’60 Minutes’: Bob Simon piece on Ebola airs days after death

There is almost a bizarre sort of dichotomy taking place on TV Sunday night. On NBC at this very moment, “Saturday Night Live” is presenting a red-carpet special for their 40th anniversary. That is a show that was all sorts of silly, and it celebrates a very specific sort of television institution.

However, at the same time “60 Minutes” on CBS was airing a piece by Bob Simon, which could be the final one that he did prior to his shocking death in a car crash. Given how important this show has been to news, and how important he was to it, this was an incredible emotional moment. What made that even more emotional was the way in which it was handled with such dignity and respect to the man.

The focus of this sketch was finding a cure for Ebola, and it only feels appropriate for his final send-off to be on such a significant topic that impacts almost everyone in the world. Simon traveled the world for more over 40 years, interviewing important figures and risking his own life for the sake of getting the story.

Of course, “60 Minutes” will go on. This is not the first time that they have lost an important figure; as a matter of fact, this is not the first time in the past few years that they have. There are a variety of other strong reporters who will continue to report the news, and in this era of Brian Williams, social media, and a variety of crazy headlines on the story of journalism, we hope this stalwart never goes away.

What did you think about the way that “60 Minutes” handled the death of Simon tonight? Be sure to share in the comments below. As we said, Simon will be dearly missed for his integrity. (Photo: CBS.)