Ed Godfrey

Did You Know?

• Godfrey moved with his military family nearly 20 times by the time he graduated from high school.
• He served for 2 1/2 years as an office administrator stationed in Japan during the Korean War.
• Godfrey earned degrees in Journalism and Public Relations from the University of Maryland, College Park in 1958.

KHOU, Houston, Texas

Godfrey joined KHOU as Assistant News Director in August 1965 and was promoted to News Director two years later. Station manager James Richdale said of Godfrey, "From the day he came to work, he has proven himself to be a capable administrator, completely involved in the News Department and Station, and has time and again demonstrated the keenest judgement on vital news matters." At KHOU, Godfrey created and produced the 30 Minutes news magazine show, which emphasized news, not infotainment.

The fifth episode, in 1969, examined the Houston Independent School District's financial troubles that ended kindergarten classes and also featured the University of Houston's "Moon Lab" set up to study lunar samples arriving that July. The seventh episode used Thomas Edison's film footage of the 1900 Galveston hurricane, which killed 8,000 people (at that time the worst natural disaster in America), and questioned whether drought would become a recurrent problem for Houston.

A December 23, 1969, year-end episode hosted by Ron Stone showcased "the most meaningful events" in Houston's history and included an interview with Walter Cronkite, who pointed out what he felt "was the most significant single happening during the 'Sixties." Other episodes addressed teen drug abuse and substandard housing. Godfrey also managed the six-month creation of A Right To Life, a two-part, three-hour documentary that investigated the efficacy of drugs not cleared by the FDA, including Dimethyl Sulfoxide (DMSO) and its promoter Dr. Stanley Jacob.

The documentary, written by reporter Ron Stone, earned a 52 share of the evening Houston television viewing audience. The Houston Chronicle said the program was "made by and for Houstonians, but its appeal should be national... I guarantee you'll be fascinated." The Houston Post called it "A hard-hitting piece of video journalism. A big-time, professional look." The documentary predated CBS News' 60 Minutes investigation of DMSO by ten years.

WSB, Atlanta, Georgia

Godfrey left KGW in 1977 and became News Director at WSB in Atlanta, the station's fourth news director in three years. Staff morale was low. A WSB spokesperson said Godfrey was "being brought here to end the 'happy talk'" between news anchors. Godfrey announced changes to the newscast's structure and pace but said "as far as changes in faces, there will be none."

His first task was redesigning the station's aging newsroom, where most reporters had to share desks and typewriters. He pressed to upgrade news gathering equipment, as the station had yet to replace aging, first-generation ENG cameras and editing equipment. Staff members expressed respect for Godfrey and called his firing a poor reward for his accomplishments. The next evening, Godfrey received a regional Emmy for Television News Excellence, one of twelve Emmys won that year by the WSB newsroom he had headed. At the ceremony, WSB staff thanked Godfrey, who in turn thanked his engineers.

Radio Television News Directors Association service

During his presidency, Godfrey led the broadcast news industry's successful effort to abolish the Fairness Doctrine and testified before the United States Congress on three separate occasions.