Posted on 07/11/2005 6:38:57 AM PDT by Loyalist
Had things gone differently, CNN's Miles O'Brien could have been on the Space Shuttle right about now. Instead, this week, the anchor and longtime space correspondent will watch the Space Shuttle Discovery go up Wednesday, taking with it a little bit of his dream to someday be in space.
"It marks the kind of an end of a personal era for me," O'Brien said.
Turns out, CNN and NASA were only weeks away from announcing O'Brien was going to be the first journalist in space, when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated before landing two years ago.
O'Brien was on the air for 16 hours the day Columbia crashed, and then flew to Houston for coverage the next day.
"I got into the hotel room," O'Brien said, "and I just cried like a baby. It all hit me. It hit me like a ton of bricks; tears for them, and tears for something I had lost for me personally. I had worked on it for two years."
At the time, O'Brien, CNN and NASA agreed that he would enter the mission specialists program - which could take upward of two years - to prepare for the flight.
"In my mind, I thought he was far and away the most likely guy to be the first [journalist in space]," former NASA head Sean O'Keefe told the Orlando Sentinel, which first reported O'Brien's deal.
He had been reluctant to talk about the planned mission before a friend at the Sentinel called that word had leaked out.
When Columbia failed, O'Brien was well on his way in planning to move to Houston to start the program.
O'Brien said in covering past Space Shuttle missions, he always had an feeling in his gut at launch of the potential for a problem to occur, but never in the landing stage. That changed after Columbia, he said.
"Ever since I began covering it, I wondered, 'What would I say if..." I sort of learned that one on Feb. 1, and know I can get through that."
O'Brien said he has never looked at the footage of the day he reported on Columbia.
He expects a larger-than-normal crowd to tune in for the launch Wednesday - now scheduled for 3:51 p.m. - just as they did when flights resumed after the Challenger exploded or when Sen. John Glenn was aboard the Shuttle.
Despite the end of his trip to space, O'Brien still marvels at the process of flying in space.
"I enjoy the notion of the adventure of it, and the notion of exploring new worlds," he said. "That to me is fascinating."
The launch of Discovery will be carried live by all the major broadcast networks and cable-news channels.
everyone at cnn are space cadets
interesting. tears for others.
i thought reporters weren't supposed to be personally involved in their stories.
i thought that is why they have decided to never take a side on the issue of the war on terror.
i thought that their perfect disengagement with the "story," particularly when death is involved like 9/11 or reporting on iraq, was what kept them objective and cool in the face of emotion.
but wait.
o'brien is saying, that in times of extreme pain, distress and emotion such as the destruction of the shuttle or, say, 9/11, or say, our soldiers' commitment in iraq, feeling emotion and taking a side is okay..
i'm confused.
What are his credentials to be an astronaut? Why should my tax money pay for a CNN publicity tour?
NASA has big big problems.
Does anyone here really have a problem blasting the whole CNN crew into space? I personally want Christianne Amanpour to be the physical "nose art" - can we velcro her to the shuttle?
In other news, HAM radio activity is expected to be up 20% for the week as there are no reruns of Revenge of the Nerds scheduled for this week on either TNT or the USA network.
Rotisserie reporter?
Sounds like a plan.
Of course, NASA probably wouldn't like a reporter on a marshmallow spit sticking into the exhaust plume.
Might damage something on the orbiter.
Well, what happens if Aliens observe the astronauts, do you really want them to see her ugly mug? You only get one chance at a first impression. On the other hand, if they are considering eating us, perhaps it will make them think twice.
Fortunately, I don't see this guy's story in the cynical light that you and others do. The guy is a reporter covering this stuff because he loves it and is fascinated by space flight. I am too, and if ever afforded the same opportunity, would pursue any avenue I could to secure a ticket. I am equally as envious of the local television reporters who get VIP rides with the Blue Angels whenever they come through town.
This guy isn't covering the shuttle story for viewers. He's covering it for himself. I understand that and can appreciate his enthusiasm. Flame away.
Sorry but, anyone involved with the Chicken Noodle Network doesn't deserve any compassion from me! I don't see them shedding tears for our brave military soldiers?! NOPE no tears from me, he can stay grounded for all I care....permentmently!!
I could just picture Amanpour defending the alien's right to eat us right before they chow down on her. Her last words would be how we we should show sympathy to the aliens, it's our fault, and how guilty we should all feel for not letting them feed on us as much as they want.
"I don't see them shedding tears for our brave military soldiers?! "
Only Nancy Grace sheds a tear, or it seems to give damn. When can Fox get her to jump ship? I'd trade her for Geraldo - maybe we can get him a shuttle pod seat holding Christianne's hand - heh heh...
I agree with you.
"WAHZZUP? How did Geraldo miss standing in the wind as hurricane Dennis came ashore?"
Is he trying to be the next Dan Rather or what? It's only a matter of time before we hear the immoral words "What's the frequency Christianne?"
Ted Kennedy - do the manufacturers of the shuttle offer seat belt extenders? He may need two....
Not a flame, but consider that a shuttle seat on any given flight has a dollar value in the millions. When that seat is given to someone based on celebrity or other dubious credentials, they displace a crew member who could be more valuable to the mission. This would have been a waste of resources (and tax money), all to make nice with CNN.
Does anyone really expect me to believe that after not launching for two years, NASA doesn't have have a backlog of important things that need a real crew member?
Perhaps it's not any different that the comp flights by the Blue Angels, but there is an order of magnitude in the scale of waste.
Call me cynical, but I'm glad he didn't fly.
I guess the shuttle has excess capacity and can send up people simply for the fun of it, like John Glenn. Seems to me that NASA could find someone who could serve a scientific or military purpose to send up instead of using the seat for promotional purposes or political payoffs.
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