Volconvo is a debate forum for the discussion of political, religious, and news-based topics.

tinybear · Sep 20, 2007, 06:13 am

Quote:

Dan Rather, whose career at CBS News ground to an inglorious end 15 months ago over his role in an unsubstantiated report questioning President Bush’s Vietnam-era National Guard service, filed a lawsuit this afternoon against the network, its corporate parent and three of his former superiors.

In the suit, filed this afternoon in State Supreme Court in Manhattan, Mr. Rather charges that CBS and its executives made him “a scapegoat” in an attempt “to pacify the White House,” though the formal complaint presents virtually no direct evidence to that effect.

Under pressure, Mr. Rather says, he delivered a public apology on his newscast on Sept. 20, 2004 — written not by him but by a CBS corporate publicist — “despite his own personal feelings that no public apology from him was warranted.”

Here's my question: Why did he wait 3 years before even mentioning this to anyone?

ZNFYRH · Sep 20, 2007, 09:16 am

Until after he resigned from CBS?

Probably because he's a decent human being who did nothing wrong and didn't want to cause a scandal while he still worked for them.

tinybear · Sep 20, 2007, 11:12 am

He 'resigned' only because it became obvious that CBS wasn't going to renew his contract and that was in June 2006.

ZNFYRH · Sep 20, 2007, 12:47 pm

Doesn't matter, really.

He is a national news anchor. They don't do fact-checking on the stories they are handed.

That's the sort of thing you do when you are in local news... and that's a big maybe.

There are people whose sole job it is to cross-check and verify those facts.

Dan Rather was handed a story that he believed was checked and double-checked by the people at CBS who probably have a college degree in doing just that kind of work.

He was the one who reported the story and that means he gets blamed by the American people. But if CBS had any integrity at all, they would have had one of their reps publicly state that the false information was not Dan's fault. They didn't do that, and it left Dan with a severely tarnished reputation... especially since the target of the false information was the President.

I hope he wins something from this lawsuit. I think he's done a great job presenting some of the most pivotal moments in recent American history, and I hated to see him hung out to dry the way he was. He deserves better than that for his decades of service to the American people.

PatrickHenry · Sep 20, 2007, 04:20 pm

In actual fact, the information WASN'T false. The source was not authentic, but the testimony was.

Bush was unfit for duty. But the Rove machine took Rather down, instead of Dubya...

Sep 20, 2007, 09:16 am	#2 (permalink) (top)
ZNFYRH Volcanic Erupter Posts: 4,375	Until after he resigned from CBS? Probably because he's a decent human being who did nothing wrong and didn't want to cause a scandal while he still worked for them. IT'S A BOY!!

Sep 20, 2007, 12:47 pm	#4 (permalink) (top)
ZNFYRH Volcanic Erupter Posts: 4,375	Doesn't matter, really. He is a national news anchor. They don't do fact-checking on the stories they are handed. That's the sort of thing you do when you are in local news... and that's a big maybe. There are people whose sole job it is to cross-check and verify those facts. Dan Rather was handed a story that he believed was checked and double-checked by the people at CBS who probably have a college degree in doing just that kind of work. He was the one who reported the story and that means he gets blamed by the American people. But if CBS had any integrity at all, they would have had one of their reps publicly state that the false information was not Dan's fault. They didn't do that, and it left Dan with a severely tarnished reputation... especially since the target of the false information was the President. I hope he wins something from this lawsuit. I think he's done a great job presenting some of the most pivotal moments in recent American history, and I hated to see him hung out to dry the way he was. He deserves better than that for his decades of service to the American people. IT'S A BOY!!

Sep 20, 2007, 04:20 pm	#5 (permalink) (top)
PatrickHenry 9/11: Inside Job Location: Hawai'i, Big Island Posts: 10,455	In actual fact, the information WASN'T false. The source was not authentic, but the testimony was. Bush was unfit for duty. But the Rove machine took Rather down, instead of Dubya... "Arms in the hands of the citizens may be used at individual discretion for the defense of the country, the overthrow of tyranny or private self-defense." -- John Adams

Sep 20, 2007, 11:12 am	#3 (permalink) (top)
tinybear Volcanic Erupter Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 7,334	He 'resigned' only because it became obvious that CBS wasn't going to renew his contract and that was in June 2006.