But Moyers, who in the mid-1960s was White House press secretary, is also an ideologue, a man of liberal persuasion. That's evident in his commentary, his questions and, on balance, his choice of guests on "Now with Bill Moyers."
Opinion - Soft-spoken Moyers still riled 'em up
Friday, December 17, 2004
GREGG HERRINGTON Columbian staff writer
When Bill Moyers wraps up his final weekly show on the Public Broadcasting Service (Channel 10) at 9 o'clock tonight, few viewers will yawn and mutter, "Ho-hum. So what. Who cares?"
They're more likely to be saying "Good riddance," or "Come back, Bill. America needs someone talking about the things your show talks about."
For such a soft-spoken guy, Bill Moyers is a lightning rod, a role more typical of all those loud and acerbic commentators of the right (Bill O'Reilly, Sean Hannity) and left (Al Franken, Bill Maher).
Moyers, born 70 years ago in Oklahoma, is moving on to other, less-relentless endeavors that will include writing another book. He is an inquisitive, passionate and intelligent man whose list of "things I want to know more about" is mostly overlooked by television.
He doesn't buy into the style of "Hardball" with Chris Matthews and plenty of other cable talk shows in which hosts consider it a sign of weakness if (1) any one guest completes a thought before he or she is interrupted, or (2) any exchange among two or more participants goes longer than 35 seconds without someone shouting at someone else.
But Moyers, who in the mid-1960s was White House press secretary, is also an ideologue, a man of liberal persuasion. That's evident in his commentary, his questions and, on balance, his choice of guests on "Now with Bill Moyers." Taking over as host of the program, which presumably will be renamed, is David Brancaccio.
So, unlike the few other TV interviewers who also ask penetrating questions and give their guests time to answer and ask followups (Tim Russert, Charlie Rose, Jim Lehrer, for example), Moyers is also a target.
A 'dangerous, lying goof'
Much of the venom directed at Moyers is really intended for PBS for giving Moyers a forum. But here's what some conservative Web pages say about him:
"Good riddance to a dangerous, lying goof whose tenure at PBS is a fetid, reeking stain in the annals of American 'journalism.' I hope he lives long enough to see the GOP get another 10% of the seats in Congress and to realize that liberalism in the U.S. is as dead as LBJ's beagle."
Hogonice.com
"The bad news is that the corrosive Great Society programs Bill Moyers helped shape as the left-hand man to President Lyndon Johnson during the 1960s have siphoned more than $6 trillion from productive Americans to the unproductive, and will continue. So, too, will the toxic politics Moyers played a major role in creating."
frontpagemag.com
That line, about "toxic politics," refers to what is perhaps the most effective and negative TV political ad of all time.
It was the 1964 spot, aired just once by the Johnson presidential campaign against Republican Barry Goldwater, in which a 6-year-old girl's counting of flower petals is replaced by the voice of doom counting down to an atomic blast, followed by words of peace from Johnson (who would later escalate the Vietnam war to dizzying heights). Moyers is widely believed to have inspired or at least green-lighted the ad.
Tackling the elusive topics
But the real contribution of Moyers has been his enthusiasm for subjects that are part of our lives but rarely tackled in depth on prime-time television. Here's what The Associated Press said in a story about his retirement:
"A humanist who's at home with subjects ranging from the power of myth to media consolidation, from drug addiction to modern dance, from religion to environmental abuse, Moyers has produced hundreds of hours of diverse programming on issues that others shortchange, sidestep or fail to notice." One recurring theme has been the growing economic divide between the wealthy and the middle class in America.
His show isn't feel-good TV. But, even if you don't like his politics, it's eye-opening, I-want-to-learn-more TV, and for that I will miss him and I thank him.
 Gregg Herrington's column of personal opinion appears on the Other Opinions page each Friday. His e-mail address: gregg.herrington@columbian.com.
