--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I never wanted to be a pundit." description: "\"I never wanted to be a pundit.\" — Robert MacNeil" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6b/robert-macneil-25522_journalism_i-never-wanted-to-be-a-pundit-2928524_2928524.png" --- # I never wanted to be a pundit. ![“I never wanted to be a pundit.” quote by Robert MacNeil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6b/robert-macneil-25522_journalism_i-never-wanted-to-be-a-pundit-2928524_2928524.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6b/robert-macneil-25522_journalism_i-never-wanted-to-be-a-pundit-2928524_2928524.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6b/robert-macneil-25522_journalism_i-never-wanted-to-be-a-pundit-2928524_2928524.png) > “I never wanted to be a pundit.” [Robert MacNeil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-macneil/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He expresses a desire to avoid being seen as an expert commentator. **In simple terms:** He does not want the pundit label. Key Takeaway Focus on reporting, not commentary. Themes media identity career integrity public perception Mood thoughtful introspective Type career philosophical When to use this quote - newsrooms - public speaking - media interviews - career planning Key Concepts journalism punditry professional self‑definition Questions to Reflect On - Why might someone reject the pundit role? - How does this choice affect credibility? A Different Perspective May limit influence in shaping public discourse. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Journalism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/journalism/) ## Related quotes > [I never wanted to be a pundit who chases headlines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jermaine-jenas/i-never-wanted-to-be-a-pundit-who-chases-headlines/) [Jermaine Jenas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jermaine-jenas/) > [I'm not a journalist. I'm a pundit. I'm a commentator, I'm somebody with an opinion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-rove/i-m-not-a-journalist-i-m-a-pundit-i-m-a-commentator-i-m-somebody-with/) [Karl Rove](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-rove/) > [I'm a right-wing pundit and have been for many years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-safire/i-m-a-right-wing-pundit-and-have-been-for-many-years/) [William Safire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-safire/) > [Cast aside any column about two subjects. It means the pundit chickened out on the hard decision about what to write about that day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-safire/cast-aside-any-column-about-two-subjects-it-means-the-pundit/) [William Safire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-safire/) > [I'm a pundit. I'm, like, paid to be a narcissistic blowhard and be in front of the camera.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/i-m-a-pundit-i-m-like-paid-to-be-a-narcissistic-blowhard-and-be-in/) [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) > [In the age of the internet when everybody's a pundit, we're still gonna need somebody there to go talk to the colonels, to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-isaacson/in-the-age-of-the-internet-when-everybody-s-a-pundit-we-re-still/) [Walter Isaacson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-isaacson/) > [If you want to take off your journalist outfit and declare yourself a pundit and go argue against Donald Trump, go for it. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megyn-kelly/if-you-want-to-take-off-your-journalist-outfit-and-declare-yourself-a/) [Megyn Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megyn-kelly/) > [I worked in cable news for a long time, but I'm not a pundit. I'm just not. I'm grateful to people that are, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meghan-mccain/i-worked-in-cable-news-for-a-long-time-but-i-m-not-a-pundit-i-m-just/) [Meghan McCain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meghan-mccain/) > [Anyone with an Internet service provider can be a pundit or whatever they want.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-keller/anyone-with-an-internet-service-provider-can-be-a-pundit-or-whatever/) [Bill Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-keller/) > [If my wife hears one more report that I'm joining Hillary's campaign I'm going to have to go in the Pundit Protection Program.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-begala/if-my-wife-hears-one-more-report-that-i-m-joining-hillary-s-campaign/) [Paul Begala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-begala/) > [I'm not a policymaker, I'm not a pundit. In fact, I don't have any interest in it. It's not on my agenda.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-warren/i-m-not-a-policymaker-i-m-not-a-pundit-in-fact-i-don-t-have-any/) [Rick Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-warren/) > [I am a news presenter, a news broadcaster, an anchorman, a managing editor - not a commentator or analyst. I feel no compulsion to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-cronkite/i-am-a-news-presenter-a-news-broadcaster-an-anchorman-a-managing/) [Walter Cronkite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-cronkite/) > [Never look for the story in the 'lede.' Reporters are required to put what's happened up top, but the practiced pundit places a nugget…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-safire/never-look-for-the-story-in-the-lede-reporters-are-required-to-put/) [William Safire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-safire/) > [I never sought to be a pundit, or on TV, or a writer-it just kind of came to me. If you just keep doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-coulter/i-never-sought-to-be-a-pundit-or-on-tv-or-a-writer-it-just-kind-of/) [Ann Coulter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-coulter/) > [I'm not a pundit. I'm not an analyst.