Bernard Kalb, Long-Time Journalist And Bethesda Resident, Dies At 100

BETHESDA, MD — Bernard Kalb, a long-time journalist for the New Year Times and several television news networks, died on Sunday at his home in North Bethesda at the age of 100, according to reports.

His younger brother, fellow journalist Marvin Kalb, told CNN that Kalb’s death was caused by complications from a recent fall.

After decades of reporting from around the world, Kalb became the first anchor of CNN’s “Reliable Sources” program from 1992 to 1998.

“Bernard Kalb was an important figure in journalism, and his pioneering efforts to hold our profession to account are immeasurable. Everyone at CNN is sending our deep sympathies to his wife, children and the whole Kalb family,” CNN Chairman and CEO Chris Licht said in a statement.

Kalb also worked in the Regan administration in the 1980s, serving as assistant secretary of state for public affairs and as a spokesman for the State Department for two years until his resignation in October 1986.

Kalb left his job at the State Department after government officials leaked false information about the threat of Libyan terrorism. He said the credibility of the U.S. government suffered because of the “disinformation” campaign.

His resignation from the State Department also came shortly before the Iran-Contra scandal broke in November 1986 when a plane conveying supplies to the U.S.-supported Contras was shot down in Nicaragua and its pilot taken prisoner by the Nicaraguan government.

“I am exhilarated by the sense of outrage in the American people that fights the manhandling of American values,” Kalb said in early 1987 in reaction to the Iran-Contra aid scandal that rocked the Reagan presidency.

During their careers in journalism, Bernard and Marvin Kalb worked for CBS News and then both joined NBC News in 1980.

In addition to his brother of Chevy Chase, Maryland, and his wife of North Bethesda, Kalb's survivors include four daughters and nine grandchildren.