Daschle Dialogue Guest
Tom Brokaw, best known as the anchor and managing editor of “NBC Nightly News” from 1982-2004, will visit South Dakota State University Oct. 19 to participate in the third Daschle Dialogues. The event brings nationally relevant figures to campus for an appearance with alumnus Tom Daschle. Daschle is a 1969 graduate and former U.S. Senate Majority Leader who represented South Dakota in Congress for 26 years.
Brokaw hosted all three major NBC News programs—“NBC Nightly News,” “TODAY,” and for a brief time, “Meet the Press.” He still serves as a special correspondent for NBC News.
Brokaw’s career highlights include being the only American network anchor to report from the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, and he conducted the first interview with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev. Brokaw anchored NBC News’ coverage of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center.
“It is an honor to have Tom Brokaw as the next guest at South Dakota State University,” Daschle said. “He is recognized around the globe for his work as a journalist, and he will certainly bring an insightful and seasoned perspective on both national and international developments during a most transformational time in our country.”
Brokaw is the author of “The Greatest Generation,” a book about the generation of Americans who grew up during the Great Depression and then went to fight in World War II or contributed to the war effort at home.
“The opportunity to welcome Senator Daschle back to SDSU and have Tom Brokaw as our guest is special, and I look forward to having them both to our campus,” said Barry Dunn, president of SDSU. “Tom is certainly well-known for his work as a journalist, but more importantly, he is recognized for his role in American history. He is an individual who had a prominent impact on great moments in both American and world history.”
Brokaw has earned numerous awards, including nearly 10 Emmys and Peabody Awards. He was most recently awarded a Peabody in 2013, given the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2014 and the French Legion of Honor in 2016. Brokaw was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame in 2006.
Brokaw was born in Webster and graduated from Yankton High School. He attended the University of Iowa before earning a degree from the University of South Dakota in 1964. Brokaw’s television career began at KTIV in Sioux City, Iowa.
The Daschle Dialogues is held in support of the Senator Thomas A. Daschle Congressional Research Study. The Research Study consists of more than 2,000 linear feet of materials from his distinguished 26-year public career. The study is located in the Archives and Special Collections of the Hilton M. Briggs Library on the SDSU campus. This year will mark the third Daschle Dialogues. Sen. Trent Lott joined Daschle in 2014, while former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright was a guest in 2015.