Robert Bazell
Encyclopedia
Education
Bazell graduated from the University of California, BerkeleyUniversity of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
, USA, in 1967 with a B.A. in biochemistry
Biochemistry
Biochemistry, sometimes called biological chemistry, is the study of chemical processes in living organisms, including, but not limited to, living matter. Biochemistry governs all living organisms and living processes...
and Phi Beta Kappa honors. As an undergraduate, he wrote a science column called "Science for the People" for the Daily Californian. Afterwards, Bazell traveled to England, where he studied biology at the University of Sussex
University of Sussex
The University of Sussex is an English public research university situated next to the East Sussex village of Falmer, within the city of Brighton and Hove. The University received its Royal Charter in August 1961....
in 1969 as part of his graduate work, before returning to Berkeley to complete his doctoral degree in immunology.
Career
Bazell continued pursuing his dual interest in journalism and science by joining ScienceScience
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
magazine in 1971 and writing for its News and Comment section. A year later, he left the publication to become a reporter for the New York Post
New York Post
The New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and is generally acknowledged as the oldest to have been published continuously as a daily, although – as is the case with most other papers – its publication has been periodically interrupted by labor actions...
. In 1976, he began his long career in broadcast journalism by joining WNBC
WNBC
WNBC, virtual channel 4 , is the flagship station of the NBC television network, located in New York City. WNBC's studios are co-located with NBC corporate headquarters at 30 Rockefeller Plaza in midtown Manhattan...
in New York as a reporter before moving to NBC News.
At NBC, Bazell was one of the first network news correspondents to report on the emerging AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
epidemic in the early 1980s. He continued to cover health and science issues for the network. Also in 1986, he was also a reporter and chief space correspondent during the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster
Space Shuttle Challenger disaster
The Space Shuttle Challenger disaster occurred on January 28, 1986, when Space Shuttle Challenger broke apart 73 seconds into its flight, leading to the deaths of its seven crew members. The spacecraft disintegrated over the Atlantic Ocean, off the coast of central Florida at 11:38 am EST...
when he reported about the explosion of the Space Shuttle on the January 28, 1986 episode of NBC Nightly News
NBC Nightly News
NBC Nightly News is the flagship daily evening television news program for NBC News and broadcasts. NBC Nightly News has aired from Studio 3B, located on floors 3 of the NBC Studios is the headquarters of the GE Building forms the centerpiece of 30th Rockefeller Center it is located in the center...
. In 1998, Bazell wrote and published, HER-2: The Making of Herceptin, a Revolutionary Treatment for Breast Cancer, which chronicled the creation of Herceptin, a drug used to treat breast cancer
Breast cancer
Breast cancer is cancer originating from breast tissue, most commonly from the inner lining of milk ducts or the lobules that supply the ducts with milk. Cancers originating from ducts are known as ductal carcinomas; those originating from lobules are known as lobular carcinomas...
; the book received a positive review from the New York Times.
The Lifetime 2008 film Living Proof
Living Proof (film)
Living Proof is a 2008 Lifetime Television movie, directed by Dan Ireland, starring Harry Connick, Jr.The film is based on the true life story of Dr. Dennis Slamon and the book HER-2: The Making of Herceptin, a Revolutionary Treatment for Breast Cancer by Robert Bazell. Vivienne Radkoff wrote the...
, about a doctor who devotes his life's work to finding a cure for breast cancer, is based on the book.
Awards
His extensive coverage in the 1980s of the nascent AIDS epidemic, which included reports from the United States, Africa, Europe, the Caribbean and South America, earned him the Alfred I. duPont-Columbia Award and the Maggie Award from Planned ParenthoodPlanned Parenthood
Planned Parenthood Federation of America , commonly shortened to Planned Parenthood, is the U.S. affiliate of the International Planned Parenthood Federation and one of its larger members. PPFA is a non-profit organization providing reproductive health and maternal and child health services. The...
. He also garnered two Emmys for his reports on the human brain. In 1993, Bazell was honored with the George Foster Peabody Award for his service to broadcast journalism.