LOS ANGELES, June 24, 2005
Journalist Shana Alexander Dead
Trailblazing Journalist And Author, Famed For '60 Minutes' Punditry
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Play CBS Video Video Journalist Pioneer Memories The Early Show's Hannah Storm takes a look back at the life of journalism pioneer Shana Alexander, who died of cancer at the age of 79.
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Alexander reported some of the biggest stories of her time, including the Patty Hearst kidnapping, the politics of the Vietnam War, and the women's movement, to which she contributed her own triumphs. (CBS/EARLY SHOW)
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Alexander died at an assisted living facility in Hermosa Beach, her niece Hannah Bentley said Thursday night.
Alexander wrote for numerous magazines including Newsweek and National Geographic and was the first female staff writer employed by Life magazine. She was also the first female editor at McCall's magazine.
But she was best known for her "Point-Counterpoint" segments with Kilpatrick at the end of each "60 Minutes" broadcast in the late 1970s.
"She was one of the first female journalists to become a big-time name in television journalism, when women were few and far between," the show's founding executive producer, Don Hewitt, told The Associated Press Thursday night.
"She was one of the people who got '60 Minutes' off the ground in the early days," Hewitt added. "The 'Point-Counterpoint' piece was extremely popular."
By Laura Wides ©MMV The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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