I still love following and thinking about politics. I enjoy recommending important journalism I read or see from other sources.

Covering the civil-rights movement was a mind- and eye-opener for me. Houston was a segregated society, as was Texas as a whole - some of it by law, a lot of it by fear and tradition. But there was no violence where I lived, and if there was hate, it was either concealed from me or I just didn't recognize it.

I've always tried to be fair, even-handed, not an advocate for any group.

Only votes talk, everything else walks.

Americans are once again looking outward

Ratings don't last. Good journalism does.

There is no doubt that the way journalism worked when I was growing up and getting started has changed forever.