Brooks tweeted his 2020 tribute to Shields in The New York Occasions, calling it “an try and seize one of many best and beloved males” he had ever identified.
“We’ve had hundreds of disagreements through the years, however by no means a second of acrimony,” Brooks wrote within the piece. “Mark radiates a generosity of spirit that improves all who come inside his mild.”
Judy Woodruff, “PBS NewsHour” anchor and managing editor, tweeted that she was ”heartbroken” to share the information and famous Shields’ spouse Anne was at his aspect at his demise.
“Mark Shields had a magical mixture of skills: an unsurpassed data of politics and a ardour, pleasure, and irrepressible humor that shone by in all his work,” Woodruff stated in an announcement. “He beloved most politicians, however may spot a phony and was at all times daring to name out injustice. Together with Jim Lehrer and Robin MacNeil, he personified all that’s particular within the PBS NewsHour.“
For many years, she stated, Shields “wowed us along with his encyclopedic data of American politics, his humorousness and primarily his massive coronary heart.”
The Weymouth, Massachusetts, native graduated from the College of Notre Dame and served within the U.S. Marine Corps, in response to “PBS NewsHour.” He started his profession in Washington as a legislative assistant and speechwriter for Wisconsin Sen. William Proxmire in 1965, in response to “PBS NewsHour.” Three years later, Shields joined New York Sen. Robert F. Kennedy’s presidential marketing campaign and later labored on quite a few campaigns. In 1979, he started writing a column at The Washington Submit that was later distributed by Creators Syndicate.
Shields was a moderator and panelist on CNN’s “Capital Gang” from 1988 to 2005 and an everyday panelist on “Inside Washington,” which aired on PBS and ABC, from 2005 till 2013. He additionally wrote “On the Marketing campaign Path,” an account of the 1984 presidential marketing campaign.
Niece Carolyn Ryan, managing editor of The New York Occasions, tweeted: “So unhappy to let you know that my uncle, Mark Shields, died this morning. He was a particular man: stuffed with coronary heart and knowledge and love. Love of politics, sports activities, and so many individuals.”
Figuring out and dealing with Shields was a privilege, “PBS NewsHour” Chief Correspondent Amna Nawaz tweeted.
“Actually one in every of a sort. Mark’s mind, wit, and coronary heart had been unmatched,” she wrote. “I left each single dialog I ever had with him smarter and smiling.”