CELEBRITIES: Kenmore's Blitzer on hunt for good scoop

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Edward M. Pio Roda

July 22, 2008

By Paul Lane<br><a href="mailto:lanep@gnnewspaper.com">E-mail Paul</a> The Niagara Gazette Tue Jul 22, 2008, 04:51 PM EDT

Wolf Blitzer has covered most every major event that has taken place worldwide over the past 30-plus years, reporting with a fairness and accuracy that’s won him several awards and the respect of millions of news consumers.

There’s one thing, however, about which he can’t remain impartial.

“Sorry to hear that,” the Kenmore West High School graduate said when told by a reporter interviewing him that the reporter went to cross-town rival Kenmore East. “We used to say, ‘West is best, East is least.’ ”

Born in Germany, Blitzer’s family moved to north Buffalo when he was 1 year old, where they remained until moving to a home his father built at 81 Parkwood Ave. in Kenmore when Blitzer entered the second grade. They remained in the village throughout Blitzer’s youth, as he attended the former Washington Elementary and Kenmore Junior High School (now Kenmore Middle) before graduating from West in 1966.

Blitzer recalls spending many days as a child devouring the national and international sections of the Buffalo Evening News and Courier-Express. That desire led to his obtaining a history degree from the University at Buffalo and a masters in international relations from Johns Hopkins University.

So in what field did he get a job upon graduation? Journalism, of course.

Hired by the Reuters news service, Blitzer was sent to Tel Aviv, Israel, to cover the rising political tensions of the 1970s. He recalls having a tough time honing his craft, including one particular piece involving his writing about a transfer of bodies between Israeli and Egyptian forces across the Suez Canal.

“I thought it was a pretty good piece. My editor ripped it apart,” said Blitzer, who said his 1,000-word story was turned into a 25-word brief. “I just sort of fell into journalism. Even though I had never written for the college paper ... I discovered quickly that I liked it a lot. I wasn’t good at it, but I liked it a lot.”

Blitzer honed his craft covering politics in Washington, D.C., for The Jerusalem Post during the 1980s. In 1990, he shifted gears to broadcasting, becoming a military affairs correspondent for CNN. He covered White House affairs for several years until landing his own show in 2000, which he continues now as host of “The Situation Room.”

A lot of credit for his success, Blitzer said, should go to the Ken-Ton School District, which offered him a well-rounded education (in addition to academic pursuits, he was a football player and acted in school plays at West). Those people, as well as all Western New Yorkers, are what he most fondly recalls about his home — and what he tells outsiders about most often.

“My dad always said to me, ‘These people in Western New York are the best people in the world,’ and he was right,” he said. “The people are so wonderful, so generous and kind. My parents were welcomed with open arms.

“I don’t get back there enough, but I like to come back to Buffalo and see what’s going on.”

• Visit the Life in the Slow Lane blog to read an extended interview with Wolf Blitzer and about even more local celebrities Life in the Slow Lane

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