Jim Lehrer, the renowned journalist and news anchor who presented thePBS NewsHourfor 36 years, has died.
Lehrer died peacefully in his sleep at his Washington, D.C. home on Thursday, PBS announced.
A cause of death has not yet been disclosed.
Credit: Carol Guzy/The The Washington Post via Getty Images
He is survived by Kate, his wife of six decades, three daughters, and six grandchildren.
MacNeil retired in 1995, leaving Lehrer the sole anchor until his own retirement in 2011.
Lehrer was also known to viewers nationwide as a moderator of presidential debates, beginning in 1988.
(Chris Parnellmemorably played Lehrer in the 2000Saturday Night Livedebate sketch that birthed the word strategery.)
He received numerous awards and honorary degrees throughout his career, including multiple Emmys.
Many fellow journalists paid tribute to Lehrer on social media.
In the trenches of electronic journalism over the decades, I met a lot of people.
He was a gentlemen, and a helluva journalist.
He will be missed.
My name is Jim Lehrer…
Asked for a VHS copy of the story.
A week later its him calling again cant thank you enough!'
you’ve got the option to read more tributes to Lehrer below.
