Ed Bradley
{{Short description|American journalist (1941–2006)}}
{{Other people}}
{{Featured article}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2024}}
{{Use American English|date=October 2022}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Ed Bradley
| image = Ed Bradley.jpg
| caption = Bradley in 2001
| birthname = Edward Rudolph Bradley Jr.
| birth_date = {{birth date|1941|6|22|mf=y}}
| birth_place = Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
| death_date = {{death date and age|2006|11|9|1941|6|22|mf=y}}
| death_place = New York City, U.S.
| education = Cheyney State College (BS)
| occupation = Journalist
| years_active = 1964–2006
| employer = CBS News
| spouse = {{Unbulleted list|Diane Jefferson|Priscilla Coolidge|Patricia Blanchet}}
| awards = {{see below|{{slink||Awards and recognition}}}}
| television = {{hlist|60 Minutes|CBS News}}
}}
Edward Rudolph Bradley Jr. (June 22, 1941 – November 9, 2006) was an American broadcast journalist and news anchor who is best known for reporting with 60 Minutes and CBS News.
After graduating from Cheyney State College, Bradley became a teacher and part-time radio disc jockey and reporter in Philadelphia, where his first major story was covering the 1964 Philadelphia race riot. He moved to New York City in 1967 and worked for WCBS as a radio news reporter. Four years later, Bradley moved to Paris, France, where he covered the Paris Peace Accords as a stringer for CBS News. In 1972, he transferred to Vietnam and covered the Vietnam War and the Cambodian Civil War, coverage for which he won Alfred I. duPont and George Polk awards. Bradley moved to Washington, D.C. following the wars and covered Jimmy Carter's first presidential campaign. He became CBS News' first African American White House correspondent, holding the position from 1976 to 1978. During this time, Bradley also anchored the Sunday night broadcast of the CBS Evening News, a position he held until 1981.
In 1981, Bradley joined 60 Minutes. While working for CBS News and 60 Minutes, he reported on approximately 500 stories and won numerous Peabody and Emmy awards for his work. He covered a wide range of topics, including the rescue of Vietnamese refugees, segregation in the United States, the AIDS epidemic in Africa, and sexual abuse within the Catholic Church. Bradley died in 2006 of leukemia.
Early life and education
Edward Rudolph Bradley Jr. was born on June 22, 1941, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.{{cite news |title=Ed Bradley, 65; '60 Minutes' veteran known for cool, calm style won 20 Emmy Awards |last1=Gold |first1=Matea |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2006-nov-10-me-bradley10-story.html |work=Los Angeles Times |date=November 10, 2006 |accessdate=July 5, 2024 |archive-date=November 20, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061120142931/http://www.latimes.com/news/obituaries/la-me-bradley10nov10,0,3368983.story?coll=la-home-obituaries|url-status=dead }} His parents divorced when he was young and he was raised in a poor household by his mother, Gladys Gaston Bradley, and spent summers with his father, Edward Sr., in Detroit.{{cite news |title=Remember TV News Giant Ed Bradley |last1=Christian |first1=Margena A. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ijoDAAAAMBAJ |pages=61–65 |work=Jet |date=November 27, 2006 |accessdate=October 18, 2022 |archive-date=January 29, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230129012420/https://books.google.com/books?id=ijoDAAAAMBAJ |url-status=live }}{{cite news |title='Butch' Bradley, The Early Years |last1=Schorn |first1=Daniel |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/butch-bradley-the-early-years/ |work=CBS News |date=November 12, 2006 |accessdate=July 5, 2024 |archive-date=December 2, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061202001630/http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/11/12/60minutes/main2174758.shtml |url-status=live }} Bradley attended high school at Mount Saint Charles Academy in Rhode Island and Saint Thomas More Catholic Boys School in Philadelphia, graduating from the latter in 1959.{{cite news |title=A star in the classroom |last1=Beggy |first1=Carol |last2=Shanahan |first2=Mark |url=https://archive.boston.com/ae/celebrity/articles/2008/01/02/a_star_in_the_classroom/?page=full|work=The Boston Globe |date=January 2, 2008 |accessdate=July 4, 2024|archive-date=November 7, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121107120655/http://www.boston.com/ae/celebrity/articles/2008/01/02/a_star_in_the_classroom/?page=full|url-status=dead }}{{cite news |title=The Way They Were |author= |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xcwDAAAAMBAJ |page=106 |work=Ebony |date=March 1991 |accessdate=October 18, 2022 }} He received a Bachelor of Science degree in education from Cheyney State College in 1964. While at Cheyney State, Bradley played offensive tackle for the school's football team.