Brokaw to Retire? Maybe, Maybe Not

By Stephen M. Silverman

09/07/2001 at 03:56 PM EDT

Tom Brokaw, 61, the veteran anchor of "NBC Nightly News," remained tightlipped this week while speaking to another media outlet, the Los Angeles Times. Specifically, the paper inquired of the newsman about those reports that he might be thinking of retirement. Brokaw's contract with NBC expires next May and, in the wake of his long summer vacation, there had been speculation that he's looking to exit his job. "I'm here for 35 years, and I expect to stay here in one form or another for a long time," Brokaw told the Times. "But at this stage in my career, it's not unusual for me to try to figure out what to do next." In 1998, Brokaw authored the best-selling book, "The Greatest Generation," about those Americans who lived through and fought in Word War II. Still, he said of those retirement stories, "There are no alarms or bells going off. I think it got more attention this summer than it deserved." Still, even without Brokaw, "NBC Nightly News," hosted by his likely successor, Brian Williams, won last week's Nielsen race with 9.4 million viewers, beating out Peter Jennings on ABC's "World News Tonight" with 8.9 million viewers and Dan Rather on "The CBS Evening News" with 8 million viewers.