Jim Lehrer

“I always wear blue shirts and I like wine or purple ties.”

“I'm not in the being-annoyed business.”

“A debate has one purpose, one purpose only, and that is to facilitate the exchange of ideas directly between two candidates, and that's it.”

“Preparation is based on one driving force for me and that is to be relaxed enough to be able to listen to what the candidates are saying and react appropriately.”

“I believe an invitation from the Commission on Presidential Debates is similar to a draft notice - a civic responsibility.”

“I've traveled around the country and I read local newspapers and all of that, and it's a sad, sad thing to go from city to city and see the small newspapers and they're tiny. They're tiny not only in size but also in scope.”

“I'm a journalist and that's what I do.”

“Well, I don't know about objectivity, but I know for certain that it's always possible for a professional journalist who understands what he or she's up to to be fair, and that's the key word. Fairness to individuals, fairness to ideas, and to issues and whatever - that is critical, and that is also part and parcel of what the job.”

“Everyone should get their news however they want to and in whatever form they want. I'm not going to sit back in judgment of other people and the way they do it.”

“Most of the gaffes I've made have not been funny - they've been stupid.”