Remembering a CBS News pioneer

This week, CBS News lost a pioneer of television news: Sandy Socolow. Known as a trusted ally and right hand to Walter Cronkite, Socolow influenced CBS News coverage of some of the biggest stories of the 1960s and 70s, including Watergate and the Vietnam War.

Later, in the 1980s, Socolow produced stories for 60 Minutes, such as "It's a Swindle" and "Tunnels of Cu Chi." To honor his work, we pulled both those stories from the archive this week and posted them in the video player above.

Lisa Orlando, one of our producer-editors at 60 Minutes Overtime became friends with him after he retired from CBS News.

"He was a great story teller who was just as good at listening," Orlando said. "When he spoke, he was direct but not unkind. I will miss that twinkle in his eyes."

According to a CBS News statement, Socolow died in New York of complications from a long-term illness. He was 86.