Steve Hartman, of CBS News, looks for and finds greatly uplifting true stories. The boy featured in this short video is greatly rewarded for his act of kindness.
Steve Hartman is one of television journalism’s great storytellers, famous for finding extraordinary tales hiding inside ordinary lives. His segments often feel like tiny documentaries about kindness, coincidence, and human quirks. Here are some interesting facts about him:
1. He’s been with CBS News for nearly three decades
Hartman joined CBS News in 1996 and has spent much of his career producing human-interest stories that air on programs like CBS Evening News and CBS News Sunday Morning.
2. His “On the Road” segment revived a legendary series
His famous feature “On the Road” was inspired by the classic storytelling segments originally done by Charles Kuralt decades earlier. Hartman revived the tradition of traveling around the country to find remarkable everyday people.
3. He once chose stories by throwing a dart at a map
In an earlier CBS series called “Everybody Has a Story,” Hartman would literally throw a dart at a map of the United States and travel to wherever it landed to find someone interesting to interview.
4. He has traveled enormous distances for stories
For that series alone, he logged over 100,000 miles and about 150 flights, chasing stories in dozens of states.
5. His work has won major journalism awards
Hartman has earned multiple Emmy Awards, an Alfred I. DuPont–Columbia Award, and many Edward R. Murrow Awards, including a record number for writing.
6. His children sometimes appear in his segments
During the pandemic he created “Kindness 101,” short lessons about character and empathy that he hosts with help from his kids, especially his daughter Meryl.
7. He helped create a nationwide Memorial Day tradition
In 2020 Hartman co-founded “Taps Across America,” encouraging musicians to step outside at 3:00 p.m. on Memorial Day and play the bugle call “Taps.” Thousands now participate each year.
8. One of his children has autism
Hartman has spoken publicly about raising a child with autism and how it has influenced the way he tells stories about empathy and understanding.
9. He started small in local TV
Before national fame, he worked at local stations in Minnesota, New York, and Los Angeles, beginning as a news intern and general assignment reporter in Toledo.
10. His stories are used in classrooms
Teachers across the United States often use his segments to teach character, empathy, and storytelling, turning news clips into mini life lessons.
📺 His storytelling style is a bit like wandering through America with a lantern. Instead of chasing scandals or disasters, he points the light at surprising kindness, quiet heroism, and the occasional wonderfully odd human being.
