From the Tallahassee Democrat: Tallahassee ties tugged with departure of veteran NPR host

From the Baltimore Sun: The end of the morning star

From The AP via the Seattle Post Intelligencer: Bob Edwards signs off ‘Morning Edition’

An editorial from The JournalNews.com: Good-bye, Bob Edwards Read this one.

From the AP via The BostonChannel.com: Longtime NPR Host Bob Edwards Signs Off (different version of the above story)

More as I find ‘em…

There’s a lovely tribute to Bob Edwards on the NPR website, with audio highlights of his thirty-year career, tributes from his colleagues, and a biography detailing his honors and awards:

http://www.npr.org/about/specials/bedwards/

Talk about a full-service organization; apparently, NPR will not only shoot you, but give you a lovely eulogy afterwards.

Bah.

…for everything. When I was but a puppy, you got me through the early morning as I worked on ballfields and mowed grass, all the while filling my head with interest for the world around me. Thanks for being around as I started my business, with that calm voice starting every day as if anything was possible, no matter how dire the news. Thanks for hanging with me through 1998, when my wife was having in-patient chemotherepy and my premature daughter was living in the NICU; I especially appreciated the returns that year, since no matter how bad things got, you still made me laugh first thing in the morning, and nothing was more important to me than those smiles during that terrible year. (You’ll be pleased to know both my wife and daughter are just fine now, and Katie has listened with me almost every morning of her young life. She still can’t understand why you won’t be there anymore…and she’s not alone.)

I have a whole lot of things to thank you for, so let me skip to the most important one. Thanks for not lying down and rolling over, not following the corporate line and saying, “Yeah, this was my idea,” the way the pinstripes clearly expected. Thanks for being honest with us, and telling us it wasn’t your choice - it takes integrity to be honest with those of us you’ve never met who consider you a close friend, a constant in a world of frightening changes. I would have hoped some of that integrity might have rubbed off on those above you, but the evidence of the last month proves with no uncertanty you stand pretty much alone when it comes to having the courage to give us truth.

Others have said it far better than I can…mornings just aren’t going to be the same anymore. Surely I’ll find something to listen to, something that will keep me informed on the world around me. But as I listen this morning, and savor for the final time, “This is Morning Edition, I’m Bob Edwards,” I know something terribly important is going to be missing from my mornings, and my life, from now on. Bet you never thought when you started this gig almost twenty-five years ago you could have such a profound impact on those who listened…but you have.

Thanks, Bob. For everything.