{{cite book |last1=Holmes |first1=Patricia |editor1-last=Murray |editor1-first=Michael D. |title=Encyclopedia of Television News |date=1999 |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |location=Phoenix, Arizona |isbn=978-1-57356-108-2 |page=23 |chapter=Ed Bradley |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=J3fhcUnCC1AC |access-date=October 18, 2022 |language=en |archive-date=January 16, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230116003600/https://books.google.com/books?id=J3fhcUnCC1AC |url-status=live }}{{cite news |title=Ed Bradley, Veteran CBS Newsman, Dies |last1=Steinberg |first1=Jacques |url=https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/2006/11/09/business/media/10bradleycnd.html|work=The New York Times |date=November 9, 2006 |accessdate=October 19, 2022 |archive-date=April 24, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090424234228/http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/09/business/media/10bradleycnd.html |url-status=live }}
Career
=1964{{endash}}1971: Early career=
Bradley began his career as a math teacher in Philadelphia in 1964. While working as a teacher, he also worked at WDAS as a disc jockey.{{cite book |last1=Roseboro |first1=Marilyn L. |editor1-last=Smith |editor1-first=Jessie Carney |title=Encyclopedia of African American Popular Culture, vol. 1 |date=2011 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |isbn=978-0-313-35797-8 |pages=187–188 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=10rEGSIItjgC&dq=ed%20bradley&pg=PA187 |access-date=October 18, 2022 |language=en |archive-date=August 23, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230823133925/https://books.google.com/books?id=10rEGSIItjgC&dq=ed%20bradley&pg=PA187 |url-status=live }} While working for WDAS, Bradley covered the 1964 Philadelphia race riot and interviewed Martin Luther King Jr. Those experiences led him to pursue a career as a journalist, with Bradley later saying, "I knew that God put me on this Earth to be on the radio."{{cite news |title=Ed Bradley, a news 'natural' |last1=Johnson |first1=Peter |url=https://www.usatoday.com/life/people/2006-11-09-ed-bradley-obit_x.htm |work=USA Today |date=November 10, 2006 |accessdate=September 8, 2024 |quote=He taught in the Philadelphia area and was once an interim principal -- while also volunteering and working part time at Philly radio station WDAS...Bradley was in Philadelphia when riots broke out during the civil rights era, and began calling in stories about them to the radio station...His 1992 prison interview with Mike Tyson drew high ratings. |archive-date=May 14, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080514070432/https://www.usatoday.com/life/people/2006-11-09-ed-bradley-obit_x.htm |url-status=dead }}{{cite news |title=Ed Bradley |last1= |first1= |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/team/ed-bradley/ |publisher=CBS News |date= |accessdate=July 5, 2024 |archive-date=December 16, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061216231545/http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/1998/07/08/60minutes/bios/main13501.shtml|url-status=dead}} Bradley moved to New York City in 1967, working for WCBS. While there, Bradley found he was primarily assigned stories most relevant to African American listeners. After confronting his editor about those assignments, Bradley received assignments on a broader array of topics. Bradley left WCBS in 1971.{{cite magazine |last=Curry |first=Sheree R. |date=August 1, 2005 |title=Bradley Lauded for his Lifetime of Journalism |url=https://archive.org/details/sim_televisionweek_2005-08-01_24_31/page/n11/mode/2up |magazine=TelevisionWeek |volume=24 |issue=31 |location=Los Angeles, Calif. |publisher=Crain Communications |pages=12, 14 |access-date=October 18, 2022}}
=1971{{endash}}1981: Vietnam, White House and ''CBS Evening News''=
