Come to Think of It: Notes on the Turn of the Millennium (Hardcover)

~ (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Originally broadcast on NPR from 1991 onward, this collection of news commentary from renowned veteran reporter Schorr succeed in two ways: as vivid snapshots of recent history, and the reaction to it, in America and abroad; and as canny evidence of how little really changes in a decade and a half. The author (Staying Tuned: A Life in Journalism) and NPR senior news analyst tackles déjà vu-inducing topics like dissatisfaction over the Iraq policy of President Bush in the early '90s (a chief executive "who attends orchestrated events and expresses what sounds like orchestrated empathy"), and a Clinton presidential campaign facing character issues and a "gotcha" press mentality. In the years since, the repeat Emmy and Peabody award winner takes aim at issues large and small (Waco, the Unabomber, terrorism, abortion, the "State of Peace on Earth"), and especially the changing nature of the news business, including eulogies to industry greats (Washington Post publisher Katharine Graham, New York Times editor Abe Rosenthal), coverage analysis (the O.J. trial, Monica Lewinsky) and the erosion of the first amendment. The short pieces that populate this volume offer shrewd, sure assessment that makes great bite-sized reading for any fan of politics, Schorr or NPR news.
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Product Description

A journey through twenty years of politics with one of the most revered news analysts of our time

Daniel Schorr, an institution at CBS for decades and a twenty-year mainstay of NPR, is a legend in journalism. Come to Think of It is the first selection of Schorr’s observations on politics and American life from the years 1990 to the present—a peerless commentary on the history of our time. Schorr’s essays reveal him as a master of pithy, get-to-the-point analysis, whether he is calling the Supreme Court’s 2000 decision to seat George W. Bush as president a “junta” by a “Gang of Five” or eviscerating a conservative counterpart for belittling F.D.R.’s legacy. Schorr’s experience—he has covered the administrations of twelve presidents—gives him an authority and range that permeate every page of Come to Think of It.

Schorr’s analyses include insight on:
• The Iraq war in current and historical perspective
• The first Gulf War, Bosnia, North Korea, and Iran
• Executive privilege and misdeeds throughout history
• Healthcare, welfare, and the state of the social contract
• The proliferation of nuclear weapons
• The U.N. report on climate change

As a record of our perilous times and as a cogent primer on the politics of the last two decades, Come to Think of It is an unparalleled record of political analysis. This will be a must-read for the legions of devoted NPR listeners who tune in to hear Daniel Schorr every week and for anyone who wants insight and a historical perspective on the 2008 election.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 400 pages
• Publisher: Viking Adult; First Printing edition (December 13, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0670018732
• ISBN-13: 978-0670018734
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #686,809 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Wonderful Holiday Gift from a Legend., December 15, 2007

By	Sivakumar Nadarajah "Author of America Misund... - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Daniel Schorr is like Stephen Hawking of journalism. A true legend, who has shown no signs of slowing down even at the age of 91. His courage and determination to move with ease from newspapers to cable news to commercial television to public radio makes him one of the versatile journalists of 20th and, yes part of 21st century.

Surprisingly though, Schorr hasn't written many books in his career ( SIX in total if I recall correctly), compared to many other current journalists and "correspondents" who churn out books after books every year as if they are in a production schedule. Schorr's last book came out in 2005 (The Senate Watergate Report), and his previous works were published in 1970,1978,1999 and 2002 respectively.

So it's natural for all those who regularly follow this man to eagerly await for a new book.

"Come to Think of It: Notes on the Turn of the Millennium" is a beautiful collection of Schorr's commentaries, musings and opinions on topics ranging from war in Iraq, health care, U.N. report on climate change, the rise of the Taliban, the impeachment of Bill Clinton, the shock of 9/11, the disaster of Hurricane Katrina, death of Diana , North Korea, Iran and many more events that crammed us since 1990 . The book is a perfectly blended cocktail of Shorr's personal reflection and historical analysis. And he does this with élan to keep you engaged till the end.

A perfect Holiday gift for anyone who admire this legend and tune in to hear him every week.

N.Sivakumar
Author of:
America Misunderstood: What a Second Bush Victory Meant to the Rest of the World

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars How little things change, March 31, 2008

By	Patricia Kramer (Madison, WI USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This book took me on a fascinating journey back through the events of fifteen years in our very recent history as I read Schoor's essays on NPR from 1991 through March of 2007. It was particularly interesting to read the book as I was also watching the excellent 4 1/2 hour Frontline presentation "Bush's War". The reader is able to look backward and meet Schoor's wisdom and confusion and critical analysis as he looks forward and struggles through our difficult struggle to maintain some sense of balance and be the light of democracy we hope to be.

9/11 looms ahead throughout the first two thirds of the book, but when it happens Daniel Schorr contributes his thoughts in a calm, thoughtful, unhysterical manner that is the tone of all his essays. At the end of every year, Schorr writes an essay on "The State of Peace on Earth" in that year. Most of the years the state of the peace was not very good.

In 2001 he wrote: "....There are organizations that annually tally the number of armed conflicts as a way of judging how peaceful the year has been. a year ago the National Defense Council Foundation in Alexandria, Virginia, counted sixty-eight cross-border and internal conflicts, an increase of three over the previous year. In the age of the war against terrorism, counting conflicts no longer works. There is one great transcendent conflict, a twenty-first-century version of struggling with the barbarians at the gates.

When Saint Luke spoke of peace on Earth, it was not a prediction but a prayer. With it went another prayer, 'Goodwill toward men.' It was to say you can't have one without the other. This year, sad to say in much of the world we had neither."

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Insight of Daniel Schorr, February 25, 2008

By	P. Sears (St. Paul, MN USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Few figures in today's media equal the authority, knowledge and insight of Daniel Schorr. Schorr speaks with an authenticity borne not only of longevity, but of wisdom.

Newsmen and commentators of his caliber are all too rare, and becoming more rare in today's media. Dan, thank you for sharing your thoughts and observations.