Bob Schieffer in Conversation with Charlie Rose at the 92ndY A Cornucopia of Charisma and Intelligence

Last night 92ndY talk was a sizzling conversation with 2 of America's preeminent TV journalists & veteran news reporters.  It's hard to fathom where Bob Schieffer & Charlie Rose find time to do everything they do, but they do! They're both so debonaire, charismatic, energetic and erudite.  Mr. Rose as everyone knows, is the Emmy winning anchor for PBS' Charlie & co-anchor for the CBS Morning News & contributing editor for 60 Minutes.  Mr. Rose was supposed to be the facilitator but the banter between Rose & Bob Schieffer, former host of CBS' Face the Nation was a warm, free-flowing conversation.  It encompassed the tragedy in Las Vegas & the foibles of factual reporting & perception with 21st C technology.  The exhilarating talk examined the advantages & disturbing trends resulting from today's technology.  Mr Schieffer  compared the invention of the Gutenberg printing press with today's 7/24 media access including Facebook & Google. He said our iPhones as revolutionary as the Gutenberg press in the mid 15th C.  The ability to mass process information to the public was revelatory & also a catalysis for religious warfare.  Today's access is so penetrating & pervassive it's miraculous in its ability to connect people and information.  The drastic & cataclysmic catastrophe of this saturation is the susceptibility to "fake news," uncorroborated info, "alternate facts," hacking & gullibility to what comes across multi-media.  Mr Rose posed the question what can be done and Mr Schieffer answered, he didn't know.  This is more than alarming.  Both gentlemen mentioned that Facebook and Google are taking steps to insure their sights are not being manipulated by political powers or false propaganda.  This week Facebook announced it's putting a stop to so-called dark posts.  Ads that appear in the timelines of select users chosen by the advertisers.   Advertisers will be required to disclose who is sponsoring the ad & to whom the ad is directed.  In today's news, Trump called out NBC for their "fake news" reporting of Sec. of State Rex Tillerson threatening to quit.  Schieffer, a veteran political reporter said he's never seen an outlandish campaign like Trump's.  He said Trump gleaned early how to gain media coverage, overwhelming the public & overshadowing news stories he wanted on the back burners.  He believed early on Trump would gain the party's nomination because he honed in on the message coming from the Rust Belt; these people are not getting a fair deal.  He believes running for high office has become onerous to strong candidates.   Where once grandmothers all thought their grandchildren could run for president, now family members 'advice is to run from political office.  Both distinguished & delightful reporters were endlessly fascinating.  "News loops are now every 15 minutes".  I wouldn't mind that coming from either Mr. Schieffer or Mr. Rose.