What made Shields a perfect political analyst was his plain speaking as well as his experience with politics. He treated people the way he wanted to be treated - with respect - and he never talked down to anyone. A native of Massachusetts, Shields was someone who lived inside the Capital Beltway but always knew what people inside Route 128 (the freeway that goes around Boston) were thinking and feeling. He conveyed that Middle American sensibility on both PBS and, back in the 1990s, on CNN. If there was any decency left in Washington, it's because of Mark Shields.
Mark Shields retired in 2020 after 33 years on public television, and made his exit at the right time, going out on top. He knew when to quit. In 1982, he ended his talk radio show because, as he aid, he had nothing left to say. And I'm going to stop here in waxing rhapsodic about Mark Shields, because I have nothing left to say, either. RIP.
No comments:
Post a Comment