[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 135 (Wednesday, September 23, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2346-E2347]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          HONORING DIANE REHM

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. CHRIS VAN HOLLEN

                              of maryland

                    in the house of representatives

                     Wednesday, September 23, 2009

  Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize the 
outstanding achievements of one of our nation's great radio talk show 
hosts, Diane Rehm. Diane is celebrating her 30th anniversary at WAMU 
88.5 FM, where she hosts The Diane Rehm Show. The show is distributed 
nationally and internationally by NPR and NPR Worldwide and is 
estimated to have a U.S. audience of over two million listeners. In 
2007 and 2008, the show was the only live call-in talk show to be named 
among the top ten most powerful programs in public radio.

[[Page E2347]]

  Diane began her radio career in 1973 as a volunteer producer at WAMU, 
despite having had no prior radio experience. Ten months later, she was 
hired as an assistant producer. She became host of WAMU's Kaleidoscope 
in 1979 and hosted her first session of ``Open Phones'' when one of her 
guests failed to show up. Shortly thereafter, in 1984, the show got a 
new name: The Diane Rehm Show. In 1998, her career nearly came to a 
halt because of a puzzling speech problem. She was diagnosed and 
treated for spasmodic dysphonia, a neurological disorder. Not to be 
defeated, she returned to the show and made a point of calling 
attention to this condition. In 2000, she interviewed President Bill 
Clinton and became the first radio talk show host to interview a 
sitting President in the Oval Office. Her guests have also included 
President Jimmy Carter, Vice President Dick Cheney, Secretary of State 
Colin Powell, Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, Archbishop 
Desmond Tutu, V.S. Naipaul, Toni Morrison, Annie Leibovitz, George 
Soros, Ted Koppel, Julia Child and the beloved Mr. Rogers.
  Diane became a best-selling memoirist with the publication of Finding 
My Voice in 1999, which was followed by her compelling and deeply 
personal book about marriage, Toward Commitment, co-written with her 
husband, John Rehm.
  Diane has received many personal honors over the years, including 
being named a Paul H. Nitze Senior Fellow at St. Mary's College of 
Maryland and being inducted into the Class of 2004 Hall of Fame by the 
Washington, DC Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. She 
was honored as a Fellow by the Society of Professional Journalists, the 
highest honor the Society bestows on a journalist. Diane was also named 
by Washingtonian magazine in 2006 as one of Washington's ``100 Most 
Powerful Women,'' and in 2007 as one of the ``150 Most Influential 
People in Washington.''
  In 2006, Diane became the inaugural recipient of the Urbino Press 
Award, headquartered in Urbino, Italy, which recognized her ``long and 
prestigious career in journalism.'' In 2008, the University Club of 
Washington, D.C. honored her with ``The Distinguished Washingtonian 
Award in Literature and the Arts.'' She has been awarded honorary 
degrees from the Virginia Theological Seminary, Washington College, and 
McDaniel College. Diane's loyalty and devotion to WAMU and American 
University were recognized in 2007 when she was invited to receive an 
honorary degree and deliver the College of Arts and Sciences' 
commencement address.
  Over the years, Diane's listeners have also come to know Diane's 
family--her husband, John, her children David and Jennifer, and her 
grandchildren--and her dear friend Bishop Jane Holmes Dixon, with whom 
she speaks every day.
  On a personal note, I am a longtime fan and admirer of Diane Rehm and 
have had the privilege of being a guest on her show. While those of us 
who live and listen in the Washington, DC region consider Diane our 
own, she has avid listeners and admirers throughout the country. We 
take great pride in having her as a member of our community.
  Madam Speaker, I am honored to recognize Diane Rehm for her 
outstanding 30-year career at WAMU and for the impact she has had on 
public radio broadcasting.

                          ____________________