That was the stunned reaction of experienced foreign correspondents to the news that Daniel Pearl of The Wall Street Journal had been killed, his throat slit by his captors.

An experienced foreign correspondent, Stewart's assignments included coverage of the Iranian Revolution in February of 1979.

Couldn't the other highly experienced correspondents have handled the recent summit meeting just as well if the triumvirate had never left New York?

The reporter, Patrick Tyler, is among the most experienced foreign correspondents in the business.

But at CNN, some people briefly grumbled about a newcomer usurping a job that could have gone to one of CNN's more experienced correspondents.

That remains the case today, a situation that causes concern even among experienced political correspondents.

A much more experienced correspondent, Bruce Morton, later took over the Washington desk, remaining there until 1977.

Mr. Randal, 69, an experienced correspondent who also worked for The New York Times, is now writing books.

A very experienced foreign correspondent, he'll be highly skilled in interrogating people.

- Christiane Amanpour, ABC's hugely experienced foreign correspondent, presents from New York on Thursday 29 September.