Sam Donaldson
Encyclopedia
Samuel Andrew "Sam" Donaldson, Jr. (born March 11, 1934) is a reporter and news anchor, serving with ABC News
from 1967 to the present, best known as the network's White House Correspondent (1977-89 & 1998-99)and as a panelist and later co-anchor of the network's Sunday Program "This Week."
, the son of Chloe (née Hampson), a school teacher, and Samuel Donaldson, a farmer. He grew up on the family farm in Dona Ana County, New Mexico, which his father had bought in 1910, two years before New Mexico was admitted to the Union.
He attended New Mexico Military Institute
as well as Texas Western College (now known as University of Texas at El Paso
) where he served as station manager of KTEP
, the campus radio station and joined the Kappa Sigma Fraternity. From 1956 to 1959, Donaldson served on active duty as an artillery officer in the United States Army attaining the rank of Captain (USAR)]. While on active duty in 1958, Donaldson was one of the military observers of an atomic test in the Nevada testing grounds when an atomic device with a yield roughly equivilent to the bombs dropped on Japan was detonated three thousand yards away from the slit trench which protected the observers.
Following military service, Donaldson was hired by KRLD-TV, the CBS affiliate in Dallas, Texas. After a year, he resigned and moved to New York City to look for a job in broadcast news. He failed to get one.
He was hired by WTOP-TV (currently WUSA-TV) in Washington, D.C., in February of 1961. He covered both local and national stories, including the Goldwater Presidential campaign in 1964, the Senate debates on the civil rights bill in March of 1964, and the Medicare bill the next year. He anchored the 6 PM Saturday and Sunday evening newscasts with John Douglas doing the weather forecasts. And shortly before resigning in October of 1967, to take a job with ABC News, he was named the anchor of the first half hour of the station's early evening news broadcast "Newsnight."
In 1971, Donaldson covered the war in Vietnam for ABC News. He was ABC's chief Watergate correspondent in 1973-74, covering the trial of the Watergate burglars, the Senate Watergate hearings and the House Judiciary Committee's impreachment investigation of President Nixon.
Donaldson covered Jimmy Carter's 1976 presidential campaign and became the networks' White House Correspondent in January of 1977, a post he held until January of 1989. One of his most widely remembered questions during his tenure at the White House came during the Reagan administration: "Mr. President, in talking about the continuing recession tonight, you have blamed Congress and mistakes in the past. Does any of the blame belong to you?" To which Reagan retorted: "Yes,for many years I was a Democrat!"
Donaldson appeared as a panelist on the Sunday morning television program "This Week with David Brinkley" from its inception in 1981 and after Brinkley's retirement in 1996 co-anchored the "This Week" program with Cokie Roberts until the two were replaced in September of 2002 by George Stephanopolis. He still occasionally serves as a panelist on This Week.
Donaldson anchored the ABC Sunday Evening News from its inception in 1979 until August of 1989.
Donaldson Co-anchored the network's magazine program "Prime Time Live" with Diane Sawyer from 1989 to 1999. One of his reports featured a Nazi Gestopo officer named Eric Priebke who had escaped to Argentina after World War II. Donaldson's team located Priebke in 1994, and Donaldson interviewed him on a street in Baraloche, Argentina, about his role in the execution of 335 Italian civilians on the direct orders of Adolph Hitler in the caves outside Rome. When the report aired, Italy demanded Priebke's extradition and Argentina eventually complied. Priebke was sentenced to life in prison in Italy for his crimes.
In 1992, Donaldson covered the first Persian Gulf war (Operation Desert Storm)and co-anchored "Prime Time Live" from Kuwait City two days after the Iraqi troops were forced out.
In August of 1992, Donaldson and his producer David Kaplan went to Sarajavo on assignment. On the way into town from the airport, Kaplan, riding in a second vehicle, was shot to death by a sniper. That night from Belgrade, Donaldson, co-anchoring the program "Prime Time Live," reported on Kaplan's death.
In January of 1997, Donaldson was once again assigned to the White House as the network's chief correspondent there and served until mid-1999. He covered the Lewinsky scandal and the Impeachment of President Clinton (who was acquitted by the Senate).
In 2002, Donaldson anchored the first regularly scheduled U.S. news broadcast on the Internet. And in later years hosted the ABC News Now "Politics Live" broadcast.
Beginning in 1964, Donaldson has covered every major party politial convention to the present except the Republican convention in August of 1992.
