CBS News To Air Special Commemorating The Life Of Dolly Parton
Developing story first seen 11 hours ago
Deadline's report has been updated with fuller detail on the US television tributes to Dolly Parton, who died on Tuesday aged 80. CBS News and ABC News aired hour-long specials that evening, with NBC News following on Wednesday, reflecting the scale of coverage given to a performer whose appeal cut across America's political divide, drawing tributes from President Donald Trump, who ordered flags lowered, as well as Kamala Harris and several former presidents including Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama.
CBS's special, A CBS News Special: Dolly Parton — An American Icon, was hosted by Gayle King and Tony Dokoupil at 10pm ET, with contributions from correspondent Anthony Mason and a reporter at Dollywood, plus archival interviews with Morley Safer and Norah O'Donnell; Dokoupil had earlier anchored CBS's breaking coverage of her death. ABC's Dolly Parton: An American Original, a special edition of 20/20 fronted by David Muir, also aired at 10pm ET, later streaming on Disney+ and Hulu, featuring past interviews with Robin Roberts and Barbara Walters and tributes from Jane Fonda, Keith Urban, Keke Palmer and others. NBC's tribute, Dolly: An NBC News Special, is set for 9pm ET on Wednesday.
- CBS, ABC and NBC News are all airing Dolly Parton tribute specials
- Parton died aged 80; CBS and ABC aired specials on Tuesday, NBC on Wednesday
- Tributes came from Trump, Harris and several former US presidents
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Dolly Parton, one of the best-known figures in American country music, died this week at the age of 80. She built a career spanning six decades as a singer, songwriter and actress, and became a rare figure who was widely admired across political lines in the United States, including by the country's current and former presidents.
Her death prompted an unusually large response from US television networks, with CBS, ABC and NBC each preparing hour-long tribute specials featuring archive interviews, tributes from fellow performers and coverage from Dollywood, the Tennessee theme park associated with her. Public figures from President Donald Trump, who ordered flags to be lowered, to Kamala Harris and several former presidents also paid tribute.
The scale of this coverage reflects how significant a cultural figure Parton was seen to be, with the networks' specials aiming to mark her life and career for audiences across the country.
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