An Interactive Timeline

The Voice of a Generation

A Look at Journalistic Integrity Spanning an Entire Legendary Career

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1932

1933

1934

1935

1936

February 25

1937

1939

1942

1947

1952

1955

1957

1957

1958

1958

1958

1959

Fort Worth

1959

1959

1960

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1963

November 22

1963

1963

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Fort Worth

1966

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1967

April 15

1967

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Washington DC

1969

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Washington DC

1977

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1981

Washington DC

1982

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1987

1989

1990

May

1991

1992

1994

1996

1998

2000

September 11

2001

2002

2003

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September

2006

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2008

2009

2010

2011

October 22

2012

2012

2013

2013

2013

2014

May 31

2014

2014

2014

2014

2015

2015

Washington DC

2015

2015

2015

2015

2016

2016

Washington DC

2016

2016

2016

2016

2017

2017

2017

Scroll or Click A Year Above to Jump Across the Timeline

Scroll or Select A Year Above to Jump Across the Timeline

An Interactive Timeline

The Voice of a Generation

A Look at Journalistic Integrity Spanning an Entire Legendary Career

Scroll or Select A Year Above to Jump Across the Timeline

Explore
February 25

1937

A Texan Born and Raised

Bob was born in Austin, where his dad worked in a lumberyard, but when World War II broke out, the family moved to Fort Worth, where Bob grew up and attended North Side High School. He was sports editor of the school newspaper and editor of the school yearbook.

Look through photos of some of Bob's earliest memories in Texas

1957

The Newest Anchor for KXOL

After two years in pre-med, Bob got up the courage to tell his mother he was going to be a reporter. That summer, he switched his major to journalism and got a job at KXOL, a small Fort Worth radio station that played rock 'n roll music and covered local news.

KXOL program schedule

Still a TCU student at the time, Bob was being paid $1 an hour for his time at KXOL.

While working at KXOL, Bob drove a panel truck equipped with a police radio. "We covered the three R's: (w)recks, rapes and robberies," he said. "When we got word of such things on the police radio, we raced to the location and broadcast an on-the-scene report. It was thought to be quite a technological achievement."

What was life like in 1957 when Bob was starting his grind to the top?

1959

A TCU Graduate with a B.A. in Journalism and English

Bob found time to become sports editor of The Skiff student newspaper, but it was not a path to achieving good grades. He said he took nine semesters of Spanish just to get the required four for graduation and eventually getting a C in his final semester.

"The truth of the matter was, by the time I got that job, I always wanted to be a reporter, and my college days were really over. I came out here to do what I needed to do to graduate."

1963

An Hour Drive with the Mother of the Man who Shot the President

Bob was at the city desk when a woman called and asked for a ride to Dallas. She turned out to be Lee Harvey Oswald's mother. Bob wrote down her address on the west side of Fort Worth, and he and another reporter, Bill Foster, drove her to Dallas. It was Bob's first national scoop.

Star Telegram newspaper with 'Kennedy Slain' headline

"Lady, you know, we're not running a taxi service here. And besides, the president's been shot. And she says, 'Yes, I heard it on the radio. I think my son is the one they've arrested.'"

1965

Reporting From Vietnam

A Hometown Voice in America's First Televised War

Watch Bob recount his time in Vietnam

Dissect Bob's handwritten notes

I have yet to match the thrill I got when I would turn up in some out-of-the-way place in Vietnam and tell a 19-year-old kid, 'I'm from the Star Telegram, and your mom wrote me a letter and asked me to look in on you.'

Bob resting in Vietnam

1966

Bob Earns the Anchor Seat at WBAP

Bob made the jump from print to television in 1966, serving as an anchor at WBAP-TV Dallas/Fort Worth.


"One thing young people have to always keep in mind when deciding what they want to do with their lives is, is it fun? Is it something that I'm interested in? Is it something I enjoy?"

1967

Bob Married His Lifelong Love, Patricia Penrose

Bob married Patricia Penrose, also a product of Fort Worth and TCU. They arrived in Washington in 1969 and quickly settled into a routine: Bob was on the streets, covering Vietnam War demonstrations, while Pat organized their new home and prepared for the birth of their first child.

"But at thirty-five years and counting, we’re still married. Once we got through the honeymoon, the rest was easy."

Washington DC

1969

Bob Joins CBS as the Newest Pentagon Correspondent

When CBS decided to replace its Pentagon correspondent, Bob was sent to cover a news conference held by Defense Secretary Melvin Laird and ended up staying at the Pentagon for five years – his first Washington beat. He won his first Emmy Award there for discovering how the Army was minimizing its helicopter losses.

CBS
Washington DC

1977

CBS' Newest Anchor for the Saturday Evening News

Bob began anchoring CBS News broadcasts in 1971. Not long after, he was named anchor of the Saturday News, a post he held until 1996. For years, he worked Monday through Friday in Washington, caught an early Saturday morning shuttle to New York, and then returned to Washington on Saturday night after the broadcast.

What CBS' David Rhodes had to say about Bob


"When Dan moved to 60 Minutes, I would replace him on the Saturday News, a job I would hold for the next twenty years."

