Subdued Meet the Press Now Squirm-Free

Meeting the press is a much more laid-back experience with Tom Brokaw temporarily in Tim Russert’s old seat, the New York Times reports. Hosting his first standard-format show yesterday, Brokaw “kept the mood at a sober but easygoing tempo,” writes Alessandra Stanley. But with the presidential race heating up, things were perhaps a little too cool in the studio, Stanley notes.

Brokaw spoke to the governors of Colorado and Wyoming, who generally agreed with each other; he also chatted with Arnold Schwarzenegger. The only notable challenge Brokaw presented was to NBC’s political director Chuck Todd, whom he admonished for making presidential projections too early. It may be impossible to fill Russert’s shoes—and if that’s the case, the show might do well to return to a panel of hosts, Stanley notes. (More Tom Brokaw stories.)