The only thing reasonably different about this May 13th as opposed to the May 13th in 1980 was that in 1980 it fell on a Tuesday. It was a Presidential election year, so all eyes were on the Primaries being held - Ted Kennedy and George Bush Sr. still campaigning hard, even though both were trailing. The Embassy saga in Tehran was still going on. Ed Muskie, in his first diplomatic mission since being appointed Secretary of State, arrived in Brussels on his way to Vienna and talk immediately fixated on the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan and the Carter Administration's Foreign Policy. Libya was creating a stir with bloody purges being carried out by the Gaddafi regime and Americans were busily being expelled on the grounds of being suspected CIA operatives. And it was Tornado season with twisters ripping through Missouri and Pennsylvania.
All in all, an interesting day even if it was a Tuesday in 1980. Here are three newscasts beginning with the CBS World News Roundup, followed by the 9:00 am (West coast) Network news and ending with The World Tonight, all from May 13, 1980.