Everything about Ted Koppel totally explained
Edward James "Ted" Koppel (born
February 8,
1940) is an
American journalist, best known as the former
anchorman for the
American Broadcasting Company's
Nightline.
Biography
Early life
Koppel, an only child, was born in
Lancashire,
England, after his
German-
Jewish parents fled
Germany due to the rise of
Adolf Hitler and
Nazism. His family came to the
United States in
1953. He graduated from
Syracuse University with a
Bachelor of Science degree and from
Stanford University with a
Master of Arts degree in mass communications research and
political science. He is a member of the
Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity. In
1963, he became a
naturalized citizen of the U.S.
Career
Koppel began his broadcasting career at WMCA Radio in
New York. In June
1963, he joined ABC Radio News as a correspondent for its daily Flair Reports program. He moved to television in
1966 when reporting on the
Vietnam War. In time, he distinguished himself as a foreign
correspondent for ABC. Eventually, he became more widely known as the long-time lead anchorman for
Nightline, a position he held when the program began on
March 24,
1980. Koppel gave up that position on
November 22,
2005.
Following
Nightline Koppel has taken on a number of roles which span various formats of
news media:
- He was named managing editor of the Discovery Channel, where he'll host and produce news programs covering major global topics and events;
- He signed up as an opposite editorial-contributing columnist, effective January 29, 2006, for The New York Times (External Link
);
- Starting in June 2006, he's provided commentary to Morning Edition, All Things Considered, and Day to Day on National Public Radio, joining NPR's other two Senior News Analysts, Cokie Roberts and Daniel Schorr (External Link); as such, he participated in the annual NPR Fourth of July reading of the Declaration of Independence in 2007.
Departure from Nightline
On
November 22,
2005, Koppel stepped down from
Nightline after 25 years with the program and left ABC after 42 years with the network. His final
Nightline broadcast didn't feature clips highlighting memorable interviews and famous moments from his tenure as host, as is typical when an anchor retires. Instead, the show recalled Koppel's
1995 interviews with retired
Brandeis University sociology professor
Morrie Schwartz, who was dying of
amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, more commonly known as
Lou Gehrig's disease). For this broadcast, Koppel interviewed sports journalist
Mitch Albom, who had been a student of Schwartz. Albom talked about how the
Nightline interviews led to him contacting Schwartz personally, visiting him weekly and eventually publishing the book
Tuesdays with Morrie, chronicling lessons about life learned from Schwartz.
After the show's last commercial break, Koppel made his final remarks prior to signing off:
Trivia
Koppel is multilingual, speaking German, Russian, and French, in addition to his native English.
Koppel is an old friend of Henry Kissinger. Both Kissinger and Koppel come from European Jewish families; both moved to the United States as children. As Secretary of State, Kissinger once offered Koppel a job as his spokesman, but Koppel declined.
Koppel's daughter Andrea Koppel was a Congressional correspondent for the Cable News Network.
Koppel has received the George Polk Award for Television Reporting twice: in 1981 and in 1985 with Richard N. Kaplan.
Koppel guest appears from time to time on "The Daily Show" appearing in extreme close-up and disembodied, usually acting as Jon Stewart's journalistic conscience, sometimes as the replacement for the so-called "Giant Head of Brian Williams" projected on the screen behind Stewart (although, unlike Williams, Koppel has insisted that "this is the actual size of [his] head").
Koppel is refrenced in Rent (film).("Smile for Ted Koppel officers")
Koppel is referenced in The Simpsons in Episode 1F14 (Homer Loves Flanders), when Homer wakes up in the middle of the night and says, "Marge, I think I hate Ted Koppel. No wait, I find him informative and witty."Further Information
Get more info on 'Ted Koppel'.
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