The insidious disease that has affected nearly all of us in some way, shape or form has claimed yet another life. This time it’s Tony Snow. A 53-year-old husband and father of three children, who rose to fame on national TV as a Fox News anchor and then as President Bush’s press secretary. According to reports, Snow died of colon cancer early this morning.
The tall and lanky Kentucky native served as the first host of the television news program “Fox News Sunday” from 1996 to 2003. He later left that job to replace Scott McClellan as press secretary in May 2006 during a White House shake-up. His addition to the White House staff pleased not only his bosses but also the numerous reporters, who appreciated Snow’s attention to detail, command of the facts, and playful demeanor.
Unfortunately for Bush and the White House press corps, Snow served just 17 months as press secretary. His new job cut short by his second bout with cancer. About a year before he took the White House gig doctors had removed Snow’s colon and he began six months of chemotherapy. In March 2007 another cancerous growth was discovered and removed from Snow’s abdominal area and he spent five weeks recuperating before returning to the White House. But, that return was also short-lived. Six months after he returned to his stint as Bush’s chief spokesperson Snow resigned. And in keeping with his no-nonsense style of reporting Snow didn’t blame his health for his decision to walk away from his White House post; rather he simply stated that he needed to earn more than the $168,000 a year he was earning in the government position.
From there he took a job as a commentator for CNN.
Those who knew Snow well called him a “star in conservative politics.” Most of Snow’s career in journalism involved expressing his conservative views. He began his journalism career shortly after obtaining a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from Davidson College in North Carolina in 1977 and studying economics and philosophy at the University of Chicago. His first published pieces ran in The Greensboro Record, and The Virginian-Pilot in Norfolk. He then advanced to the deputy editorial page editor of The Detroit News before moving to Washington in 1987 to become editorial page editor of The Washington Times.
Four years later Snow took a break from journalism to join the administration of President George H.W. Bush. He was hired as a speechwriter and deputy assistant to the president for media affairs. When Bush left office Snow returned to his first love, print journalism. He was hired to write nationally syndicated columns for The Detroit News and USA Today during much of the Clinton administration and later hit it big on TV.
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