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Arnold Zenker is a retired media broadcaster and public appearance counselor, who gained national attention as a 28 year old CBS News executive by sitting in for Walter Cronkite on the nightly Evening News during an American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA) strike in April, 1967. [1] Newsweek hailed his performance as "the smash hit of the strike fill-in." When the walkout ended thirteen days later, Cronkite returned with the words "Good Evening. This is Walter Cronkite sitting in for Arnold Zenker. It's good to be back". [1] Zenker then resumed his regular position as Manager of News Programming.
Five months later, Zenker left CBS to become the anchor of the 6 p.m. newscast at WBZ-TV in Boston. In 1969, he became host of a live hour long daily talk-variety program at WJZ-TV in Baltimore, which became the highest rated show in its time slot. During that period, he also did a four hour a day talk stint on WAYE Radio. In 1972, he returned to Boston to host a daily day time program, and a weekly prime time show called The Zenker Hearings. on WCVB-TV.[ citation needed ]
In 1974, Zenker founded one of the first media consulting firms in the country, coaching corporate executives, government officials and political candidates how to best manage their public appearances. Becoming Zenkerized became a familiar slogan in the business world.[ according to whom? ] Among company clients were Fidelity Investments, CSX Corporation, Sun Oil, the National Federation of Independent Business and organizations in Great Britain, Mexico, Canada and Israel.[ attribution needed ] Mike Wallace profiled Zenker on 60 Minutes as the man who helps business put "a good face on bad facts,"and Dodd-Mead published his book Mastering the Public Spotlight.
Zenker received both his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Pennsylvania, and was a member of both the Massachusetts and New York Bars.[ attribution needed ]