Thoughts and Riches

"Meet the Press" beats its Sunday morning rivals on CBS, ABC, CNN and Fox in the ratings. In this peak political season, it often draws four million viewers. This is little more than half what NBC and ABC's weekday news programs garner, but the power of the position still established Mr. Russert as perhaps the most influential journalist inside the Beltway.

Politicians queued up to get airtime with him, and he earned a reputation as one who could translate complicated issues for a mass audience, exemplified by his use of a simple white-board to explain the convoluted and fast-changing details of the contested 2000 presidential election. The show also was profitable.

Mr. Russert was more than an interviewer: He became a celebrity, and his story became familiar to millions because he talked and wrote about it. Amid the trappings of Washington glitz and power, he preferred to be thought of as a blue-collar Roman Catholic kid from Buffalo who worked his way up and lived by simple, traditional values. He revered his father, "Big Russ," a World War II veteran who is still alive, and cherished the Buffalo Bills football team.