NEW YORK — Edwin Newman, who brought literacy, wit and energy to NBC newscasts for more than three decades, and battled linguistic pretense and clutter in his best sellers "Strictly Speaking" and "A Civil Tongue," has died. He was 91.

NBC News did not immediately say today where or when Newman had died, or the cause of death.

At NBC from 1952 until his retirement in 1984, Newman did political reporting, foreign reporting, anchoring of news specials, "Meet the Press," "Today," "The Nightly News," midday news and a variety of radio spots. He announced the death of President Kennedy on radio and analyzed the Vietnam War.

He also narrated and helped write documentaries, back when they were an influential staple of network programming.