Bradley moved to Paris, France, in 1971. He was fluent in French, and while there was hired by CBS News as a stringer. He transferred to Saigon in 1972 to report on the Vietnam War and Cambodian Civil War, as well as reporting on the Paris Peace Accords.{{cite news |title=Journalism pioneer Ed Bradley dead at 65|last1=Moore |first1=Frazier |url=http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/O/OBIT_BRADLEY?SITE=DCSAS&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT |agency=Associated Press |date=November 10, 2006 |accessdate=July 6, 2024|archive-date=November 10, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061110091111/http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/O/OBIT_BRADLEY?SITE=DCSAS&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT |url-status=dead }}{{cite news |title=Two jazz funerals for Ed Bradley at New Orleans Jazz Fest 2007 |last1=Walker |first1=Dave |url=https://www.nola.com/entertainment_life/festivals/article_2aab5767-ec2d-5023-a30b-460b979e02ee.html |work=New Orleans Times-Picayune |date=May 1, 2007 |accessdate=October 18, 2022 |archive-date=January 29, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230129012421/https://www.nola.com/entertainment_life/festivals/article_2aab5767-ec2d-5023-a30b-460b979e02ee.html |url-status=live }} While in Cambodia, Bradley was wounded by a mortar round. He transferred to CBS's Washington bureau in 1974, returning to Asia the following year to continue reporting on both wars. Bradley was one of the last American journalists to be evacuated in 1975 during the Fall of Saigon.{{cite news |title=Ed Bradley, TV Correspondent, Dies at 65|last1=Steinberg |first1=Jacques |url=https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/2006/11/10/arts/television/10bradley.html |work=The New York Times |date=November 10, 2006 |accessdate=July 4, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170930132454/http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/10/arts/television/10bradley.html?pagewanted=all|archive-date=September 30, 2017|url-status=live}} He was awarded Alfred I. duPont and George Polk awards for his coverage in Vietnam and Cambodia.
File:Jimmy Carter and Ed Bradley 1978.gif is pictured with Bradley in 1978.]]
In 1976, Bradley was assigned to cover Jimmy Carter's presidential campaign, as well as the Republican and Democratic national conventions, covering them until 1996.{{cite news |title=Ed Bradley |last1= |first1= |url=http://www.cbsnews.com:80/stories/1998/07/08/60minutes/bios/main13501.shtml |publisher=CBS News |accessdate=July 5, 2024 |archive-date=August 22, 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060822133518/http://www.cbsnews.com:80/stories/1998/07/08/60minutes/bios/main13501.shtml |url-status=dead}} Following Carter's victory, Bradley became CBS's first African American White House correspondent, a position he held from 1976 to 1978.{{cite magazine |title=Legacy: Ed Bradley |last1=Nashawaty |first1=Chris |url=https://ew.com/article/2006/11/17/legacy-ed-bradley/ |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |date=November 17, 2006 |accessdate=October 18, 2022 |archive-date=January 29, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230129012419/https://ew.com/article/2006/11/17/legacy-ed-bradley/ |url-status=live }} Bradley disliked the position as it tied him to the movements of the president. Also in 1976, Bradley began anchoring the Sunday night broadcasts of the CBS Evening News, holding the post until 1981.{{cite book |last1=Fearn-Banks |first1=Kathleen |title=The A to Z of African-American Television |date=2006 |publisher=Scarecrow Press |location=Plymouth, United Kingdom |isbn=978-0-8108-6348-4 |pages=54, 401–402 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=U1Pe45NhU08C&q=ed%20bradley |access-date=October 18, 2022 |language=en |archive-date=August 23, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230823133926/https://books.google.com/books?id=U1Pe45NhU08C&q=ed%20bradley |url-status=live }} In 1978, he became one of the principal correspondents for the documentary program CBS Reports, also leaving in 1981.{{cite book |last1=Fay |first1=Robert |editor1-last=Appiah |editor1-first=Kwame Anthony |editor2-last=Gates, Jr. |editor2-first=Henry Louis |title=Africana: The Encyclopedia of the African and African American Experience, vol. 1 |date=2005 |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=New York City |isbn=978-0-19-522325-5 |page=605 |edition=Second |chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/africana0001unse/page/604/mode/2up |access-date=October 18, 2022 |chapter=Bradley, Edward R.}}
Bradley won the first of 20 News and Documentary Emmy Awards in his career for his 1979 documentary "The Boat People", reporting on Vietnamese refugees escaping the country via boat or ship, at one point wading into the water to assist in the rescue of the refugees. "The Boat People" also earned Bradley an Edward Murrow Award, a duPont citation, and a commendation from the British Academy of Film and Television Arts. The same year, another Bradley documentary, "Blacks in America: With All Deliberate Speed?", aired. The documentary detailed segregation in the United States and how the treatment of African Americans in the U.S. had changed since Brown v. Board of Education. The two-hour program also won duPont and Emmy awards.
