Reverence is a TREMENDOUS Thing
Sunday - December 10, 2006A lot of people might say that we don’t revere our heritage. But, if you look around a bit, you’ll find reverence all around you. Public radio’s “Marketplace” reveres Frank Stanton. The Poynter Institute reveres Nelson Poynter. And the National Speakers Association reveres Cavett Robert. Why?
This Friday, we saw Charlie “Tremendous” Jones give a bravura 90-minute speech at the Colorado chapter meeting of the National Speakers Association. Mr. Jones won the NSA’s prestigious Cavett Award this summer. A list of his other awards, degrees and accomplishments would likely crash your computer (so we won’t list them) and he’s one of the most spellbinding speakers ever to take the stage. These days Charlie is 79 years old and challenged by cancer, but you’d never know it by his performance yesterday.
Not only did he hold forth for an hour and a half on stage, but he arrived an hour early to personally greet the over 100 attendees with one of his tremendous bear-hugs for the men and a courtly kiss on the hand for the ladies.
It made me realize again that we gather together in groups to learn and grow. We share and hug and compare and laugh – enhancing our learning in a way that only real events with real people can deliver. Like yesterday, while under the spell and bear-hug clutch of Charlie Tremendous Jones – who always responded to questions about how he was doing with the answer, “TREMENDOUS!”
The Cavett Award is the highest honor awarded by the National Speakers Association . It keeps the memory of the founder the NSA, Cavett Robert, alive. Even though he passed away almost 10 years ago, you can not attend an NSA meeting or event without being encouraged to “keep alive the spirit of Cavett.” The reverence for the founder of the NSA also pervades each year’s annual awards banquet. The banquet ends by recognizing a new Cavett Award winner – and this past year it was our speaker, Charlie Tremendous Jones.
The NSA is not alone in showing reverence for its founders or former leaders. The Poynter Institute in Florida shows equally deep respect for its founder, Nelson Poynter. Nelson Poynter owned the St. Petersburg Times and then in 1975 founded the Modern Media Institute (later renamed in his honor), which was dedicated to teaching and inspiring journalists. His vision continues to guide The Poynter Institute today. When we visited the Poynter Institute this past summer, Nelson Poynter’s name was on the lips of everyone we talked with. We wrote about that visit in a previous article you can read here called, “When Speakers Do Their Job.”
And, if you listen to the Public radio show Marketplace, you’ll hear this opening line, “From the Frank Stanton Studios in Los Angeles, this is Marketplace.” Why? Because they revere the memory of the former president of CBS News, Frank Stanton. Every time they enter the studio and every time they produce their program Stanton is there with them.
Frank Stanton was the president of CBS News from 1946 through 1973. He is known as one of the greatest defenders of First Amendment rights in the history of broadcast journalism. He backed Edward R. Murrow in his showdown with Senator Joseph McCarthy in 1954. He was the force behind the first televised presidential debates between John Kennedy and Richard Nixon. And in 1971, he stood nose to nose with the U.S. Congress and faced a possible prison sentence in defense of the hard-hitting CBS documentary called “The Selling of the Pentagon.”
Television commentator Eric Sevareid said of Frank Stanton, “No man in broadcasting more readily accepted the public responsibilities of this technically private enterprise. He made uncounted decisions that cost the business in order to profit the people.”
That is why Frank Stanton is revered. And, if you read about Nelson Poynter and Cavett Robert, you’ll probably agree that is why they are revered, too. These men embraced the public duty before their own private interests. They often made decisions that would profit their readers, viewers and audiences – and cost them.
It’s a TREMENDOUS thing to value the memory of people like Frank Stanton, Nelson Poynter and Cavett Robert. They deserve the reverence and respect. They represent the best of those who bring information and inspiration to millions of Americans.
The greatest thing any of us can leave is a lasting legacy. The greatest thing all of us can do together is to keep those legacies alive.
Charlie “Tremendous” Jones has an amazing energy. His hugs were long, but not theatrical; there was an amazing engery there, that was reflected in his speech as well.
An equal mix of logic and emotion, he connected at every step with the audience. His growling was memorable, funny and helped drive home the point about frustration being a universal condition to overcome. But there was too much to comment on. Much to connect with, not the least is the need to read, and the power of the word and reading about other lives.
A powerful, powerful communicator, I will remember his presentation for many, many years. Here is hoping that a man with his energy and gifts conquers the big C. He reminded me of the old Arab saying – the passing of a wise old man is like a library burning to the ground. May his library remain open for many, many more years.
I knew I was missing an incredible Colorado NSA meeting but thanks to Michael and Sheryl I can at least get a flavor of Charlie Tremendous Jones — a man I will regret not getting to meet. Reading about Mr. Jones’ ability to engage a room at 79, and knowing he is battling cancer, gives me inspiration and a profound sense of gratitude that I belong to an organization that can provide opportunities like this monthly.
I also appreciated the piece on Reverance and support the idea that we have a need for reverance in our world today. A need to continually remember those that paved a path worth walking — paths that challenge all of us to inspire and let us hope that in some small way, each of us can also touch lives and bring freshness and perspective to this world we live in.
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