media
have. I'm the executive editor of my
show, and every show has its own
team. It was the same at NBC. When
you get to the level we're at, there's a
lot of trust and confidence.
Your show airs between Bret
Baier's and Tucker Carlson's.
Does the 7p.m. hour link FOX's
news and opinion content?
There's agreat flow to the evening.
Bret and I are the lead political
anchors; my show is adeeper dive
into five or six stories every night.
Because there's more news analysis
in my hour, it's a great setup to the
hours that go after mine.
How do you broadcast ashow
that usually involves a staff
and a studio?
FOX did a fantastic job of giving
us what we need. There's one cameraman,
an 82-inch monitor behind
me that shows aloop of the newsroom,
and me. It's like being on
location, which I've done a lot at
town halls and debates, and the
camera's shooting from wherever
you are. I have an IFB (interruptible
foldback) in my ear to hear time cues
and communication during breaks.
Like anything, it took several
nights to get used to it. The audio
and music are done with a skeletal
crew working in the control room
in New York, and they don't miss a
beat, though the audio can be tricky;
there's a little bit of a delay.
Is your family at home with you?
Yes, I have two kids in college
and one working, and they're all here
right now. Everyone has been told
to stay off the internet and streaming
when I do a show, because it can
interfere with production. Rules are
important to adhere to, though every
night atsome point in the show I
hear the dog barking and running
over my head upstairs. But I haven't
had anyone run into the room yet
(as happened to the Korea expert
who was interviewed on the BBC
njersy.co/bbc).
READY TO REPORT (Above) Special Report’s Bret Baier and The Story’s Martha MacCallum anchor
marathon coverage of the 2020 Super Tuesday races on March 3, 2020; (Right) Baier and MacCallum
co-moderate atown hall with former presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg in Virginia.
What do you miss most
about your professional
life pre-coronavirus?
We cover news and this is ahuge,
remarkable story. Usually, I go to the
story and see it myself upfront, and
now people are covering it from all
these socially distant places across
the country. It's the antithesis of
what a news person usually does.
There's no substitute for face to face
discussions with sources and experts.
Do you think there will be
lasting positive changes
from the COVID-19 era?
While there have been tragic
outcomes as we see the numbers
rising of people who are sick, there
are some silver linings in terms of
slowing down and remembering
what really matters in life. It's really
nice that my family is spending alot
of time together.
What are your future plans, inasmuch
as you can make them?
I look ahead to the 2020 election
and hope those opportunities for
in-person interviews will return. This
is the fifth presidential election I'll be
covering. Iwould like to do atown
hall with Joe Biden, the presumptive
Democratic nominee, and cover
the conventions and debates. This
election is going to be about the handling
of this virus, and how people
feel about the country economically.
And Iwould love to finish my
book tour for Unknown Valor. I got
a lot of appearances in—I spoke
at the Nixon Library in California,
and hope to do the Reagan Library.
Writing it was a huge personal
journey that took three years, and
it was onthe New York Times bestseller
list for five weeks. Iwant the
younger generation to understand the
sacrifice of these men (who fought in
the Pacific Islands during WWII).
Though I felt pressured when
doing the show and writing the book,
and there were alot of late nights
and early mornings, it was nice that
it was a different process from editing
everything down every day for a
nightly show. I got to dig deep into
my subject. Idohave an idea for
another book project that's in my
brain right now.
You grew up in Bergen County
and moved to Essex eight
years ago. What keeps you
in New Jersey?
We raised our kids in Ridgewood,
but we relocated when they attended
schools in the greater Millburn
area. One went to Oak Knoll, one
went to Delbarton and one went to
Morristown Beard. I go to church in
Short Hills at St. Rose. We love living
here. It's a beautiful spot, and we
have great proximity to New York. ■
20 MAY 2020 MILLBURN &SHORT HILLS MAGAZINE