"Nightly" facelift

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"Nightly" facelift

Date Created: Nov 09, 2004, 06:00 PM

The transition from Tom Brokaw to Brian Williams is beginning. Brokaw is still there for a few more weeks, but this week NBC debuts a new graphics package and new music on Nightly News.

The music is a brassier version of "The Mission," minus the staccato sequence at the beginning of the open. According to TVNewser, the new music is actually closer to composer John Williams' original 1985 arrangement, which the network had tweaked.

Williams, who also composed themes for "Jaws," "E.T.," "Star Wars," and "Indiana Jones," rescored "The Mission" for NBC News in October with a 99-piece orchestra.

The open retains the "heritage" vignette, but adds more color.

It's nice enough, but will take some getting used to.

If you want to see how the look of Nightly News has changed over the years, check out this web site.

BTW, great coverage from Iraq, particularly Kevin Sites' reporting.

His story tonight conveyed, to me at least, a measure of how terrifying it must be for our soldiers to be fighting in the streets of Fallujah right now.