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moore/i-m-not-a-pundit-i-m-not-an-analyst/) [Michael Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moore/) ## More by Robert MacNeil > [I'm happy to have my own opinion and air it when I think it's necessary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-macneil/i-m-happy-to-have-my-own-opinion-and-air-it-when-i-think-it-s/) [Robert MacNeil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-macneil/) > [Also, when I didn't like something, I could keep my opinion to myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-macneil/also-when-i-didn-t-like-something-i-could-keep-my-opinion-to-myself/) [Robert MacNeil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-macneil/) > [I grew up in kind of the last generation of Canadians who thought things that were happening in Britain were more important, almost, than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-macneil/i-grew-up-in-kind-of-the-last-generation-of-canadians-who-thought/) [Robert MacNeil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-macneil/) > [I think one of the lessons we learn in life - and it's an old lesson, but each of us has to learn it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-macneil/i-think-one-of-the-lessons-we-learn-in-life-and-it-s-an-old-lesson/) [Robert MacNeil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-macneil/) > [“If you love the language, the greatest thing you can do to ensure its survival is not to complain about bad usage but to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-macneil/if-you-love-the-language-the-greatest-thing-you-can-do-to-ensure-its/) [Robert MacNeil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-macneil/) > [Wordstruck is exactly what I was—and still am: crazy about the sound of words, the look of words, the taste of words, the feeling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-macneil/wordstruck-is-exactly-what-i-was-and-still-am-crazy-about-the-sound/) [Robert MacNeil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-macneil/) > [Change is legitimate and inevitable, for our language is a mighty river, picking up silt and flotsam here and discarding it there, but growing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-macneil/change-is-legitimate-and-inevitable-for-our-language-is-a-mighty/) [Robert MacNeil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-macneil/) > [We spent a month in Japan last year, a week in Istanbul for the United Nations, and nearly three months in my native Nova…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-macneil/we-spent-a-month-in-japan-last-year-a-week-in-istanbul-for-the-united/) [Robert MacNeil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-macneil/) > [“He always wrote on the flyleaf of each new book the date and where he was, so I can follow him: reading Chesterton just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-macneil/he-always-wrote-on-the-flyleaf-of-each-new-book-the-date-and-where-he/) [Robert MacNeil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-macneil/) > [I am not really retired, and may never be completely, but I can't think of a better place to contemplate retirement than New York…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-macneil/i-am-not-really-retired-and-may-never-be-completely-but-i-can-t-think/) [Robert MacNeil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-macneil/) > [Words make another place, a place to escape to with your spirit alone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-macneil/words-make-another-place-a-place-to-escape-to-with-your-spirit-alone/) [Robert MacNeil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-macneil/) > [“Television is the soma of Aldous Huxley's Brave New World.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-macneil/television-is-the-soma-of-aldous-huxley-s-brave-new-world/) [Robert MacNeil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-macneil/) > [After I became a citizen, I felt freer to say what I thought about this country, both negative and positive. I think I had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-macneil/after-i-became-a-citizen-i-felt-freer-to-say-what-i-thought-about/) [Robert MacNeil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-macneil/) > [But, finally, I just realized a few years ago that this is where I belonged. I mean everything I had was invested here, emotionally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-macneil/but-finally-i-just-realized-a-few-years-ago-that-this-is-where-i/) [Robert MacNeil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-macneil/) > [Well, I had a small degree, that little infection of skepticism about America which resides in the minds of even America's closest friends. That…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-macneil/well-i-had-a-small-degree-that-little-infection-of-skepticism-about/) [Robert MacNeil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-macneil/) [Explore all 23 Robert MacNeil quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-macneil/) ## More Journalism quotes > [A flourishing, morally credible media is a vital component in the maintenance of genuinely public talk, argument about common good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rowan-williams/a-flourishing-morally-credible-media-is-a-vital-component-in-the/) [Rowan Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rowan-williams/) > [Television, radio, social media. The 24/7 news cycle plows forward mercilessly on our desks, in our cars and in our pockets. Thousands and thousands…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-prince/television-radio-social-media-the-24-7-news-cycle-plows-forward/) [Joseph