The founder and chairman of Frank N. Magid Associates was best known for his work with the major broadcast networks in the US and is credited with having influenced the decision by CBS to make the late Walter Cronkite the solo anchorman for its Evening News show, a position he held for 19 years.

According to an obituary posted on his company’s website, Magid also helped in the development of ABC’s Good Morning America and was an early advocate for new technologies such as FM radio, cable TV and satellite television.

Magid began his career as a sociology lecture at the University of Iowa and also taught social psychology, anthropology and statistics at Coe College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

He launched Frank N. Magid Associates in 1957, having decided to take his learnings from academia and apply them in the commercial sphere.

Magid was CEO of the firm until 2002, when he was succeeded by his son Brent, but he remained chairman until his death. He is survived by his wife Marilyn, brother Gail, his two sons and four grandchildren.

Read Magid’s obituary in full here.