New York (CNN Business) Jim Lehrer, the legendary debate moderator and former anchor of the "NewsHour" television program, died Thursday. He was 85.

Lehrer's death was announced by his longtime network home, PBS, where he co-founded the "NewsHour" in 1975.

PBS said Lehrer died "peacefully in his sleep at home" and did not share further information about the cause of death.

Lehrer anchored the "NewsHour," the flagship newscast on public television in the United States, for 36 years. He retired in 2011.

Jim Lehrer

His successor at the anchor desk, Judy Woodruff, said in a statement Thursday, "I'm heartbroken at the loss of someone who was central to my professional life, a mentor to me and someone whose friendship I've cherished for decades. I've looked up to him as the standard for fair, probing and thoughtful journalism and I know countless others who feel the same way."

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