=1981{{endash}}2006: ''60 Minutes''=
File:Ed Bradley and Mayor Raymond L. Flynn (9617959854).jpg in 1985]]
Following Dan Rather's move to the CBS Evening News, Bradley joined the news magazine program 60 Minutes. According to producer Don Hewitt, Bradley's "calm, cool, and collected" reporting style was the right fit for the program. His interview style has drawn comparisons to television detective Columbo and been described as "disarming", "confident", and "streetwise". He was noted for his ability to get interview subjects to divulge information on camera with his body language. In his first decade on 60 Minutes, Bradley reported numerous high-profile stories on a variety of topics, including with Lena Horne, convicted criminal and author Jack Henry Abbott, and on schizophrenia. He won Emmys for all three stories.
In 1986, Bradley interviewed singer Liza Minnelli and expressed interest in wearing an earring. Minnelli gave him a diamond stud after the interview, which Bradley began wearing on air. He was the first male reporter to consistently wear an earring on air, "challenging the notions of journalistic propriety", according to Robb Report writer Kristopher Fraser.{{cite news |title=Real Men Wear Earrings |last1=Ewey |first1=Melissa |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xzMkq0E5EusC&q=ebony |work=Ebony |pages=122–124 |date=February 1998 |accessdate=October 19, 2022 |archive-date=March 5, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230305230534/https://books.google.com/books?id=xzMkq0E5EusC&q=ebony |url-status=live }}{{cite news |title=Let's Take a Moment to Appreciate Late '60 Minutes' Newsman Ed Bradley's Excellent Style |last1=Fraser |first1=Kristopher |url=https://robbreport.com/style/menswear/ed-bradley-style-1234662647/ |work=Robb Report |date=February 8, 2022 |accessdate=October 19, 2022 |archive-date=October 23, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221023213106/https://robbreport.com/style/menswear/ed-bradley-style-1234662647/ |url-status=live }} He became known for bucking fashion trends for newscasters. His iconic style included an array of patterns, a short beard, and the earring worn in his left ear. Mike Wallace said after Bradley's death that he thought Bradley's decision to wear an earring inspired others to do the same.{{cite news |title=Ed Bradley, a TV Journalism Favorite, Dies |last1=Norris |first1=Michele |url=https://www.npr.org/2006/11/09/6463420/ed-bradley-a-tv-journalism-favorite-dies |work=NPR |date=November 9, 2006 |accessdate=October 19, 2022 |archive-date=October 23, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221023231720/https://www.npr.org/2006/11/09/6463420/ed-bradley-a-tv-journalism-favorite-dies |url-status=live }}
Bradley repeatedly turned down offers to anchor the CBS Evening News in the late 1980s, preferring instead to continue working on 60 Minutes. His reporting in the 1990s included such topics as Chinese forced labor camps, Russian military installations, and the effects of nuclear weapons testing near Semey, Kazakhstan. He also profiled numerous people, including Thomas Quasthoff, Muhammad Ali, and Mike Tyson.{{cite news |title=Remembering 60 Minutes' Ed Bradley |last1=Alemany |first1=Jacqueline |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/remembering-60-minutes-ed-bradley/ |work=CBS News |date=November 9, 2016 |accessdate=October 19, 2022 |archive-date=March 5, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230305222624/https://www.cbsnews.com/news/remembering-60-minutes-ed-bradley/ |url-status=live }} He won a series of awards for his reporting that decade, including Emmys, duPont citations, and a Peabody Award. Bradley also anchored CBS's Street Stories from 1992 to 1993.{{cite news |title=CBS newsman dies at 65 |last1=Learmonth |first1=Michael |url=https://variety.com/2006/scene/markets-festivals/cbs-newsman-dies-at-65-1117953635/ |work=Variety |date=November 9, 2006 |accessdate=October 19, 2022 |archive-date=October 23, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221023213106/https://variety.com/2006/scene/markets-festivals/cbs-newsman-dies-at-65-1117953635/ |url-status=live }} In 1995, he was awarded the grand prize Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award for the CBS Reports documentary "In the Killing Fields of America".
