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Tim Russert was honored this morning as Meet the Press, the NBC News show that he is most known for, opted out of reporting their usual weekly news round-up and decided instead to pay homage to the man who sat in the Meet the Press moderator’s chair for the past 16 years. This week, that moderator’s chair was left empty … and the rest of the show was devoted solely to his memory:

Tim Russert’s chair was empty on “Meet the Press” on Sunday, two days after his unexpected death. But Russert was very much present on the full-hour tribute to this giant of political journalism who hosted NBC’s public-affairs program for more than 16 years. “His voice has been stilled,” began Tom Brokaw, who led the conversation, “and our issue this sad Sunday morning is remembering and honoring our colleague and our friend ….” Brokaw and a half-dozen others were seated in front of the “Meet the Press” set and its angular table, left vacant, where Russert had presided as recently as last week. Brokaw noted that Russert had a large wooden sign in his office that read: “Thou Shalt Not Whine,” which Brokaw then supplemented with “Thou shalt not weep or cry this morning. This is a celebration.” But a bit later he choked up, recalling Russert’s words of awe at how far a working-class kid from Buffalo like himself could rise: “What a country!” he would marvel. Among those gathered were presidential historian Doris Kearns Goodwin and political pundit Mary Matalin, with Maria Shriver — the former NBC News correspondent and currently California’s first lady — on a remote hookup. All agreed that Russert was tough but fair in his interviewing, and that he, as a former political operative himself, loved politics and politicians. What he didn’t like, said consultant-pundit James Carville, was an elected official or anybody else who wasn’t prepared to face him. “The biggest insult to him was someone who came on and … didn’t take the show seriously,” Carville said. It was a mistake they quickly regretted, because Russert took his stewardship of “Meet the Press” as a sacred trust … However fitting Sunday’s tribute, it was a cruel irony that Russert had become the big story, particularly in the midst of a like-no-other presidential race that he was covering with his customary gusto. Guests he had planned to grill Sunday were senior officials from both campaigns. All that changed with Russert’s death from a heart attack Friday. He was stricken while preparing for the broadcast at his network’s Washington bureau.

Today’s episode of Meet the Press was the most fitting tribute that they could’ve pulled together for Tim Russert, the man and the news reporter. It’s still so shocking that he has been taken from us so suddenly … just 2 days ago! Again I say, our country lost a giant in news media … he will surely be missed and can never be replaced.

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I updated today’s newslinks with the sad news that Tim Russert, revered journalist and host of NBC‘s Meet the Press, passed away today after suffering a sudden heart attack and collapsing while he was at work in at the NBC Studios in Washington DC. CNN posted a touching report complete with eulogistic quotes from some of his admirers … which I feel inspired to share with all y’all:

Tim Russert, who became one of America’s leading political journalists as the host of NBC’s “Meet the Press,” died Friday, according to the network. He was 58. The network said he collapsed at work Friday. He was taken to Washington’s Sibley Memorial Hospital where he died, the hospital confirmed. Colleague and former NBC anchor Tom Brokaw broke the news on the network Friday shortly after 3:40 p.m., saying Russert had just returned from a family vacation in Italy to celebrate the graduation of his son, Luke, from Boston College. President Bush on Friday expressed sorrow over Russert’s death and admiration for his professionalism. “He was an institution in both news and politics for more than two decades. Tim was a tough and hardworking newsman. He was always well-informed and thorough in his interviews. And he was as gregarious off the set as he was prepared on it,” Bush said in a statement Friday. “Most important, Tim was a proud son and father, and Laura and I offer our deepest sympathies to his wife, Maureen, his son, Luke, and the entire Russert family,” he said. Sen. Barack Obama, the presumed Democratic nominee for president, said he had known Russert since Obama spoke at the party convention in 2004. “There wasn’t a better interviewer in television,” he said. Sen. John McCain, set to be Obama’s Republican opponent in the fall, issued a statement saying he was very saddened by the news. “He was truly a great American who loved his family, his friends, his Buffalo Bills and everything about politics and America. He was just a terrific guy,” McCain said of Russert. Russert joined the network in 1984 and quickly established himself as the face of the network’s political coverage, eventually becoming senior vice president and Washington bureau chief of NBC news. In 1985, Russert supervised live broadcasts of the “Today” show from Rome, negotiating an appearance by Pope John Paul II — a first for American television. Russert, who also served as a political analyst for cable network MSNBC, took the helm of “Meet the Press” in 1991, turning the long-running Sunday-morning interview program into the most-watched show of its kind in the United States. “I think I can invoke personal privilege and say this news division will not be the same without his strong, clear voice,” Brokaw said Friday. “He will be missed as he was loved — greatly.” Washingtonian Magazine once dubbed Russert the best and most influential journalist in Washington, describing “Meet the Press” as “the most interesting and important hour on television.” He was also the recipient of numerous awards for his work, including an Emmy in 2005 for his coverage of the funeral of President Ronald Reagan. In 2008, TIME magazine named him one of the 100 most influential people in the world … Russert was the longest-running host of “Meet the Press” in its 60-year history. Brokaw described him as a political junkie who had thrown himself into his work during this year’s presidential contest. “This was one of the most important years of Tim’s life for many reasons,” Brokaw said. “He loved this political campaign. He worked himself to the point of exhaustion many weeks.”

I can’t think of one disparaging remark that I have ever heard about Tim Russert. He was well liked by pretty much everyone. He reported the news in a careful, thoughtful and intelligent way and was seen by pretty much everyone in politics as absolutely fair-minded. He was deffo one of the most influential news agents in politics and was one of my fave political commentators. Our country lost a great man today. My condolences go out to his family. He will be sorely missed.