(The Hill) – Longtime CNN anchor and reporter Bernard Shaw died on Wednesday, the network announced.

Shaw, 82, retired from journalism in the early 2000s and was one of CNN’s original anchors when the network launched in the 1980s.

“He was our lead anchor for the next twenty years from anchoring coverage of presidential elections to his iconic coverage of the First Gulf War live from Baghdad in 1991,” CNN president Chris Licht said in a statement on Shaw’s passing. “Even after he left CNN, Bernie remained a close member of our CNN family providing our viewers with context about historic events as recently as last year. The condolences of all of us at CNN go out to his wife Linda and his children.”

Shaw was well known for his coverage of several major foreign conflicts, his moderation of a number of presidential debates, and other high-profile political events.

When Shaw signed off for the last time in 2000, he received a standing ovation from the CNN newsroom.