anchored Peter Jennings Reporting: In the Name of God, a well-received documentary on the changing nature of American churches. At a taping of a "town meeting" segment for KOMO-TV of Seattle in February 1995, Jennings expressed regret for his ABC radio remarks on the 1994 midterm elections. "People thought I had insulted their sacred mandate and some thought I should go back to Canada," he said. "I hope I don't make that mistake again." During the mid-1990s, some television critics praised Jennings for his insistence on not letting the O. J. Simpson murder case swamp the newscast. Instead, Jennings devoted his energies to covering the Bosnian War, anchoring three hour-long prime time specials on the subject and one Saturday-morning special aimed at children. ABC dedicated more time to covering the conflict than any other network from 1992 to 1996. Jennings received the Goldsmith Career Award for Excellence in Journalism from Harvard Kennedy School at Harvard University, in large part for his passion for the story. Jennings was also credited for raising the profile in the U.S. of another international story, the 1995 Quebec referendum. Some members of the Canadian press in particular raved about his in-depth coverage of the issue, and he was the only anchor to broadcast from Canada on the eve of the referendum. Despite these critical successes, in 1996, World News Tonight started gradually slipping in the ratings race. Bolstered by strong viewership of its coverage of the 1996 Summer Olympic Games and heavy coverage of O.J. Simpson's trial, NBC's Nightly News overtook the ABC newscast for two weeks in late July and early September. This short bump provided momentum for NBC, which started making steady gains in the ratings. Worried, Jennings and ABC decided to cut back on international reporting and give more air time to "soft stories", in an effort to emulate the success of Nightly News. The changes provoked a backlash from regular viewers, and ratings plummeted. "We did very badly with it," Jennings said. "The audience kicked us in the teeth." Although changes were made to World News Tonight to restore its commitment to major issues and stop the hemorrhaging, Nightly News ended 1997 as the number-one evening newscast. The slide in the ratings coincided with some rockiness at ABC News. The company scrapped plans to develop a cable news channel. On May 29, 1998, David Westin succeeded Roone Arledge as president of