I was perusing the library memoir stack, and plucked out Connie - a true treat of a memoir. What a story and, frankly, an inspiration. Connie Chung, at age 23 (a daughter of immigrant Chinese parents - and yes, she was born in the USA and is American), began working in Washington DC as a CBS correspondent.
Cover blurb - Chung describes her career as an Asian woman in a white male-centered world. Overt sexism was a way of life, but she stayed tenacious in her pursuit of stories. She made history when she achieved her dream of being the first woman to co-anchor The CBS Evening News and the first Asian to anchor any news program in the U.S. Nothing is off limits- good, bad, or ugly.
I enjoyed this memoir and Connie Chung's humor shines through. She herself says she was viewed as a "China doll" until she opened her mouth and blasted old white dudes with frank answers. Fortunately, a hero of hers, Walter Cronkite, was a true stand up guy and supported her climb in the ranks. Let's say Dan Rather - um, not so much. She names names, she discusses the frustrations she encountered and how she just had to work harder. She had dreams, and pretty much achieved them.
She is also married to Maury Povich, the longtime daytime talk host. She discusses having a late in life marriage, being a step-mom, and the difficulty in becoming a mother, and thus pursuing adoption.
Quite the life story. I enjoyed reading Connie Chung's memoir, and would no doubt enjoying sitting down for tea and a chat with her.
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