Throughout the 2000s until his death in 2006, Bradley continued to cover a variety of topics, including the AIDS epidemic in Africa, sexual abuse within the Catholic Church, and the 1955 murder of Emmett Till. He also interviewed high-profile people, such as Bob Dylan and Neil Armstrong, and conducted the only television interview with Timothy McVeigh.{{cite news |title=Friends give Ed Bradley a proper sendoff |last1=Learmonth |first1=Michael |url=https://variety.com/2006/scene/markets-festivals/friends-give-ed-bradley-a-proper-sendoff-1117954341/ |work=Variety |date=November 21, 2006 |accessdate=October 19, 2022 |archive-date=October 23, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221023213103/https://variety.com/2006/scene/markets-festivals/friends-give-ed-bradley-a-proper-sendoff-1117954341/ |url-status=live }}{{cite web|last=Bradley|first=Ed|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/60-minutes-bob-dylan-rare-interview-2004/|title=Dylan looks back|publisher=CBS News|work=60 Minutes|date=December 5, 2004|access-date=July 6, 2024|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041209063420/http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/12/02/60minutes/main658799.shtml|archive-date=December 9, 2004}} Bradley reported approximately 500 stories for 60 Minutes over his 25-year tenure with the program, more than any other correspondent over the same time period. In 2005, Bradley was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award by the National Association of Black Journalists.{{cite magazine |last= |first= |date=November 21, 2005 |title=Ed Bradley receives NABJ's Lifetime Achievement Award |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0L4DAAAAMBAJ&q=Ed+Bradley |magazine=Jet |volume=108 |issue=21 |location= |publisher=Johnson Publishing |page=24 |access-date=October 18, 2022 |archive-date=April 18, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240418155339/https://books.google.com/books?id=0L4DAAAAMBAJ&q=Ed+Bradley#v=snippet&q=Ed%20Bradley&f=false |url-status=live }}
Bradley's reporting was not without criticism. Washington Post columnist Brock Yates questioned the completeness of Bradley's 1986 report on acceleration systems failures with the Audi 5000 sedan and why Audi engineers reportedly could not reproduce the problem.{{cite news |author1=Yates, Brock |author1-link=Brock Yates |title=Audi's Runaway Trouble With the 5000 |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/magazine/1986/12/21/audis-runaway-trouble-with-the-5000/40848437-5714-426c-ae70-e14dcaa03e85/ |access-date=January 5, 2024 |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=December 21, 1986 |archive-date=April 18, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240418154054/https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/magazine/1986/12/21/audis-runaway-trouble-with-the-5000/40848437-5714-426c-ae70-e14dcaa03e85/ |url-status=live }} In 1989, Bradley reported on daminozide, a chemical used on apples, as well as seven pesticides used on the fruit. His report called daminozide a carcinogen particularly dangerous to children and sparked a national panic. Scientists with the American Society of Toxiocology noted a lack of scientific evidence in Bradley's report and the United States Environmental Protection Agency and Food and Drug Administration issued a joint statement 18 days after Bradley's story aired, declaring apples safe to eat.{{cite news |last1=Warren |first1=James |title=How "media stampede" spread apple panic |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1989-03-26-8903290837-story.html |access-date=January 5, 2024 |work=Chicago Tribune |date=March 26, 1989 |archive-date=January 6, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240106003757/https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1989-03-26-8903290837-story.html |url-status=live }} A trade group of apple growers from Washington sued 60 Minutes after the story aired, but had their claims dismissed after the United States Supreme Court upheld an appeals court ruling that the association failed to disprove Bradley's story.{{cite news |last1=Negin |first1=Elliott |title=The Alar "Scare" Was for Real |url=http://www.cjr.org/year/96/5/alar.asp |access-date=July 5, 2024 |work=Columbia Journalism Review |date=September–October 1996 |archive-date=May 16, 2000 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20000516225122/http://www.cjr.org/year/96/5/alar.asp|url-status=dead}} His coverage of Kathleen Willey, who accused Bill Clinton of sexual misconduct in the 1990s, drew criticism for not pushing Willey in his interview, giving her a disproportionate amount of airtime, and leaving out important information from Clinton's attorney Robert Bennett.