Pat Callaghan, the longtime Portland television news anchor could say TV was in his genes. His father, John, did both sports and news for WNAC Television in Boston, covering, among other things, President John F. Kennedy's visits to the family compound in Hyannisport.
"I've still got his ID from that, which, I thought, was really cool," Callaghan recalled.
Callaghan will retire at the end of this week after 43 years in television news. He'll give his last newscast at News Center Maine on Friday. In an interview with Maine Public's Irwin Gratz, Callaghan said that he initially envisioned a different future for himself in broadcasting.
This interview has been lightly edited for clarity. Callaghan will also be a guest on Maine Calling at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 14.
Callaghan: What I really wanted was to play records on the radio, you know, but I did that in college and loved it, and if I could have made a living doing that, I probably would have. But nobody pays you to play the records you want. That's not how radio works. And partly because of my upbringing, not only did we watch TV news in our house, but we read a lot of newspapers. So there was always a natural inclination toward being interested in the news and what's going on and wanting to be part of it. And I've always said, one of the things that appeals to a lot of people about this work, is you want to be the first person to tell somebody something. It's like you've got a secret, and you want to share it.
Gratz: Talk a little bit about how the business has changed in 40 years.
Well, you know, technology certainly has changed. And really, I think WBEZ might still be using film now if it hadn't gotten so expensive. The film stock and the chemicals for processing, you had a processor right in the newsroom. Things have gotten better -- you can do things much more quickly, first with videotape and now with digital technology. And that's the upside, the technology is great. But the downside is more pressure for deadlines. Six o'clock is not your deadline now. Your deadline isn't even really four o'clock when our first evening newscast comes on. It's now, because you've got to post to the website and to social media. And it doesn't give people as much time to think about what they're doing.
And the other thing that's changed is that we worked almost much more often in teams, a reporter and a photographer. That's two heads together on one story, and you've each got different ideas. And many times, the photographer will either ask a question that you hadn't thought of. Or they'll tell you listen, I got this great shot or this great little setup, try to write to that and look at that. And let's work that into the story. And they were usually right. It was something that would bring the story to life.
What are some of the more memorable moments from the 40 years that you've been out covering news here?
Well, there are a lot of them. I felt very fortunate to have access to a lot of big newsmakers. You know, you had a president of the United States living down the road in the summers at Kennebunkport. You had George Mitchell, who was the most powerful Democrat in Washington for a time. Bill Cohen, you know, armed services committee then becoming Secretary of Defense, and Olympia Snowe, people who are so well regarded nationally. I spent a lot of time in Washington in those days, because there was always something our delegates were up to.
One of the most memorable stories ever was going to Belfast, Northern Ireland, when George Mitchell was working on the peace talks there. Growing up in an Irish Catholic family, I certainly knew something about what went on there. But not a lot. I wasn't that well educated in the real story on the ground. So when I had the opportunity, because here's a local guy who is trying to solve what seems like an insoluble problem for decades, if not longer. And so we need to tell that story. So not only do we tell the story of what George Mitchell was doing, but he was able to help us tell the story of why does this conflict exist? And how can you fix it?
The other big one that people liked to talk about, too, was being at Cape Canaveral when the Challenger disaster happened. And you know, something you never forget it. It came to mind again a few weeks ago, with that story about the filmmakers from South Portland, finding a piece of the Shuttle Challenger at the ocean floor in the Bermuda Triangle. It was a truly emotional and unexpected kind of event to be involved in when you thought it was going to be, oh, isn't this great, the teacher went into space. And wasn't this wonderful. And to our peril, we forget that things fail sometimes.
If you could go back and meet your 20-something individual, what advice would you give him?
That is a good question. I think part of it would be, don't be afraid to be bold about approaching a story. You regret the things you don't do, I think, more than the things you do. So, you know, when the situation presents itself, and it seems as though, 'Well, alright, they said I can't do this, so I'm not going to,' don't be afraid to step up and take the shot anyway.
What's next for you, in the short run?
Not much. It'll be interesting to take some time and not be on deadline and not feel like you're late for something every day. But I'm sure I'll find something that will be of interest to me, and then I'll spend some time doing. My wife and I want to be free to travel more. And she's got brothers who live down in Virginia who are both retired and every time we travel with them, they say, 'Why don't you take another week? Come on.' I'd say, 'Well, it's not that easy. We both have jobs.' But that'll get a little easier too, that sort of thing, and so yeah, something will present itself. Life will unfold, as it should.