Donaldson was voted Best White House Corespondent in 1985 by readers of the Washington Journalism Reivew and Best Television Correspondent in 1986,87,88 and 89 by readers of the same magazine. Among his other awards are four Emmys, three Peabodys, the Edward R. Murrow award 1997 (WSU), the Paul White award (RTNDA 1998) and he and his wife Jan were among those named as "Washingtonians of the Year" by Washingtonian Magazine in 2002.
be forgiven?", referencing reports of the actor/producer's alleged anti-Semitic remarks. President Bush
laughed and looked up to see who had asked the question. Bush joked, "Is that Sam Donaldson? Forget it...you're a 'has-been'! We don't have to answer has-beens' questions." Donaldson replied, "Better to have been a has-been than a never was."
In 1995, Donaldson had a melanoma
removed from a lymph node
. Since then, he and his wife, Jan Smith Donaldson, have both been active supporters of cancer research.
Donaldson is President of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars Advisory Board; member of the Library of American Broadcasting and American Academy of Achievement boards; and Chairman Emeritus of the H. Lee Moffett Cancer Center (Tampa, Florida)Advisory Board.
In April of 1983, Donaldson and Jan Smith were married in Christ Church in Alexandria, Virginia. They have no children together but Donaldson has four children from previous marriages: Samuel Donaldson III, Jennifer, Thomas and Robert Donaldson.
Donaldson appears in the 2008 political documentary on Lee Atwater, Boogie Man: The Lee Atwater Story
. In the film, he says, "An operative never comes and says ‘here is a story I’d like you to run for me, but just in private conversation, did you know this about so and so, we’re still checking it mind you, but, but it’s probably going to turn out to be true.’ Well, you don’t want to be beaten by your competition and wait until they announce it. They put it on the conveyor belt and you just run it out.”
ABC News
ABC News is the news gathering and broadcasting division of American broadcast television network ABC, a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company...
from 1967 to the present, best known as the network's White House Correspondent (1977-89 & 1998-99)and as a panelist and later co-anchor of the network's Sunday Program "This Week."
Early life and career
Donaldson was born in El Paso, TexasEl Paso, Texas
El Paso, is a city in and the county seat of El Paso County, Texas, United States, and lies in far West Texas. In the 2010 census, the city had a population of 649,121. It is the sixth largest city in Texas and the 19th largest city in the United States...
, the son of Chloe (née Hampson), a school teacher, and Samuel Donaldson, a farmer. He grew up on the family farm in Dona Ana County, New Mexico, which his father had bought in 1910, two years before New Mexico was admitted to the Union.
He attended New Mexico Military Institute
New Mexico Military Institute
New Mexico Military Institute is a state-supported educational institution. NMMI is located in Roswell, New Mexico, United States. It is sometimes referred to as the West Point of the West and it is the only state-supported military college located in the western United States. NMMI includes a...
as well as Texas Western College (now known as University of Texas at El Paso
University of Texas at El Paso
The University of Texas at El Paso is a four-year state university, and is a component institution of the University of Texas System. Its campus is located on the bank of the Rio Grande in El Paso, Texas. The school was founded in 1914 as The Texas State School of Mines and Metallurgy,...
) where he served as station manager of KTEP
KTEP
KTEP is a non-commercial radio station broadcasting a National Public Radio format from the Communication Department at the University of Texas at El Paso in the United States. Jazz music is broadcast from 1am to 5am....
, the campus radio station and joined the Kappa Sigma Fraternity. From 1956 to 1959, Donaldson served on active duty as an artillery officer in the United States Army attaining the rank of Captain (USAR)]. While on active duty in 1958, Donaldson was one of the military observers of an atomic test in the Nevada testing grounds when an atomic device with a yield roughly equivilent to the bombs dropped on Japan was detonated three thousand yards away from the slit trench which protected the observers.
Following military service, Donaldson was hired by KRLD-TV, the CBS affiliate in Dallas, Texas. After a year, he resigned and moved to New York City to look for a job in broadcast news. He failed to get one.
He was hired by WTOP-TV (currently WUSA-TV) in Washington, D.C., in February of 1961. He covered both local and national stories, including the Goldwater Presidential campaign in 1964, the Senate debates on the civil rights bill in March of 1964, and the Medicare bill the next year. He anchored the 6 PM Saturday and Sunday evening newscasts with John Douglas doing the weather forecasts. And shortly before resigning in October of 1967, to take a job with ABC News, he was named the anchor of the first half hour of the station's early evening news broadcast "Newsnight."
ABC News
Donaldson was hired by ABC News as a Washington correspondent in October of 1967. He covered the two major party political conventions in 1968 and in 1969 began anchoring the network's 11:00 pm Saturday and Sunday newscasts.In 1971, Donaldson covered the war in Vietnam for ABC News. He was ABC's chief Watergate correspondent in 1973-74, covering the trial of the Watergate burglars, the Senate Watergate hearings and the House Judiciary Committee's impreachment investigation of President Nixon.
