The death of Tim Russert

Love him or hate him, every political junkie is very, very familiar with the man.

Tim Russert dies after a heart attack, New York Times reports

Tim Russert, NBC News's Washington bureau chief renowned for his tough questioning of politicians, has died, the New York Times reported. He was 58.

Russert died of a heart attack, the New York Times said on its Web site, citing his family.

Russert hosted the Sunday morning talk show "Meet the Press." He was also a best-selling author whose books included a tribute to his father, "Big Russ and Me."

Joining NBC News in 1984, Russert took over as anchor of "Meet the Press" on Dec. 8, 1991, now the most-watched Sunday morning interview program in the U.S. and the most-quoted news program in the world, according to the network's Web site.