Prince](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-prince/) > [I don't think about the press or the crowds or the other leaders of the race. The focus is only on myself. As soon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/magdalena-neuner/i-don-t-think-about-the-press-or-the-crowds-or-the-other-leaders-of/) [Magdalena Neuner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/magdalena-neuner/) > [Having small children and being an investigative reporter would seem like a difficult mix, but it worked well for me. I was often working…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-abramson/having-small-children-and-being-an-investigative-reporter-would-seem/) [Jill Abramson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-abramson/) > [It goes to show you how we in the press so often miss the big stories that are right under our noses. There is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ebert/it-goes-to-show-you-how-we-in-the-press-so-often-miss-the-big-stories/) [Roger Ebert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ebert/) > [I have always been a big meta guy because I think the way journalism is practiced in Washington, and the way everyone sort of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-leibovich/i-have-always-been-a-big-meta-guy-because-i-think-the-way-journalism/) [Mark Leibovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-leibovich/) > [I didn't get how big it was until I went home, turned on the television and saw it on all the news, and later…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-simon/i-didn-t-get-how-big-it-was-until-i-went-home-turned-on-the/) [Paul Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-simon/) > [One lesson to learn is that the press and the broadcasters are not neutral. And it seems we have to learn it each time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-loach/one-lesson-to-learn-is-that-the-press-and-the-broadcasters-are-not/) [Ken Loach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-loach/) > [If you want to change something by Tuesday, theater is no good. Journalism is what does that. But, if you want to just alter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-stoppard/if-you-want-to-change-something-by-tuesday-theater-is-no-good/) [Tom Stoppard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-stoppard/) > [Newspapers have an extraordinary amount of local content, including real estate listings and restaurant reviews.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimbal-musk/newspapers-have-an-extraordinary-amount-of-local-content-including/) [Kimbal Musk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimbal-musk/) > [If, for instance, they have heard something from the postman, they attribute it to a semi-official statement; if they have fallen into conversation with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-waugh/if-for-instance-they-have-heard-something-from-the-postman-they/) [Evelyn Waugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-waugh/) > [In essence, I see the value of journalism as resting in a twofold mission: informing the public of accurate and vital information, and its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-greenwald/in-essence-i-see-the-value-of-journalism-as-resting-in-a-twofold/) [Glenn Greenwald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-greenwald/) > [It’s a shameful moment for U.S. media when it insists on being subservient to the grotesque propaganda agencies of a violent, aggressive state.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/it-s-a-shameful-moment-for-u-s-media-when-it-insists-on-being/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Drill in exact translation is an excellent way of disposing the mind against that looseness and exaggeration with which the sensationalists have corrupted our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-weaver/drill-in-exact-translation-is-an-excellent-way-of-disposing-the-mind/) [Richard M. Weaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-weaver/) > [People think they're getting objective information, but they're not. They're getting news wrapped up in opinion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynn-samuels/people-think-they-re-getting-objective-information-but-they-re-not/) [Lynn Samuels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynn-samuels/) [Browse all 8,189 Journalism quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/journalism/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I never wanted to be a pundit.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Robert MacNeil" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-macneil/i-never-wanted-to-be-a-pundit/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Journalism" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-macneil/i-never-wanted-to-be-a-pundit/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6b/robert-macneil-25522_journalism_i-never-wanted-to-be-a-pundit-2928524_2928524.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6b/robert-macneil-25522_journalism_i-never-wanted-to-be-a-pundit-2928524_2928524.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6b/robert-macneil-25522_journalism_i-never-wanted-to-be-a-pundit-2928524_2928524.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I never wanted to be a pundit.” — Robert MacNeil", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Robert MacNeil", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-macneil/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I never wanted to be a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-macneil/i-never-wanted-to-be-a-pundit/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-macneil/i-never-wanted-to-be-a-pundit/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```