Donaldson covered Jimmy Carter's 1976 presidential campaign and became the networks' White House Correspondent in January of 1977, a post he held until January of 1989. One of his most widely remembered questions during his tenure at the White House came during the Reagan administration: "Mr. President, in talking about the continuing recession tonight, you have blamed Congress and mistakes in the past. Does any of the blame belong to you?" To which Reagan retorted: "Yes,for many years I was a Democrat!"
Donaldson appeared as a panelist on the Sunday morning television program "This Week with David Brinkley" from its inception in 1981 and after Brinkley's retirement in 1996 co-anchored the "This Week" program with Cokie Roberts until the two were replaced in September of 2002 by George Stephanopolis. He still occasionally serves as a panelist on This Week.
Donaldson anchored the ABC Sunday Evening News from its inception in 1979 until August of 1989.
Donaldson Co-anchored the network's magazine program "Prime Time Live" with Diane Sawyer from 1989 to 1999. One of his reports featured a Nazi Gestopo officer named Eric Priebke who had escaped to Argentina after World War II. Donaldson's team located Priebke in 1994, and Donaldson interviewed him on a street in Baraloche, Argentina, about his role in the execution of 335 Italian civilians on the direct orders of Adolph Hitler in the caves outside Rome. When the report aired, Italy demanded Priebke's extradition and Argentina eventually complied. Priebke was sentenced to life in prison in Italy for his crimes.
In 1992, Donaldson covered the first Persian Gulf war (Operation Desert Storm)and co-anchored "Prime Time Live" from Kuwait City two days after the Iraqi troops were forced out.
In August of 1992, Donaldson and his producer David Kaplan went to Sarajavo on assignment. On the way into town from the airport, Kaplan, riding in a second vehicle, was shot to death by a sniper. That night from Belgrade, Donaldson, co-anchoring the program "Prime Time Live," reported on Kaplan's death.
In January of 1997, Donaldson was once again assigned to the White House as the network's chief correspondent there and served until mid-1999. He covered the Lewinsky scandal and the Impeachment of President Clinton (who was acquitted by the Senate).
In 2002, Donaldson anchored the first regularly scheduled U.S. news broadcast on the Internet. And in later years hosted the ABC News Now "Politics Live" broadcast.
Beginning in 1964, Donaldson has covered every major party politial convention to the present except the Republican convention in August of 1992.
Donaldson was voted Best White House Corespondent in 1985 by readers of the Washington Journalism Reivew and Best Television Correspondent in 1986,87,88 and 89 by readers of the same magazine. Among his other awards are four Emmys, three Peabodys, the Edward R. Murrow award 1997 (WSU), the Paul White award (RTNDA 1998) and he and his wife Jan were among those named as "Washingtonians of the Year" by Washingtonian Magazine in 2002.
Bush confrontation
On August 2, 2006, during the last White House Press conference in the briefing room before undergoing major renovations, Donaldson shouted, "Mr. President, should Mel GibsonMel Gibson
Mel Colm-Cille Gerard Gibson, AO is an American actor, film director, producer and screenwriter. Born in Peekskill, New York, Gibson moved with his parents to Sydney, Australia when he was 12 years old and later studied acting at the Australian National Institute of Dramatic Art.After appearing in...
be forgiven?", referencing reports of the actor/producer's alleged anti-Semitic remarks. President Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
laughed and looked up to see who had asked the question. Bush joked, "Is that Sam Donaldson? Forget it...you're a 'has-been'! We don't have to answer has-beens' questions." Donaldson replied, "Better to have been a has-been than a never was."
Career timeline
- 1977-1989, January 1998-August 1999: ABC NewsABC NewsABC News is the news gathering and broadcasting division of American broadcast television network ABC, a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company...
Chief White House Correspondent - 1979-1989: World News Sunday anchor
- 1981-1996, 2002–present: This WeekThis Week (ABC TV series)This Week is ABC's Sunday morning political affairs program.The Sunday morning talk show has aired on Sunday mornings on ABC since 1981; the program is initially aired at 9:00 AM ET, although many stations air the program later, especially those in other time zones...
panelist - August 1989-1999: Primetime Live anchor
- December 1996-September 2002: This WeekThis Week (ABC TV series)This Week is ABC's Sunday morning political affairs program.The Sunday morning talk show has aired on Sunday mornings on ABC since 1981; the program is initially aired at 9:00 AM ET, although many stations air the program later, especially those in other time zones...
