Tony Snow | |
|---|---|
 Snow in June 2006 | |
| 25thWhite House Press Secretary | |
| In office May 10, 2006 – September 14, 2007 | |
| President | George W. Bush |
| Preceded by | Scott McClellan |
| Succeeded by | Dana Perino |
| White House Director of Speechwriting | |
| In office February 19, 1991 – January 20, 1993 | |
| President | George H. W. Bush |
| Preceded by | Chriss Winston |
| Succeeded by | David Kusnet |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Robert Anthony Snow (1955-06-01)June 1, 1955 Berea, Kentucky, U.S. |
| Died | July 12, 2008(2008-07-12) (aged 53) Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| Party | Republican |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 3 |
| Education | Davidson College (BA) University of Chicago |
Robert Anthony Snow (June 1, 1955 – July 12, 2008) was an American journalist, political commentator, anchor, columnist, musician, and the 25thWhite House press secretary under PresidentGeorge W. Bush, from May 2006 until his resignation in September 2007. Snow also worked for the PresidentGeorge H. W. Bush as chief speechwriter and Deputy Assistant of Media Affairs, from 1991 to 1993.
Between his twoWhite House stints, Snow was a broadcaster and newspaper columnist. After years of regular guest-hosting forThe Rush Limbaugh Show and providing news commentary forNational Public Radio, he launched his owntalk radio program,The Tony Snow Show, which went on to become nationallysyndicated. He was also a regular personality onFox News Channel beginning in 1996, hostingFox News Sunday andWeekend Live, and often substituting as host ofThe O'Reilly Factor. In April 2008, Snow briefly joinedCNN as a commentator.[1]
He also made several notable speeches, including keynote addresses at theConservative Political Action Conference in 2007 and 2008. In his journalistic and governmental capacities, Snow generally supportedconservative causes.[2][3]
Snow was born inBerea, Kentucky, and raised inCincinnati, Ohio. His father, Jim, was asocial studies teacher,guidance counselor, and an assistant principal atPrinceton High School inSharonville, Ohio. His mother was an inner-city nurse who died ofcolon cancer in 1973, when Snow was 17. Snow developed an early interest in journalism, public policy, and politics, and was editor of his high school newspaper.
After graduating fromPrinceton High School in 1973,[4] Snow obtained in 1977 a Bachelor of Arts in philosophy fromDavidson College inNorth Carolina. He then taught physics in high school. He attended graduate programs in philosophy and economics at theUniversity of Chicago.[5]
In Ohio, Snow originally registered to vote as aDemocrat. He was a convert toRoman Catholicism.[6][7]
Snow began his journalism career in 1979 as an editorial writer forThe Greensboro Record inGreensboro, North Carolina, next working as an editorial writer atThe Virginian-Pilot inNorfolk, Virginia (1981–82), editorial page editor ofThe Daily Press inNewport News (1982–84), deputy editorial page editor ofThe Detroit News (1984–87), and editorial page editor ofThe Washington Times (1987–91).
In 1991, Snow took asabbatical from journalism to work in the White House for PresidentGeorge H. W. Bush, first as chief speechwriter (Deputy Assistant to the President for Communications and Director of Speechwriting) and later as Deputy Assistant to the President for Media Affairs (1992–1993).
From 1993 to 2000,The Detroit News published his commentaries, and from 1994 to 2000 he was a Counterpoint Columnist forUSA Today. Snow also wrote asyndicated column forCreators Syndicate between 1993 and 2000; his commentaries appeared in more than 200 newspapers nationwide. Snow won numerous awards during his print career, including those from theVirginia Press Association, the Detroit Press Club, theSociety of Professional Journalists, theAmerican Society of Newspaper Editors, The Associated Press, andGannett.
Snow appeared on radio and television programs worldwide includingThe McLaughlin Group,The MacNeil–Lehrer NewsHour,Face the Nation,Crossfire, andGood Morning America. Until 1994, Snow was the writer, correspondent and host of the PBS news specialThe New Militant Center.
From 1996 to 2003, Snow was the first host ofFOX News Sunday, a Sunday morning interview and roundtable program produced byFox News, airing on affiliates of theFox Broadcasting Company and later in the day onFox News Channel.
Snow was the primary guest host ofRush Limbaugh's program beginning in the mid-1990s. He was also a frequent commentator onNational Public Radio. Snow's ownTony Snow Show onFox News Radio premiered in late 2003. It ended when he became White House Press Secretary in April 2006.
In April 2006, Snow was namedWhite House Press Secretary in theGeorge W. Bush administration, replacingScott McClellan. His appointment to the position was formally announced on April 26, 2006. His selection was initially criticized because of some of his past comments about Bush.[8] Bush acknowledged Snow's criticisms during the announcement of Snow's appointment, saying that Snow was "not afraid to express his own opinions".[9]
Snow began his new press secretary duties on May 8, 2006. He decided to leave the position of press secretary after new White HouseChief of StaffJosh Bolten asked all staff members to either commit to staying through the end of Bush's second term, in January 2009, or to leave by Labor Day of 2007.[10] On September 13, 2007, Snow gave his final press briefing, saying that he would miss the duties of his position, and that "I love these briefings".[11]
Snow was an avid musician. He played thetrombone, flute,piccolo, saxophone, and guitar,[12][13][14][15] and belonged to a cover band, Beats Workin', which featured fellowWashington, D.C.-area professionals. Beats Workin' played publicly with a number of rock bands, including Snow's friendsSkunk Baxter (The Doobie Brothers,Steely Dan) andIan Anderson ofJethro Tull. Snow was featured on an episode ofVH1 Classic'sRock 'n Roll Fantasy Camp.[16]
In 1987, Snow married Jill Ellen Walker, who survives him. They had three children.[17]
In February 2005, while still at Fox News, Snow was diagnosed withcolon cancer. He returned to broadcasting in April 2005 after undergoing surgery.[18][19] On March 23, 2007, after almost a year as press secretary, Snow once again took a leave of absence to seek treatment for recurrent cancer.[20][21][22][23] Treatment for the spreading cancer in his final few months forced periodic absences from Snow's duties as press secretary, his subsequent position as a CNN commentator, and his public speaking engagements.[24][25]
On July 12, 2008, Snow died atGeorgetown University Hospital as a result of colon cancer that had spread to his liver.[26] He was 53 years old. Reacting to Snow's death, PresidentGeorge W. Bush praised Snow's ability to bring "a certain civility to this very contentious job".[10]
| Media offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| New office | Anchor ofFox News Sunday 1996–2003 | Succeeded by |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | White House Press Secretary 2006–2007 | Succeeded by |
