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ion-givers on the 24-hour<br />
news stations. It is ridiculous<br />
that some of these people are<br />
thought of as news people.<br />
I abhor the fact that Talk TV<br />
and news are viewed as the<br />
same thing—they’re not! To<br />
think that Bill O’Reilly and<br />
Keith Olbermann are journalists<br />
is such a “crock.” It irritates<br />
me. I’m glad that local<br />
news hasn’t become that.<br />
Many local<br />
CM: personalities<br />
have called KFYR-TV home.<br />
Who were some of the most<br />
popular old-timers?<br />
HEIDT: Rog Higgins was<br />
probably the most popular—<br />
the “Raja” of sports. He was<br />
such an affable guy; everybody<br />
liked him.<br />
Then there was Bob MacLeod,<br />
who did the 10 o’clock news<br />
and radio news. He was<br />
Bismarck’s Walter Cronkite.<br />
He had such an authoritative,<br />
resonant voice. People felt<br />
that, if Bob McLeod said the<br />
world hadn’t gone to heck that<br />
night, they could go to bed.<br />
KFYR-TV was<br />
CM: owned by a local<br />
family from the day it signed<br />
on the air in 1953 until<br />
1998. It’s been owned by a<br />
succession of group owners<br />
since then. Has there been<br />
a downside to the absentee<br />
ownership?<br />
HEIDT: We’ve been left<br />
alone by all four of the<br />
companies that have owned<br />
us. They’ve seen that we do<br />
a good job, and they’ve left<br />
us alone. We’ve been allowed<br />
to cover news the way we’ve<br />
always covered news.<br />
The news is not “for sale”<br />
here. We’re allowed to report<br />
the news no matter whether<br />
it’s good or bad for somebody<br />
influential, or good or bad for<br />
somebody who advertises.<br />
What’s in KFYR-<br />
CM: TV’s future?<br />
HEIDT: Local television.<br />
There will always be local<br />
television. People want to<br />
know what’s going on in their<br />
own backyard. Their world<br />
starts out their front and<br />
back doors and then goes in<br />
circles out around their city,<br />
their state, their region, their<br />
country, the world. People<br />
are always going to want to<br />
know what’s going on out<br />
their back and front doors.<br />
Visit <strong>City</strong> <strong>Magazine</strong> at www.<br />
thecitymag.com and click on<br />
“Extra Content” for more<br />
interview questions with <strong>Dick</strong><br />
<strong>Heidt</strong>.<br />
See <strong>Dick</strong> <strong>Heidt</strong>’s answers to the “<strong>City</strong> Mag 10” questionnaire by<br />
signing up for <strong>City</strong> <strong>Magazine</strong>’s Online <strong>Magazine</strong> at www.thecitymag.com.<br />
8 thecitymag.com
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