co-moderator - 1998-2000: 20/20 anchor
- 1999-2001: SamDonaldson@abcnews.com host
- October 2001-May 2004: The Sam Donaldson Show -- Live in America host
- May 2004 - March 2010: "Politics Live" anchor
- March 2010 - present: ABC News contriutor and analyst
Personal life
Donaldson operates a family cattle ranch in Lincoln County, New Mexico. On July 5, 2004, three members of the ranch foreman's family were found murdered. Cody Posey, a 14-year-old and sole remaining survivor of the family, was arrested and charged with the murders and subsequently convicted.In 1995, Donaldson had a melanoma
Melanoma
Melanoma is a malignant tumor of melanocytes. Melanocytes are cells that produce the dark pigment, melanin, which is responsible for the color of skin. They predominantly occur in skin, but are also found in other parts of the body, including the bowel and the eye...
removed from a lymph node
Lymph node
A lymph node is a small ball or an oval-shaped organ of the immune system, distributed widely throughout the body including the armpit and stomach/gut and linked by lymphatic vessels. Lymph nodes are garrisons of B, T, and other immune cells. Lymph nodes are found all through the body, and act as...
. Since then, he and his wife, Jan Smith Donaldson, have both been active supporters of cancer research.
Donaldson is President of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars Advisory Board; member of the Library of American Broadcasting and American Academy of Achievement boards; and Chairman Emeritus of the H. Lee Moffett Cancer Center (Tampa, Florida)Advisory Board.
In April of 1983, Donaldson and Jan Smith were married in Christ Church in Alexandria, Virginia. They have no children together but Donaldson has four children from previous marriages: Samuel Donaldson III, Jennifer, Thomas and Robert Donaldson.
Donaldson appears in the 2008 political documentary on Lee Atwater, Boogie Man: The Lee Atwater Story
Boogie Man: The Lee Atwater Story
Boogie Man: The Lee Atwater Story is a 2008 U.S. documentary on the campaign tactics used by Lee Atwater while working on the George H.W. Bush 1988 presidential campaign, and how those tactics have transformed presidential campaigns in the United States....
. In the film, he says, "An operative never comes and says ‘here is a story I’d like you to run for me, but just in private conversation, did you know this about so and so, we’re still checking it mind you, but, but it’s probably going to turn out to be true.’ Well, you don’t want to be beaten by your competition and wait until they announce it. They put it on the conveyor belt and you just run it out.”
Cultural references
- The AnimaniacsAnimaniacsSteven Spielberg Presents Animaniacs, usually referred to as simply Animaniacs, is an American animated series, distributed by Warner Bros. Television and produced by Amblin Entertainment and Warner Bros. Animation. The cartoon was the second animated series produced by the collaboration of Steven...
cartoon 'Broadcast Nuisance' features the Warners feuding with "Dan Anchorman," a caricature of Sam and Dan RatherDan RatherDaniel Irvin "Dan" Rather, Jr. is an American journalist and the former news anchor for the CBS Evening News. He is now managing editor and anchor of the television news magazine Dan Rather Reports on the cable channel HDNet. Rather was anchor of the CBS Evening News for 24 years, from March 9,...
. In the cartoon, Dan Anchorman shares camera time on NewsTime Live with "DuAnne Sewer," a reference to his stint on Primetime Live in the 1990s with Diane SawyerDiane SawyerLila Diane Sawyer is the current anchor of ABC News' flagship program, ABC World News. Previously, Sawyer had been co-anchor of ABC Newss morning news program, Good Morning America ....
. - In the NickelodeonNickelodeon (TV channel)Nickelodeon, often simply called Nick and originally named Pinwheel, is an American children's channel owned by MTV Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom International. The channel is primarily aimed at children ages 7–17, with the exception of their weekday morning program block aimed at preschoolers...
animated television series KaBlam!KaBlam!KaBlam! is an American animated television series that ran on Nickelodeon from 1996 to 2000. Then it moved to The N on April 15, 2002 as part of its The N's Saturday Nights block...
, June joins the "Sam Donaldson fan club", then later in the episode Sam does a report on the set of KaBlam!. - In its "Separated at Birth?" column, Spy magazine once juxtaposed Donaldson with Mr. Spock.
- In an episode of Road RoversRoad RoversRoad Rovers is an American 2D animated television series written and produced by Warner Bros. Animation that premiered on Kids' WB on September 7, 1996. It lasted one season and ended on February 22, 1997. Reruns continued to air until September 6, 1997. It was then on Cartoon Network from February...
