Veteran CBS News Correspondent Bob Orr ‘75 to Deliver Bethany College Grimes Lecture

BETHANY, W.Va. (July 11, 2025) — Bethany College has announced that longtime CBS News correspondent and Emmy award winner Bob Orr ‘75 will serve as the featured speaker for the 2025 Grimes Lecture, a beloved part of the annual Homecoming festivities. The lecture is scheduled for 10:15 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 27, in Wailes Theatre, Steinman Hall.

Orr’s broadcast journalism career spanned more than four decades, including more than 20 years at CBS News in Washington, D.C. as Justice and Homeland Security correspondent. He led network coverage of some of the most defining news events of the modern era, including:

– The Boston Marathon bombings
– The death of Osama bin Laden
– The Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings
– The 9/11 terror attacks, contributing extensively to CBS’s continuous 93-hour coverage
– The capture of organized crime boss Whitey Bulger
– The rise of ISIS and extensive coverage of global terrorism threats
– The “Underwear Bomber” plot aboard a Northwest Airlines flight

Prior to his role on the national stage, Orr worked in local television for 20 years, including 12 years as reporter and anchor at WBNS in Columbus, Ohio, where his investigative reporting helped expose a design flaw in the rudder system of Boeing 737 aircraft following the crash of U.S. Air Flight 427 near Pittsburgh.

Throughout his career, Orr has been recognized with numerous awards for journalistic excellence, including four national Emmy Awards for coverage of the Boston Marathon bombings, the D.C. sniper attacks, the crash of TWA 800, and the Amtrak City of New Orleans train derailment. He and his team also earned the prestigious Alfred I. DuPont-Columbia Silver Baton for coverage of the Sandy Hook tragedy.

“Bob Orr’s career exemplifies the very best of journalism: integrity, courage, and a commitment to uncovering the truth,” said Bethany President Dr. Jamie Caridi. “We are honored to welcome him to campus, where his extensive experience covering some of the most consequential events of our time will offer invaluable perspective to our students and community.”

In retirement, Orr remains active in public discourse, speaking regularly on topics including terrorism, national security, misinformation, and freedom of the press. He and his wife, Susie, reside in Naples, Fla.

The Grimes Lecture will be livestreamed and recorded for those unable to attend in person.

Learn more about 2025 BC Pride Homecoming and register today!