Newscaster Fallon Dies in His Sleep Surrounded by Friends

Former NBC newsman James Thomas Fallon has died at the age of 32. With the world of journalism still reeling from the death of ABC News anchor Peter Jennings and the massacre at a recent White House briefing, the viability of the entire journalism industry has been cast in doubt, as Fallon was a rising star thought to have embodied the future of the profession.

Fallon, who joined the network's news organization in 2000, proved a staple of late-night newscasting with his trademark sense of humor and matinee-idol looks. His greatest skill was undercover reporting, where he would take on a new persona in order to blend in with locals.

Unconfirmed reports indicate that he died of a combination of alcohol poisoning and exhaustion after a 72-hour "night" on the town that culminated in a tesseradekasome (a 14-person sexual encounter). Suffocation may have played a part in the death as many of the participants were said to have been found asleep on top of him. Foul play was not indicated.

Of major newscasters who were alive in 2002, only CNNs Aaron Brown and The Daily Show's Jon Stewart remain stalwarts of evening television.