, when reporting from the United Nations, he and Blitz got into a fight after Blitz started chewing up Donaldson's toupee (which fell off his head), and refused to give it back. - He also makes an appearance in Celebrity DeathmatchCelebrity DeathmatchCelebrity Deathmatch is a claymation television show that depicts celebrities against each other in a wrestling ring, almost always ending in the loser's gruesome death. It was known for its excessive amount of blood used in every match and exaggerated physical injuries...
, where he was pitted against Johnny Gomez and Nick Diamond, the commentators of the show. - Brian DennehyBrian DennehyBrian Mannion Dennehy is an American actor of film, stage and screen.-Early years:Dennehy was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, the son of Hannah and Edward Dennehy, who was a wire service editor for the Associated Press; he has two brothers, Michael and Edward. Dennehy is of Irish ancestry and was...
, as police officer Frank Daly, in the 1990 movie The Last of the FinestThe Last of the FinestThe Last of the Finest is a 1990 film directed by John Mackenzie. It stars Brian Dennehy and Joe Pantoliano.-Plot:An elite group of narcotics cops quit from the L.A.P.D. after facing investigation for being over-zealous in their war against drugs. It is immediately apparent that some of their...
refers to Sam Donaldson. Daly and two other officers are trying to gather evidence against one of the film's antagonists, Anthony Reece (Michael C. GwynneMichael C. GwynneMichael C. Gwynne is an American film, television and radio actor. Noteworthy film roles include Payday, The Terminal Man, Harry Tracy and more recent films like Private Parts....
) and gain entrance to a press conference by pick-pocketing a legitimate camera crew's press passes, and entering carrying a camcorder and microphone. Frank says, "Film at 11Film at 11The idiom "Film at 11" originates from television news broadcasting. Traditionally, it follows a promotion aired earlier in the evening for a particular story to be detailed on a later local news broadcast at 11 p.m., a traditional timeslot for local news broadcasts in the Eastern and Pacific time...
. I'll be Sam Donaldson". - In the DVD release of Kung Pow, there is a deleted scene where Steve OedekerkSteve OedekerkStephen Brenton "Steve" Oedekerk is an American comedian, director, editor, producer, screenwriter and actor. Oedekerk is best known for his collaborations with actor Jim Carrey and director Tom Shadyac , his series of "Thumbmation" shorts and his film Kung Pow: Enter the Fist .-Life and...
dubs over himself singing about Sam Donaldson. - DoonesburyDoonesburyDoonesbury is a comic strip by American cartoonist Garry Trudeau, that chronicles the adventures and lives of an array of characters of various ages, professions, and backgrounds, from the President of the United States to the title character, Michael Doonesbury, who has progressed from a college...
character Roland HedleyRoland HedleyRoland Burton Hedley, III is a fictional character in the comic strip Doonesbury by Garry Trudeau, inspired by the on-air style of the veteran US reporter Sam Donaldson....
was inspired by the on-air style of Donaldson. - In the original Image/WildStorm comic book WildC.A.T.s mini-series, the character of Voodoo points to a television screen and Lord Emp makes a sarcastic remark about Sam Donaldson being an evil space alien.
- In the cartoon strip Bloom CountyBloom CountyBloom County is an American comic strip by Berkeley Breathed which ran from December 8, 1980, until August 6, 1989. It examined events in politics and culture through the viewpoint of a fanciful small town in Middle America, where children often have adult personalities and vocabularies and where...
, Donaldson is referenced during the Meadow Party convention in San Francisco. After several outbursts from a Texas delegate, Milo threatens him by saying "Men, lock the delegate from Texas into a broom closet with Sam Donaldson."
Quotes
Quotes by Samuel Andrew Donaldson- "People ask me about my relationship with President Reagan. I say it was a case of two 'hams' discovering each other. Only I played the 'straight man' and he always had the last word."
- "Young people are often told to find something they love. No, I tell them to find something they're good at. If they do, they'll love it and people will reward them."
- "As a political reporter questioning public officials, I say only half facetiously that the only way to avoid being seen as a partisan is to be equally viscious to everyone."
External links
- ABC Medianet Bio
- Foundation For Melanoma Research: Honorary Council
- NCCS Recognizes Leaders in Cancer Survivorship
- ABC News' "Time Tunnel" page containing clips of numerous newscasts on which Donaldson appeared
- Sam Donaldson Archive of American Television Interview
- http://www.boogiemanfilm.comSam Donaldson speaks about Lee Atwater in Boogie Man: The Lee Atwater StoryBoogie Man: The Lee Atwater StoryBoogie Man: The Lee Atwater Story is a 2008 U.S. documentary on the campaign tactics used by Lee Atwater while working on the George H.W. Bush 1988 presidential campaign, and how those tactics have transformed presidential campaigns in the United States....
]