On November 23 , 1963 , '' Today '' aired a special three-hour Saturday program recapping the assassination of President John F. Kennedy the previous day . Host Hugh Downs , Jack Lescoulie , and newsreader Frank Blair anchored the broadcast . In the opening minutes , Downs noted that the atmosphere that day " was very different " from what he had ever previously experienced . Lescoulie recalled how traffic in New York City after the assassination was at a standstill , and that telephone circuits were jammed . Downs added that as the hours passed , the country 's grief would turn into a " more historic kind of grief . " Man-on-the-street reports were gathered by Barbara Walters . Sander Vanocur reported from the White House , with Martin Agronsky in Washington and Pauline Frederick at the United Nations in New York
assassination of President John F. Kennedy
Assassination of John F. Kennedy
List of special editions of Today (American TV program)