{{cite news |last1=Kurtz |first1=Howard |title=Bennett Angry at '60 Minutes' |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/special/clinton/stories/media032398.htm |access-date=January 5, 2024 |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=March 23, 1998 |archive-date=September 16, 2000 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20000916165101/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/special/clinton/stories/media032398.htm |url-status=live }} The integrity of his December 2003 interview with Michael Jackson was also called into question after CBS refused to air a music special unless Jackson discussed molestation charges with CBS News. Jackson was paid an undisclosed sum for the special by CBS's entertainment division.{{cite news |last1=Bauder |first1=David |title='60 Minutes' takes heat for Jackson interview |url=https://www.gainesville.com/story/news/2004/01/18/60-minutes-takes-heat-for-jackson-interview/31655713007/ |access-date=January 5, 2024 |work=Gainesville Sun |agency=Associated Press |date=January 17, 2004 |archive-date=December 10, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231210181610/https://www.gainesville.com/story/news/2004/01/18/60-minutes-takes-heat-for-jackson-interview/31655713007/ |url-status=live }}
Illness and death
Bradley was diagnosed with lymphocytic leukemia in his later years, keeping the illness secret from many, including colleagues such as Wallace. His health rapidly declined after contracting an infection, but Bradley continued to work, saying that he preferred to die "with [his] boots on". Bradley filed 20 stories in his final year with 60 Minutes, conducting his last interviews with members of the Duke University lacrosse team accused of rape weeks before his death.{{cite news |title=Journalist Ed Bradley Dead at 65 |last1=Palmer |first1=Caroline |last2=Eggerton |first2=John |url=https://www.nexttv.com/news/journalist-ed-bradley-dead-65-81365 |work=Broadcasting & Cable |date=November 9, 2006 |accessdate=September 9, 2024 |archive-date=November 10, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061110091148/http://broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6389819.html |url-status=dead }} Bradley died at Mount Sinai Hospital in Manhattan on November 9, 2006, at the age of 65.{{cite news |title='60 Minutes' Correspondent Ed Bradley Has Died |last1= |first1= |url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=2641304 |work=ABC News |date=November 9, 2006 |accessdate=September 9, 2024 |archive-date=December 19, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141219014528/https://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=2641304 |url-status=dead }}
More than 2,000 people attended Bradley's funeral service at Riverside Church in New York. Among the attendees were the Reverends Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson, musicians Jimmy Buffett and Wynton Marsalis, journalists Dan Rather, Walter Cronkite, and Charlayne Hunter-Gault, and former U.S. president Bill Clinton.{{cite magazine |last= |first= |date=December 11, 2006 |title=A tearful farewell to journalism pioneer Ed Bradley |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rTsDAAAAMBAJ&q=ed+bradley |magazine=Jet |volume=110 |issue=23 |location= |publisher=Johnson Publishing |page=62 |access-date=October 18, 2022 |archive-date=April 18, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240418154031/https://books.google.com/books?id=rTsDAAAAMBAJ&q=ed+bradley#v=snippet&q=ed%20bradley&f=false |url-status=live }} In April 2007, Bradley was honored with a jazz funeral mass and procession at St. Augustine Church during the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival.
Legacy
=Impact of journalism=
File:To Honor the Contributions and Life of Edward R. Bradley introduced.pdf
Morley Safer described the themes of Bradley's reporting as "justice, justice served and justice denied". Bradley's reporting on the AIDS epidemic in Africa has been credited with convincing drug companies to donate and discount drugs to treat the disease. His reporting on psychiatric hospitals in the U.S. prompted federal investigations into the largest chains, and his reporting on the Duke lacrosse team has been credited with ensuring the accused had a fair trial.{{cite news |title=60 Minutes' Ed Bradley Dead At 65 |last1= |first1= |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/60-minutes-ed-bradley-dead-at-65/ |publisher=CBS News |date=November 10, 2006 |accessdate=July 5, 2024 |archive-date=May 17, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070517215157/http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/11/10/national/main2170517.shtml |url-status=dead}}{{cite news |title='Office,' Bradley among Peabody winners |last1=Gough |first1=Paul J. |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/office-bradley-peabody-winners-133448/ |work=The Hollywood Reporter |agency=Associated Press |date=April 5, 2007 |accessdate=October 19, 2022 |archive-date=October 2, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221002060421/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/office-bradley-peabody-winners-133448/ |url-status=live }} Broadcast on October 15, 2006, the 60 Minutes edition that had Bradley's interview with the Duke lacrosse players had nearly 17 million viewers. It was the ninth-most watched show that week and one of the highest rated episodes of the year.