WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Tim Russert, the host of NBC's "Meet the Press" and the American network's Washington bureau chief, died on Friday of a heart attack, NBC said. He was 58.
The MSNBC cable network interrupted its programming for a special report by former anchorman Tom Brokaw who said Russert collapsed and died at work in NBC's Washington bureau after returning from a trip to Italy with his family.
"This news division will not be the same without his strong, clear voice," Brokaw said. He called Russert a beloved colleague and said his late colleague loved the 2008 political campaign, working to the point of exhaustion week after week.
Russert, who took over "Meet the Press" in 1991 and oversaw a rise in the Sunday program's popularity, was known for both tough questioning of American political figures and a cheerful television persona.
He was also political analyst for "NBC Nightly News" and the "Today" Program, and anchored "The Tim Russert Show," a weekly interview program on CNBC cable-TV channel.
(Reporting by David Morgan, Editing by Howard Goller)
