Richard Wagner, a journalist best known for covering the Vietnam War and countless other conflicts across the world over his three-decade career as a correspondent for CBS News, has died.
Wagner died at the age of 85 on May 12, 2022.
Wagner died at his home in Charlottesville, Virginia, according to his wife Donna Lewis-Wagner.
Wagner’s widow provided no information regarding his demise, including the cause of death.
Richard Wagner (CBS News) Obituary, Cause Of Death
Wagner began his career at CBS News in 1964 and spent time in Saigon as one of the correspondents covering the Vietnam War at a period when the military had yet to determine the limitations of access to operations.
The following historical events were also covered by Wagner:
Wagner discussed the challenges and anxieties of reporting from the front lines in a podcast with fellow war journalists in 2018.
According to Wagner,
“I recall a situation once where we were pinned down, couldn’t move, and then the barrage lifted almost as quickly as it had begun, and I wanted to swiftly stand up now that it was safe and do a stand up…”
“I found that my hand was shaking so much that I really couldn’t do it. It affected me so much that I couldn’t do what I had to do until I collected myself.”
Wagner was also CBS News’ first health and science correspondent, and won an Ohio State University Radio-Television award for a CBS Radio documentary on DNA.
Wagner left CBS News in 1993.
