ABC's Woodruff May Come Home Soon

Injured Anchor, Cameraman Improving; Network Ponders Newscast's Future

(CBS/AP) 
Experts say it's too early to predict Woodruff's future as a news anchor.

Woodruff's brother, David, credited the newsman's immediate care after the blast (video) with saving his life. If Woodruff hadn't been wearing body armor, he likely would have been killed, said Col. Bryan Gamble, commander of the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany.

"Bob obviously arrived here in fairly serious condition but he stabilized very well here," David Woodruff told ABC News. "Every hour that's gone by he's shown improvement or hasn't gotten any worse and they say that's good news."

It wasn't immediately clear whether shrapnel had penetrated Woodruff's brain or if he was suffering from a concussive injury, said former NBC News anchor Tom Brokaw, a Woodruff family friend.

"The doctors had told them once they arrived that the brain swelling had gone down. In Bob's case, that had been a big concern. Yesterday they had to operate and remove part of the skull cap to relieve some of the swelling," Brokaw said on NBC'S "Today" show.

Woodruff and Vogt were in a lightly armored Iraqi personnel carrier traveling in a convoy with American troops outside Baghdad, reports Pitts. They were standing in a rear hatch – exposed – videotaping a report when the attack happened.

Vogt's injuries were less serious, ABC said. Woodruff also had a broken collarbone and broken ribs, Brokaw said.

With traumatic brain injuries, doctors can't really tell what is going to happen during the first 24 or 48 hours, said Dr. Maurizio Miglietta, chief of surgical critical care at the New York University Medical Center/Bellevue.

"Sometimes it takes days or weeks to figure out what the long-term consequences are going to be," Miglietta said.

Woodruff, 44, and Vogt, a 46-year-old award-winning cameraman, were embedded with the 4th Infantry Division and traveling in a convoy with U.S. and Iraqi troops near Taji, about 12 miles north of Baghdad when the device exploded. An Iraqi solder also was hurt.

The attacks on journalists bring constant media attention around the world to the insurgents, says CBS News correspondent Lara Logan, just back from Iraq herself.

Westin, speaking Monday on "Good Morning America," said the risks news personnel face are assessed every day in a country where there were 221 attacks by explosive devices last week alone. But it's important to cover the news, he said.

"We all know there are substantial risks," Westin said. "At the same time, what we do is report the news. We report the stories such as Iraq, and it's a dilemma we struggle with all along because frankly, we don't get to report as much in Iraq as we'd like to because of security."

Pitts reports that for journalists, Iraq has become the deadliest war ever – 61 killed in just under 4 years, compared to 66 killed in the 20 years of Vietnam.

The number of wounded is unknown, but 35 journalists have been kidnapped and two are currently missing.