Dan Rather Heart Quotations

A free and truly independent press - fiercely independent when necessary - is the red beating heart of freedom and democracy.

Make no mistake, inside that tall, handsome, elegant and eloquent exterior, inside that, beat the heart of a fierce but principled competitor.

I have always been and remain a 'hard news' investigative reporter at heart, ... I now look forward to pouring my heart into that kind of reporting full time.

The American Dream is one of the greatest ideas in the history of human achievement . . . It thrives today in an age when its core components of freedom and opportunity are open to more Americans than ever before. It holds a real, identifiable place in the American heart and mind, and it informs the aspirations of everyone from farmers to software developers, from detectives to bankers, from soldiers to social workers . . . It defines us as a people, even as we add to its meaning with each new chapter in our national experience and our individual actions.

Music is important. It says things you heart can't say any other way, and in a language everyone speaks. Music crosses borders, turns smiles into frowns, and vice versa. These observations are shared with a hope: that, when schools cut back on music classes, they really think about what they're doing - and don't take music for granted.

At the core, the red, beating heart of reporting is something with intelligence, something with quality, something that aspires to excellence.