Washington DC

1982

CBS Names Bob Its Chief Washington Correspondent

Bob was the first reporter to cover all four Washington beats for a single station.

The Pentagon
The Pentagon
The White House
The White House
Congress
Congress
State Department
State Department
May

1991

Bob Begins His Tenure as Host of Face the Nation

Face the Nation was Bob's favorite assignment over his more than four decades at CBS News. He anchored the broadcast for 24 years, interviewing world leaders, presidents, and sometimes just people who had been caught up in the news of the day.


"Today marks my official debut, as it were, as the official moderator of Face The Nation. Our aim is going to be very simple here, to find interesting people from all segments of American life who have something to say...and give them a chance to say it."

September 11

2001

A Familiar Voice in Times of Tragedy

When America Quickly Turned to the Media for Answers

"One thing you can say for America and the American people, they come together in times of crisis like this."

Listen to Bob Reflect on the Impact of 9/11 10 Years Later
September

2006

The Debut of Road Kill Stew and Other News (with Special Guest Bob Schieffer) by Honky Tonk Confidential

"Writing country music songs is a big part of my life. I can’t imagine a life without music."

October 22

2012

Final Presidential Debate: Barack Obama and Mitt Romney

In 2012, Bob moderated the last debate of the season between Barack Obama and Mitt Romney. He announced the next month that the 2012 debate would be his last.


"Tonight's debate, as both of you know, comes on the 50th anniversary of the night that President Kennedy told the world that the Soviet Union had installed nuclear missiles in Cuba...it is a sobering reminder that every president faces at some point an unexpected threat to our national security from abroad."

October 22

2012

May 31

2014

And the Emmy for Outstanding News Discussion and Analysis goes to...

This award was given to Bob for his work in The 50th Anniversary of the Assassination of JFK. This was the last of Bob's eight Emmy awards during his career in news. Roll over the awards below for details on Bob's other Emmys.

Emmy award 1 Emmy award 2 Emmy award 3 Emmy award 4 Emmy award 5 Emmy award 6 Emmy award 7 Emmy award 8

1982: CBS Reports – "The Defense of the United States: Ground Zero" Writers

1984: CBS Evening News with Dan Rather – "TV Campaigning" For Segments Outstanding Background / Analysis of a Single Current Story

1995: CBS Evening News with Bob Schieffer – "Rabin Assassination Coverage" Outstanding Instant Coverage of a Single Breaking News Story in a Regularly Scheduled Newscast

1996: CBS Evening News with Bob Schieffer – "Olympic Bombing" Outstanding Instant Coverage of a Single Breaking News Story in a Regularly Scheduled Newscast

2007: CBS Evening News with Bob Schieffer – "Ramadi: On the Front Line" Outstanding Continuing Coverage of a News Story in a Regularly Scheduled Newscast

2008: Lifetime Achievement Award

2013: Television Academy Hall of Fame

2014: Face the Nation – "50th Anniversary of JFK Assassination" Outstanding News Discussion and Analysis

Washington DC

2015

Facing the Nation for One Last Time

"I wanted to be a reporter because I wanted to talk to the people who made the news. 'Face' was the only assignment I ever had where the newsmakers come to you; you don't even have to go to them. I loved every minute of it."


"I'll be honest, I am going to miss being in the middle of things, but the one thing I will never forget is the trust you placed in me and how nice you were to have me as a guest in your home for so many years..."

Washington DC

2016

Bob Returned to CBS for Coverage of the 2016 Presidential Election

For the twelfth time, Bob was back on the presidential campaign trail. He traveled from California to South Carolina, and he provided analysis from both party conventions, as well as all three presidential debates.

2017

Bob Reflects on the Havoc of Hurricane Harvey

In the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey, Bob Schieffer admires the inspiring spirit of Texans, who always come together in times of need.


"It's not over yet, but my money is on Texas."

2017

Overload by Bob Schieffer, 2017

Bob Debuts His Fifth Book Entitled Overload


"Lady, you know, we're not running a taxi service here. And besides, the president's been shot. And she says, 'Yes, I heard it on the radio. I think my son is the one they've arrested.'"


"One thing young people have to always keep in mind when deciding what they want to do with their lives is, is it fun? Is it something that I'm interested in? Is it something I enjoy?"


"When Dan moved to 60 Minutes, I would replace him on the Saturday News, a job I would hold for the next twenty years."


"Today marks my official debut, as it were, as the official moderator of Face The Nation. Our aim is going to be very simple here, to find interesting people from all segments of American life who have something to say...and give them a chance to say it."


"Tonight's debate, as both of you know, comes on the 50th anniversary of the night that President Kennedy told the world that the Soviet Union had installed nuclear missiles in Cuba...it is a sobering reminder that every president faces at some point an unexpected threat to our national security from abroad."


"I'll be honest, I am going to miss being in the middle of things, but the one thing I will never forget is the trust you placed in me and how nice you were to have me as a guest in your home for so many years..."


"It's not over yet, but my money is on Texas."