60 Minutes correspondent Bob Simon killed in car crash

TV news programme '60 Minutes' correspondent Bob Simon has died in a car accident. He was 73.

He passed away yesterday, TV channel CBS announced. He is survived by his wife, Francoise, and daughter, Tanya, a producer for 60 Minutes.

Simon suffered head and torso injuries in the accident on Wednesday. An unconscious Simon was transported to St Luke's Roosevelt Hospital where he died.

During a career spanning five decades, Simon won 27 Emmys for covering major stories including The Vietnam War, violence in Northern Ireland from 1969-1971, The Gulf War and The Olympics.

In 1991, he spent 40 days in an Iraqi prison alongside three other members of the CBS News team, and turned the experience into the 1992 book 'Forty Days'.

"Bob Simon was a giant of broadcast journalism, and a dear friend to everyone in the CBS News family. We are all shocked by this tragic, sudden loss. Our thoughts and prayers are with Bob's extended family and especially with our colleague Tanya Simon," said CBS News President David Rhodes.

'60 Minutes' executive producer Jeff Fager called it "a terrible loss for all of us at CBS News."

Born on May 29, 1941, in the Bronx, Simon joined CBS News in 1967 as a New York-based reporter and assignment editor.

He began regularly contributing to '60 Minutes' in 1996, with the 2014-2015 season marking his 19th on the show. '60 Minutes' aired a piece from him on 'Selma' over the weekend.

Various television celebrities took to Twitter to express their grief on his demise.
Comedian-TV host Seth Meyers tweeted, "Gutted to hear the news about Bob Simon. An absolute master of his craft."

"On no! Longtime '60 Minutes' correspondent Bob Simon killed in a car accident in New York," actress Alyssa Milano said.

American journalist Maria Shriver said, "My heart goes out to Bob's family. I worked with him. True journalist."

"Bob was for the last five decades, simply one of the best, in my opinion ... at getting a story, telling a story, writing a story and making it simply unforgettable," said CNN's Anderson Cooper.