
‘Encyclopedic Knowledge of U.S. Politics’
Mark Shields, the renowned Democratic political journalist, columnist and commentator for PBS, died on Saturday morning at the age of 85.
Shields’ passing was fannounced on Twitter by one of his longtime colleagues, PBS NewsHour anchor and editor Judy Woodruff. Woodruff noted that Shields passed with his wife, Anne Hudson Shields, by his side. She also commended him for his “decades” of work with PBS and “his encyclopedic knowledge of American politics.”
“I am heartbroken to share this,” Woodruff wrote in her tweet. “The NewsHour’s beloved long-time Friday night analyst Mark Shields, who for decades wowed us with his encyclopedic knowledge of American politics, his sense of humor, and mainly his big heart, has passed away at 85, with his wife Anne at his side.”
Shields began making weekly Friday appearances on NewsHour in 1988, offering up-to-the-minute political analysis and conversation with a conservative counterpart, up until his retirement in 2020. His longest-serving counterpart was New York Times columnist David Brooks, who appeared alongside him from 2001 to 2020. Previously, the role was filled by the likes of William Safire, Paul Gigot and David Gergen.
As of Saturday, Shields’ cause of death is not known.

Alex Wong/Getty Images
More Stories
DC professor visits campus, speaks on leftist politics
Conservatives need to better understand the psychology of the left if they want to confront it, Assistant Professor David Azerrad...
Despite political turmoil, Vietnam is worth the risk of doing business
More than 1,000 years ago, in two separate battles, the Vietnamese military utilized sharpened stakes hidden in the Bạch Đằng river...
DOJ Is Waging Court Battle to Access Rep. Scott Perry’s Phone
Rep. Scott Perry of Pennsylvania now chairs the Freedom Caucus in the House of Representatives. The Freedom Caucus has had...
How the Watergate scandal forever changed reporting on US politics
Fifty years ago, the conviction of Gordon Liddy and James McCord Jr, both helping hands of President Richard Nixon, started...
WA Democrats choose Shasti Conrad as new leader
By Seattle Times staff reporter The Washington State Democratic Party chose Shasti Conrad, the former leader of the King County...
Biden speaks with Tyre Nichols’s parents ahead of video release – latest updates | Tyre Nichols
FBI director 'appalled' by Nichols video, says civil rights investigation openedFBI director Christopher Wray said he was “appalled” by video...