WRAL's Ben Waters dies

Veteran newsman was 'very serious about getting it right'

Ben Waters, who started as WRAL-TV's news director in 1977 and became a community ambassador for the station over the next three decades, died Monday. He was 73.

Waters died at Duke Raleigh Hospital after a short illness, family members said.

The funeral is scheduled for 11 a.m. Thursday at Edenton Street United Methodist Church, with arrangements by Lightner Funeral Home.

Waters will be remembered for his varied community involvement and for his skills as a newsman, his family and colleagues said.

"I hope that people will remember that he was a decent human being and he did the best he could, trying to make a tiny bit of difference," said Martha Waters, his wife of 43 years.

A native of Washington, N.C., Waters started his television career there in the 1950s at WITN. Among his duties were appearances as the ghoulishly attired horror-movie host Robin Graves.

"He was always very serious about getting it right," Martha Waters said. "He thought it was important to be first, but it was more important to get your facts straight."

After taking reporting and leadership positions at television stations in Charlotte; High Point; Toledo, Ohio; and New Orleans, Waters returned to North Carolina to stay when he joined Capitol Broadcasting Co.'s WRAL-TV as its news director in 1977.

"From the time that Ben came to Capitol, he has been the standard-bearer and the person that you can always count on," said Paul Pope, Capitol's corporate vice president of community relations.

Waters served on the regional and national boards of the Radio- Television News Directors Association, leading a committee of the group that pioneered the use of cameras and sound recording in state courtrooms.

He also served as the chairman of the 2000 United Arts campaign in Wake County and, along with many other community efforts, helped introduce the Kids Voting USA project to Wake County.

"I don't know how anyone could say no to a project like this," Waters told The News & Observer about the project in 1996.

Kids Voting was in action again on Election Day, extending Waters' legacy the day after he died.