This CBS obituary describes the "60 Minutes" creator as a "TV news giant"--a characterization which, it seems, is completely hyperbole-free.

Like his colleague Walter Cronkite, Hewitt had a key role in TV's coverage of a seemingly endless array of historic events. But he also played a pivotal part in creating the genre of TV news itself:

In which, among other things, I examine why people flipped out over Gwen Ifill last week, but keep quiet about Bob Schieffer in '04. (BTW, Schieffer's also moderating the third presidential debate nPublishext week.)