PBS West

Even as The NewsHour shines its spotlight on the likes of Ali, or delves into ecological themes with assistance from another grant courtesy of the National Science Foundation, it eschews sensationalism of the sort that currently dominates so much cable news, and is making steady incursions into network fare. "There are certain things we're not going to do," Parson says. "Even if there's an especially horrific murder, we're only going to cover it if there's a public-policy angle. If it's just one person dying, it's sad, but it's not a NewsHour story."

Other elements of the NewsHour culture are just as unfashionable, and Bowser, for one, is grateful. She started her TV career in 1974, and if she'd stayed with the networks, she says, "I don't think I'd still be on television. It's such a youth-driven business now. But The NewsHour is a place where experience and ability are more important than how you look or how old you are."

Brooks concurs. She briefly appeared on-camera for New York's Independent Network News before joining The News Hour full-time, and she says, "It was very frustrating for me, because they never talked about the content. It was always about, 'That's a terrible blouse,' or 'You've got to get your hair cut.'" But because the NewsHour powers aren't as beholden to ratings as their counterparts in commercial television, they can make decisions dictated entirely by news value — like devoting the whole hour to the Iraq war or the economy if developments dictate. Lehrer refers to shows like these as "hell-and-gones," Brooks reveals, while high-impact stories are touted with the phrase "That one got Gladys out of the kitchen."

Such achievements aren't enough to squelch all criticism of The NewsHour. Plenty of right-wing critics continue to accuse the program of liberal bias — a perception that producers and correspondents say they fight on a daily basis. (Rubin times sound bites to the second to ensure that each side of an issue is equally represented.) And plenty of TV consumers without ideological beefs see the program as too dry and boring. Nevertheless, an estimated 2.7 million people tune in to each NewsHour, and that's enough for Schwerin. She admits to having thought about leaving Denver for a commercial-network job a time or two over the years, but she's never made the leap, and quality has a lot to do with it. "I'm always covering stories that the networks are," she says, "and I think our stories end up being better."