Rather Doubts His Own Story

When CBS ran a “60 Minutes” segment about President Bush’s National Guard service, a can of worms opened. A document that “proved” Mr. Bush disobeyed an order to get a physical and got his performance review improved without merit, shaking the media world for almost a whole news cycle. And now it turns out that CBS news and Dan Rather were duped in the biggest forgery fraud since the Times got taken in over the “Hitler Diaries” twenty years ago. Mr. Rather needs to go, and CBS needs to ask itself whether it is in the news business at all.

The saddest part of the whole sorry affair is the irrelevance of the entire issue. Mr. Bush served his country, or maybe he was AWOL, 30+ years ago. The Vietnam War dredges up a lot of emotions for those who faced it, but for the rest of the nation, it’s history. What Mr. Bush and Mr. Kerry did as young men may or may not showcase their character or lack of same, but then again, people change over three decades. Far more important is Mr. Bush’s incompetence over the last four years, Mr. Kerry’s inconsistencies in his Iraq policies, and what the heck either man will be able to do on January 21, 2005 to get Americans jobs, healthcare and peace. No one can change 1972, but 2005 is still unwritten.

That said, CBS and Mr. Rather let their desire to get a story exceed the facts. It would seem that on the strength of documentation of doubtful provenance they decided they had a smoking gun that would bring down a president. The problem was, their proof wasn’t real. Credibility is the only asset that a new agency has going for it, and right now, CBS News, “60 Minutes” and Mr. Rather haven’t got any (perhaps, he should retire).

Fortunately, the 21st Century is one in which CBS news doesn’t count for all that much. It is one of the has-beens of journalism, like the New York Times -- compare its Pulitzer count to that of the LA Times as proof. The web journalists and the 24-hour TV news services have made CBS News far less important than it was even a decade ago. “The Tiffany Network” isn’t where news gets broken, nor is it the home of the brightest stars in journalism. In part, it is a victim of technology, and in part, it is a victim of corporate ownership.

By law, CBS must broadcast news and public affairs programs to retain its FCC license. But really. CBS News is owned by Viacom, which also owns MTV, Paramount Studios, and the Infinity Radio Network. News is not a profitable venture for Viacom if it is done right – overseas correspondents are expensive, and there is only so much denture adhesive and hemorrhoid ointment one can sell in 30 minutes. Perhaps what has happened here is the public has awakened to the fact that the emperor has no clothes, and that CBS hasn’t had a news department worth a fig for ages.


© Copyright 2004 by The Kensington Review, J. Myhre, Editor. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written consent.


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