{{cite news|last=Shister|first=Gail|title=A '60 Minutes' workhorse is getting hometown honors|url=http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/news/magazine/daily/15792550.htm|work=The Philadelphia Inquirer|date=October 19, 2006|access-date=July 6, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061109083659/http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/news/magazine/daily/15792550.htm|archive-date=November 9, 2006|url-status=dead}} Bradley was seen as an inspiration for Black Americans, with columnist Clarence Page writing:{{cite news |url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bs-xpm-2006-11-14-0611140103-story.html |access-date=February 26, 2022 |work=The Baltimore Sun |first=Clarence |last=Page |authorlink=Clarence Page |title=The restless role model |date=November 14, 2006 |archive-date=February 26, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220226055741/https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bs-xpm-2006-11-14-0611140103-story.html |url-status=live }}
{{blockquote |text= Mr. Bradley challenged the system. He worked hard and prepared himself. He opened himself to the world and dared the world to turn him away. He wanted to be a lot, and he succeeded. Thanks to him, the rest of us know that we can too. }}
Salim Muwakkil wrote for The Progressive about Bradley's impact on Black journalists, noting that Bradley "proved blacks not only could do the job, but they could do it with panache".{{cite news |author1=Muwakkil, Salim |author1-link=Salim Muwakkil |title=Ed Bradley's legacy |url=https://progressive.org/latest/ed-bradley-s-legacy/ |access-date=January 5, 2024 |work=The Progressive |date=November 16, 2006 |language=en-us |archive-date=January 5, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240105232853/https://progressive.org/latest/ed-bradley-s-legacy/ |url-status=live }} Matt Zoller Seitz, writing for Slant Magazine, said Bradley forced audiences and the television news industry to "accept him on his own terms" and that he "annihilate[d] received wisdom about what it meant to be a professional journalist, a black man and an American".{{cite news |author1=Matt Zoller Seitz |author1-link=Matt Zoller Seitz |title=Nothing but a Man: Ed Bradley, 1941 - 2006 |url=https://www.slantmagazine.com/tv/nothing-but-a-man-ed-bradley-19412006/ |access-date=January 5, 2024 |work=Slant Magazine |date=November 12, 2006 |archive-date=December 10, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231210181610/https://www.slantmagazine.com/tv/nothing-but-a-man-ed-bradley-19412006/ |url-status=live }}
=Philanthropy and honors=
In 1994, Bradley and the Radio Television News Directors Association Foundation started a scholarship program in his name for journalists of color. It awards $10,000 annually. In 2007, he was inducted into the Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia Hall of Fame.{{cite web |title=Ed Bradley |url=http://www.broadcastpioneers.com/edbradley.html |website=Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia |access-date=October 23, 2022 |archive-date=December 29, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201229065039/http://www.broadcastpioneers.com/edbradley.html |url-status=live }}
Bradley was named one of the "100 Outstanding American Journalists in the last 100 years" in 2012 by faculty at New York University.{{cite web |title=The 100 Outstanding Journalists in the United States in the Last 100 Years |url=https://journalism.nyu.edu/about-us/news/the-100-outstanding-journalists-in-the-united-states-in-the-last-100-years/ |website=Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute |publisher=New York University |access-date=October 19, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220201093136/https://journalism.nyu.edu/about-us/news/the-100-outstanding-journalists-in-the-united-states-in-the-last-100-years/ |archive-date=February 1, 2022 |url-status=dead}} In 2015, the Pennsylvania General Assembly renamed City Avenue in Philadelphia "Ed Bradley Way".{{cite news |access-date=March 4, 2022 |work=The Philadelphia Tribune |url=https://www.phillytrib.com/news/ed-bradley-way-dedicated-to-honor-legendary-journalist/article_50b86da6-0289-59e2-b7f2-01077a65f47a.html |title=Ed Bradley Way dedicated to honor legendary journalist |first=Samaria |last=Bailey |date=November 15, 2015 |archive-date=March 4, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220304021711/https://www.phillytrib.com/news/ed-bradley-way-dedicated-to-honor-legendary-journalist/article_50b86da6-0289-59e2-b7f2-01077a65f47a.html |url-status=live }} A mural of Bradley was completed in the city in 2018, and a historical marker was installed in 2021.