Television
He was widely known in the UK for his televised reports on general election results as they were announced on the BBC. He is popularly associated with the swingometer device used in such broadcasts. The swingometer was first introduced in 1955 by Peter Milne, and was later refined by McKenzie and David Butler and used nationally in the 1959 General election for the BBC. At first Butler used the meter, but in 1964 McKenzie enthusiastically took over. He appeared on all BBC election nights from 1955 to 1979, and was later replaced by Peter Snow in 1983 due to McKenzie's death in 1981. Additionally, he introduced and moderated the discussions in each episode of Milton Friedman's 1980 television series Free to Choose.
McKenzie also famously interviewed Lord Hailsham on the BBC programme Gallery in 1963, asking questions on the then recent scandal involving Conservative cabinet minister John Profumo. Hailsham became increasingly fractious as the interview progressed regarding McKenzie's line of questioning, even though Hailsham was strongly critical of Profumo's conduct. Coincidentally, Hailsham died exactly 20 years to the day of McKenzie's death.
Read more about this topic: Robert McKenzie (psephologist)
Famous quotes containing the word television:
“It is among the ranks of school-age children, those six- to twelve-year-olds who once avidly filled their free moments with childhood play, that the greatest change is evident. In the place of traditional, sometimes ancient childhood games that were still popular a generation ago, in the place of fantasy and make- believe play . . . today’s children have substituted television viewing and, most recently, video games.”
—Marie Winn (20th century)
“We cannot spare our children the influence of harmful values by turning off the television any more than we can keep them home forever or revamp the world before they get there. Merely keeping them in the dark is no protection and, in fact, can make them vulnerable and immature.”
—Polly Berrien Berends (20th century)
“There is no question but that if Jesus Christ, or a great prophet from another religion, were to come back today, he would find it virtually impossible to convince anyone of his credentials ... despite the fact that the vast evangelical machine on American television is predicated on His imminent return among us sinners.”
—Peter Ustinov (b. 1921)