I essentially agree with Dick Ahles' column, "The steady decline of the news anchor," (Feb. 22); news today has become overrun by happy talk and easy stories. News voraciously consumes several cable channels, along with network and local news broadcasts.

To suggest, though, that revered anchors and reporters such as Murrow and Cronkite were courageous and reported only real news, while today's anchors and reporters lack bravery and go only for the easy story, is wrong in the extreme. First, Cronkite and Murrow did much soft and happy news. In the 1950s, Murrow had a weekly show called "Person to Person" which was little more than celebrity fluff. Cronkite did "You are There" that at its best was soft history entertainment.

Second, as to courage, more journalists died during the Iraq war (150) than in any war in our history. ABC anchor Bob Woodruff was permanently maimed by an exploding IED. CBS' Kim Dozier was nearly killed by a car-bomb explosion

Even Brian Williams was in the Iraq war zone in a helicopter just behind the helicopter that was taken down. All of this depicts today's dedication and bravery at a level at least as great as in the days of Cronkite and Murrow.