CBS’ Bush-Service-Disclosure Not Network’s Debut In Dalliance With Dishonesty

CBS 60 Minutes | 09-24-2004 | Del Rio Wildcat

[DelRioWildcat]

CBS’ Bush-Service-Disclosure Not Network’s Debut In Dalliance With Dishonesty

"60 Minutes": Our Reply After the CBS weekly newsmagazine aired a story criticizing Illinois Power for cost overruns in construction of its Clinton nuclear power plant, the utility produced this now-classic response, which systematically analyzed and refuted points in the original story using footage recorded by the company during Harry Reasoner's on-site interview. (Produced by Illinois Power, 1979; 40 mins.)

The above is from a website of Colorado State. This, and a brief comment, on an Accuracy In Media website (chiding, then head of CBS, William Paley) are all of the current evidences of above that I could find on the internet.

Years ago, I had shown the aforementioned videotape program to many groups while traveling on a circuit of South, Central and West Texas working for a patriotic organization.

Previously, I had sent a blank VHS videotape to Illinois Power regarding the aforementioned program. Illinois Power then transferred from their ¾” or 1” original master TV tape the entire 60 Minutes program -- in segments. They then restored, or spliced back into, the truncated 60 Minutes program sections that CBS had edited (removed). You see, the contractor had been allowed to film simultaneously along with the 60 Minutes crew. I am sure CBS felt that this small concession required by the contractor would do CBS no harm since Illinois Power had no network broadcasting facility through which to air its side of the story. Make no mistake the sections that CBS “edited out” was not JUST TO ALLOW FOR TIME CONSTRAINTS. It was quite self-evident this was done with malice aforethought.

That restored footage evidenced conclusions that stood in stark contrast to the ones fabricated by 60 Minutes. It is mind-boggling how one can manipulate a story – not merely by expressing outright falsehoods – but also by what forcing what must be necessarily inferred through the removal of indispensable “pieces of the puzzle”. Oh, the program made false statements such as the allegation that the contractor incurred huge cost overruns. Restored footage also contradicted the 60 Minutes’ charge that the builder had tried to hide and bury claims of former, mistreated employees. These poor, mistreated experts, according to CBS, were simply trying to “expose” gross safety violations of Illinois Power – this by the employer supposedly cutting corners to minimize costs. The restored footage shows that some of these so-called “experts” were no such thing. Some were malcontents terminated for not showing up for work; others for not meeting work-level expectations. According to 60 Minutes, one of the “experts” supposedly attended Fairleigh Dickinson College; but the restored footage showed that school records indicated that this, too, was a fabrication.

60 Minutes implied false results of a legal court hearing surrounding allegations of the plant operation.

The excellent Illinois Power program concluded with the narrator standing at the Clinton Nuclear Power Plant site. Coincidentally, this was very close in physical proximity to where Abraham Lincoln had stood nearly one hundred years earlier. The commentator concluded by quoting a section of Lincoln’s speech when he said, “You can fool some of the people all of the time, and all of the people some of the time, but you can not fool all of the people all of the time.”

As a result of these gross violations of trust, I could never again have any confidence in a CBS-produced program even if said program were accurate and true. Once this kind of fidelity is betrayed; it should not again be trusted. Certainly that should be the case until upper management replaces those who authorized the aforementioned. However, with recent charges against CBS concerning the dubious documents questioning George W. Bush’s military service, I think it’s safe to assume there’s “nothing new under the sun” at CBS.

[TexasCajun]

Welcome. And there's really a Clinton Nuclear Power Plant?

And did you hear Karl Rove, aka Lucy Ramirez duped Dan Rather?

[digijeff]

You've posted this message on several boards. I thought I'd give you a hand by mentioning a couple key points that you might not have been aware of:

1) Despite the protestations of IP, the Clinton plant was completed about 6 or 7 years behind schedule and 4 Billion dollars over the initial budget. They sold it off just a few years ago for 20 Million. The cost overruns and poor performance of the plant may be one of the reasons electricity is so expensive in the region.

2) One of the people who was fired for non-performance provided reports indicating that the plant was seriously behind schedule and over budget. According to him, his refusal to stop producing such reports was what got him fired.

3) IP had been getting mixed coverage in the local media well before the 60 Minutes broadcast. The 60 Minutes show gave them an opportunity to blast their story to other power plants and stockholders across the country.

So, who do you think did the most "fooling"?