{{cite news |url=https://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2018/05/16/west-philadelphia-mural-honoring-ed-bradley/ |access-date=March 4, 2022 |title=West Philadelphia Mural Powerful Tribute To Legendary CBS News Journalist Ed Bradley |date=May 16, 2018 |first=Natasha |last=Brown |work=KYW-TV |archive-date=March 4, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220304015038/https://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2018/05/16/west-philadelphia-mural-honoring-ed-bradley/ |url-status=live }}{{cite news |title=Philly honors '60 Minutes' journalist Ed Bradley with historical marker in his hometown |last1=Crimmins |first1=Peter |url=https://whyy.org/articles/philly-honors-60-minutes-journalist-ed-bradley-with-historical-marker-in-his-hometown/ |work=WHYY-FM |date=September 30, 2021 |accessdate=October 19, 2022 |archive-date=March 5, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230305223939/https://whyy.org/articles/philly-honors-60-minutes-journalist-ed-bradley-with-historical-marker-in-his-hometown/ |url-status=live }}{{cite news |title=Philly honors '60 Minutes' journalist and native son Ed Bradley with historical marker |last1=Tucker |first1=Afea |url=https://www.phillytrib.com/news/local_news/philly-honors-60-minutes-journalist-and-native-son-ed-bradley-with-historical-marker/article_58462daf-6e15-580e-bd08-12e06dc8cdc3.html |work=The Philadelphia Tribune |date=October 1, 2021 |accessdate=October 19, 2022 |archive-date=March 5, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230305222648/https://www.phillytrib.com/news/local_news/philly-honors-60-minutes-journalist-and-native-son-ed-bradley-with-historical-marker/article_58462daf-6e15-580e-bd08-12e06dc8cdc3.html |url-status=live }}
Personal life
Bradley was fond of jazz and hosted Jazz at Lincoln Center on National Public Radio.{{cite news |url=https://www.today.com/popculture/60-minutes-correspondent-ed-bradley-dies-wbna15638692 |access-date=February 26, 2022 |title='60 Minutes' correspondent Ed Bradley dies |date=November 9, 2006 |agency=Associated Press |work=Today |publisher=NBC News |archive-date=February 26, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220226053420/https://www.today.com/popculture/60-minutes-correspondent-ed-bradley-dies-wbna15638692 |url-status=live }} He performed with Jimmy Buffett and the Neville Brothers and was referred to as "the fifth Neville brother" by the group.{{cite news |title=The Personal Side Of Ed Bradley |last1=Schorn |first1=Daniel |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/the-personal-side-of-ed-bradley/ |work=CBS News |date=November 12, 2006 |accessdate=July 5, 2024|archive-date=December 5, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061205232722/http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/11/12/60minutes/main2174767.shtml |url-status=live }}{{cite web |first1=Mike |last1=Wallace |author-link=Mike Wallace |first2=Andy |last2=Rooney |author2-link=Andy Rooney |first3=Steve |last3=Kroft |author3-link=Steve Kroft |first4=Don |last4=Hewitt |author4-link=Don Hewitt |first5=Bob |last5=Schieffer |author5-link=Bob Schieffer |interviewer=Larry King |url=http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0611/09/lkl.01.html |type=transcript |work=Larry King Live |publisher=CNN |date=November 9, 2006 |title=Ed Bradley Remembered; Interview With Virginia Senator-Elect Jim Webb |access-date=February 23, 2022 |archive-date=April 16, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210416172252/http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0611/09/lkl.01.html |url-status=live }} He was an outdoorsman, and often hiked or skied in his free time.
Bradley married three times, to Diane Jefferson, Priscilla Coolidge, and Patricia Blanchet. He split his time between homes in New York and Colorado.
Awards and recognition
See also
Notes
References
{{Reflist|30em}}
External links
{{Wikiquote}}
- {{IMDb name|103211}}
- {{C-SPAN|13174}}
- {{The Interviews name}}
{{60 Minutes}}
{{Vietnam War correspondents}}
{{White House press corps}}
{{Authority control}}
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Category:20th-century African-American writers
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Category:21st-century American journalists
Category:African-American journalists
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Category:American male journalists
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Category:American war correspondents of the Vietnam War
Category:Cheyney University of Pennsylvania alumni
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Category:Deaths from lymphocytic leukemia
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Category:Mount Saint Charles Academy alumni