A San Francisco Chronicle Herb Caen Lecture featuring Dan Rather, who was anchor and managing editor for the CBS Evening News for 24 years, and now serves as a correspondent for 60 Minutes and hosts and produces long form programming examining major global topics and events for the Discovery Channel, will be in conversation with Orville Schelll, Dean of the Graduate School of Journalism.

Often referred to as “the hardest working man in broadcast journalism,” Rather lives up to the description. His recently published seventh book, The American Dream, chronicles the stories of a wide cross-section of Americans, describing how they achieved their versions of the American dream.

In 2002 and 2003, the war on terrorism has taken him to Iraq, Kuwait, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia and Israel. In February 2003, Rather secured the most sought-after interview in the world: an exclusive one-on-one with Saddam Hussein in Baghdad, the first the Iraqi leader had conducted with an American journalist since 1991. Rather also reported from Kabul on the United States’ effort to oust the Taliban and from Jerusalem and the West Bank during the largest Israeli military action in two decades.

He gained special notice for his live anchoring of CBS News’ coverage of the Sept. 11 attacks and his around-the-clock reporting in the days that followed. In the weeks after 9/11, Rather filed reports from Ground Zero and on the attacks’ aftermath in New York and the nation for the prime-time news magazine 48 Hours.

In 2000, Rather traveled to Moscow to cover the Russian elections and then to Israel as the peace process there took a turn for the worse. Later in the year, he anchored Election Night 2000, a marathon that kept him on the air continuously from 6:00 PM on Tuesday, Nov. 7, to 10:00 AM on Wednesday, Nov. 8. During the time that the presidential race was undecided, Rather interviewed both candidates on how each felt about the stalemate in Florida. At the end of the year, Rather was the first anchor to be granted President Clinton’s exit interview as he prepared to leave the White House.

He has received virtually every honor in broadcast journalism, including numerous Emmy Awards, a Peabody Award and citations from critical, scholarly, professional and charitable organizations. He was regularly cited as “best anchor” in opinion surveys. During his 35 years with CBS News, Rather has held many prestigious positions, ranging from co-editor of 60 Minutes to anchor of “CBS Reports” and anchor of the weekend and weeknight editions of the CBS Evening News. He has served as CBS News bureau chief in London and Saigon and was the White House correspondent during the Johnson and Nixon administrations.

From March 9, 1981, to March 9, 2004, Rather served as anchor and managing editor of the CBS Evening News. He anchored and reported for 48 Hours from its premiere on Jan. 19, 1988, through September 2002. His regular contributions to CBS News Radio include “Dan Rather Reporting,” a weekday broadcast of news and analysis, which has been presented on the CBS Radio Network since March 9, 1981.

Rather joined CBS News in 1962 as chief of its Southwest bureau in Dallas. In 1963, he was appointed chief of the Southern bureau in New Orleans, responsible for coverage of news events in the South, Southwest, Mexico and Central America. During that time, he reported on racial conflicts in the South and the crusade of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., as well as the death of President Kennedy. Rather began his career in journalism in 1950 as an Associated Press reporter in Huntsville, Texas. Later, he was a reporter for United Press International (1950-52), KSAM Radio in Huntsville (1950-53), KTRH Radio in Houston and the Houston Chronicle (1954-55). He became news director of KTRH in 1956 and a reporter for KTRK-TV Houston in 1959. Prior to joining CBS News, Rather was news director at KHOU-TV, the CBS affiliate in Houston.