Murray Fromson

In his three-and-a-half-hour interview, Murray Fromson (1929-2018) talks about his early years growing up during the Depression and World War II, and his early interest in journalism. He discusses writing for the Los Angeles Mirror, being drafted during the Korean War, and writing for Stars and Stripes. He shares stories of his continued work overseas, reporting for the Associated Press in Japan, Singapore, and Sumatra. Fromson then recalls his switch to broadcast journalism, first for NBC News, where he covered the 1960 presidential election, before moving over to CBS News, where he covered political campaigns and the Civil Rights Movement. He describes the creation of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, following the trial of the Chicago 8. He then discusses his time reporting on the Vietnam War for CBS News and in Moscow in the 1970s. He concludes by touching on his teaching career at USC, giving advice to aspiring journalists, and sharing how he would like to be remembered. Robert Markowitz conducted the interview on November 12, 2007 in North Hollywood, CA.