[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 111 (Thursday, July 31, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8621-S8622]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         TRIBUTE TO WALT DIBBLE

 Mr. DODD. Mr. President, for most Americans, mornings are a 
time of routines. People like to eat the same thing for breakfast, 
drink their coffee with just the right amount of cream and sugar, and 
duck out the door at the same time every day. Over the past 40 years, a 
central part of the morning routine for thousands of Connecticut

[[Page S8622]]

residents has been the voice of Walt Dibble reading the news over the 
radio. During this time of the day where so many people are rushing 
around, Walt Dibble's calm presence served as a soothing influence that 
made each morning more pleasant. Sadly, the mornings in Connecticut 
will never be the same, as Mr. Walt Dibble died last week at the age of 
65.
  A lifelong Connecticut resident, Walt Dibble was loved by all of the 
people in the state who listened to him. It didn't matter if they 
worked as a school teacher in Manchester, in the Inventory Control 
Division of Pratt & Whitney, or as a financial analyst in Hartford, all 
of Walt Dibble's listeners felt that he was a man whom they could 
relate to and whom they could trust.
  Walt Dibble was an institution in Connecticut radio. For the past 20 
years, Mr. Dibble was the voice of WTIC news in Hartford, where he was 
the News Director and Managing Editor. Hartford was familiar with Walt 
Dibble even before he came to WTIC, since he had worked for 10 years at 
Hartford's WDRC radio station. Before coming to Hartford, Walt had been 
the radio voice of the news in New Haven and Bridgeport.
  Throughout his career he was always quick to pick up a microphone and 
hit the street to cover a breaking news story. And it was in these 
situations that Walt Dibble flourished. His colleagues always marveled 
at his ability to deliver extended live coverage of major news events 
without any script as a safety net. Whether it was covering the 
collapse of the Hartford Civic Center roof, Hurricane Gloria, or the 
debate over the state income tax in 1991, he always kept his cool and 
offered a professional news report that, in many cases, he made up as 
he went along.
  People may have wondered why Walt Dibble always seemed more sincere 
than other newscasters. The reason probably stems from the fact that 
Walt Dibble reported the news in his own words that came from his own 
mind and his own heart.
  Walt Dibble loved his profession, and he was a father figure for 
hundreds of Connecticut broadcasters. He treated the interns at the 
radio station with the same respect as lifelong colleagues, and he 
would always encourage them to embark on a career in radio. Mr. Dibble 
brought a similar approach to the classes he taught at the Connecticut 
School of Broadcasting and Southern Connecticut State University. He 
did not need to teach, but he did so because he wanted to pass the 
torch on to future broadcasters.
  In this day and age where most people get their news from television, 
and more and more radio stations are broadcasting nationally syndicated 
radio shows, Walt Dibble was a throwback to an era when the radio was 
the place where people went to get their local news. While it will be 
difficult for anyone to deliver the news with the style and grace of 
Walt Dibble, I only hope that somebody will carry on his tradition of 
excellence in broadcasting to ensure that Connecticut residents will 
still be able to receive local news, on local radio stations, from 
local broadcasters whom they know and trust.
  Walt Dibble lived a truly charmed life. He interviewed Presidents of 
the United States, he saw his son pitch in the World Series, and for 
more than 40 years he got to go to work to do a job that he loved. But 
in the end, it is the people of Connecticut who are charmed for having 
known this great man.

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