Longtime CBS correspondent Christopher Glenn dies at 68

NORWALK, Conn. -- Christopher Glenn, a longtime CBS news correspondent who anchored coverage of the space shuttle Challenger explosion and was the voice of the children's program "In the News" in 1970s and 80s, has died. He was 68.

Glenn died Tuesday of liver cancer in Norwalk Hospital less than three weeks before his induction into the Radio Hall of Fame, the network said.

The award-winning newsman retired in February after 35 years with CBS.

His distinctive voice was familiar to those who remember the Emmy-award winning "In the News." The 2 1/2-minute feature on one topic was broadcast every half hour during Saturday children's programming on CBS. It debuted in September 1971 and ran for 5,000 episodes over 13 seasons.

He anchored and reported on many national stories including space shuttle missions and served as a floor reporter at national political conventions.

It was Glenn who anchored the Jan. 28, 1986, launch of the doomed shuttle Challenger and delivered an anguished commentary as the spacecraft exploded shortly after lift off.

"This flight, which was to have been such a bright chapter in the history of the manned space flight program, turning in the flash of an instant into a terrible, terrible tragedy," he said.

He also became the anchor for the CBS "World New Roundup" in 1999 after spending 11 years in a similar capacity for "The World Tonight."

Glenn garnered many national awards, the latest in 2005 when he won the Radio Television News Directors Edward R. Murrow award for best newscast. He will be enshrined on Nov. 4 into the Radio Hall of Fame in Chicago.

Born in New York City, Glenn was raised in Irvington, N.Y. He received a bachelors degree in English from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 1959.

He is survived by his wife, Dianne, two daughters and a sister.

A memorial service will be held at a later date, said CBS spokesman Kevin Tedesco.