JFK and then Oswald).

This book will appeal not only to those interested in the historical events, but also those interested in the role of the media in covering political events and crises. The four authors provide wonderful insight into their thought processes and decision making during these events, teaching several ethical lessons along the way. Highly recommended.