Julian Byrn Goodman (May 1, 1922 – July 2, 2012) was an American broadcasting executive and journalist.

Personal

He was born in

Glasgow, Kentucky Glasgow is a home rule-class city in Barren County, Kentucky, United States. It is the seat of its county. Glasgow is the principal city of the Glasgow micropolitan area, which comprises Barren and Metcalfe counties. The population was 14,028 ...

and graduated from Glasgow High School. Goodman took a hard stance in support of the

first amendment First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...

Career

Goodman was known for never asking for a raise or promotion. He started his career as a reporter working $3 a week for ''The Glasgow Daily Times''. He attended Western Kentucky State Teachers College from 1939 to 1942 as an economics major. He left in 1943 to join the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

and served for a few months. After serving in the Army, he moved to Washington. He graduated from

George Washington University , mottoeng = "God is Our Trust" , established = , type = Private federally chartered research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.8 billion (2022) , preside ...

in 1948. Here he met William McAndrew and was given a job for the night news desk. He served as president of NBC from 1966 to 1974. Goodman helped establish

Chet Huntley Chet is a masculine given name, often a nickname for Chester (given name), Chester, which means ''fortress'' or ''camp''. It is an uncommon name of England, English origin, and originated as a surname to identify people from the city of Chester, En ...

and

David Brinkley David McClure Brinkley (July 10, 1920 – June 11, 2003) was an American newscaster for NBC and ABC in a career lasting from 1943 to 1997. From 1956 through 1970, he co-anchored NBC's top-rated nightly news program, ''The Huntley–Brinkley Re ...

as a well-known news team and led the network from 1966 to 1974. While working for NBC, he negotiated a $1 million deal to retain

Johnny Carson John William Carson (October 23, 1925 – January 23, 2005) was an American television host, comedian, writer and producer. He is best known as the host of ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' (1962–1992). Carson received six Pr ...

as host of ''

The Tonight Show ''The Tonight Show'' is an American late-night talk show that has aired on NBC since 1954. The show has been hosted by six comedians: Steve Allen (1954–1957), Jack Paar (1957–1962), Johnny Carson (1962–1992), Jay Leno (1992–2009 and 201 ...

''. He also spent some time attempting to put an end to the

Fairness Doctrine The fairness doctrine of the United States Federal Communications Commission (FCC), introduced in 1949, was a policy that required the holders of broadcast licenses both to present controversial issues of public importance and to do so in a manne ...

. Goodman was included on the

master list of Nixon political opponents Master or masters may refer to: Ranks or titles * Ascended master, a term used in the Theosophical religious tradition to refer to spiritually enlightened beings who in past incarnations were ordinary humans *Grandmaster (chess), National Master ...

. He was also a member of the

Peabody Award The George Foster Peabody Awards (or simply Peabody Awards or the Peabodys) program, named for the American businessman and philanthropist George Peabody, honor the most powerful, enlightening, and invigorating stories in television, radio, and ...

s Board of Jurors from 1986 to 1992.

Family

Goodman was married to his wife Betty Davis, who was also from

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

. Together they had four children, John, Jeffrey, Gregory, and Julie, along with six grandchildren.

Death

Goodman died on July 2, 2012, at his home in

Juno Beach, Florida Juno Beach is a town in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. Its population was 3,176 at the 2010 census. As of 2018, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau was estimated at 3,648. Juno Beach is home to the headquarters of Florid ...

, at the age of 90. The cause of his death was from kidney failure.

Accolades

*1973: Paul White Award,

Radio Television Digital News Association The Radio Television Digital News Association (RTDNA, pronounced the same as " rotunda"), formerly the Radio-Television News Directors Association (RTNDA), is a United States-based membership organization of radio, television, and online news dire ...

References

Sources

*Staff report (June 28, 1973). Lists of White House 'Enemies' and Memorandums Relating to Those Named. ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' 1922 births 2012 deaths American male journalists George Washington University alumni Peabody Award winners People from Glasgow, Kentucky Journalists from Kentucky Western Kentucky University alumni NBC executives Presidents of NBC People from Juno Beach, Florida Presidents of NBC Entertainment Presidents of NBC News 20th-century American journalists United States Army soldiers {{US-journalist-1920s-stub