[Common Tator]

Did you have a VCR in 1971? Did you know anyone who did?

Actually the Beta Max was invented in 1975 and and VHS came out at about the same time. So it is highly unlikely that someone recorded this off the air at home. A reel to reel Video Tape machine cost a lot of money in 1971... several thousand dollsrs.

The station where the show was taped and aired is WRC-TV in Washington D.C. It is an NBC station. Can you imagine an NBC station feeding a story exclusively to ABC. When Ford dealers promote Chevies... is when that will happen.

I think there was opposition research that discovered this tape. Perhaps an interveiw with a Viet Nam vet who hates Kerry and vividly remembered the show started someone looking for a tape. Many stations got rid of old Video tapes when they finally went to storing video on computer hard drives. CNN for example went to Hard drive video in 1997.

The question is who got the old tape from whom and when did they get it.

An even more important question isis who shopped the tape to ABC. It was not likely something done by the Bush Camp. If Bush's people had done it the first thing ABC woudl have done is played the tape and trashed the Bush camp for (GASP)secret and mean spirited negative campaigning.

That leaves the Clinton's or some Democratic operative as the source. ABC would cover for them, and gladly trash Kerry if that is what the Clinton's wanted done.

How much damage would it do to Hillary, and Kerry if the source of the tape could be tied to Hillary.

Hillary the gal that destroyed Democratic Chances in 2004, would put a huge dent in her future.

I would betcha the source was not a Republican and not a journalist.

[Peach]

Interesting points (as usual).

[Terry Mross]

Hillary can do no wrong. In fact, neither Clinton can do wrong. They are Gods! She could hold a press conference and say, "I leaked the tape to the press because I don't think Kerry is good for America." Her poll numbers would be 60%. Sad but true.

[TommyDale]

The videotape could very well have been in his FBI files. Let's see, who has copies of FBI files?

[prairiebreeze]

Yup. I think you've nailed it. Ever since Drudge broke this GMA segment last night, we've thought that it smelled like Hillary. (sorry)

Prairie

[MEG33]

This will get some play today.I may watch CNN and MSNBC to see if they have it ..coming up on Fox.

[RottiBiz]

But the issue is not so cut and dried. A television interview Mr. Kerry gave in November 1971 shows that Mr. Kerry himself fed the confusion from early on. The New York Times obtained a videotape of the interview late last week.

The interview was shown on the Washington television station WRC, archived by President Richard M. Nixon's communications office and held by the National Archives.

1971 Tape Adds to Debate

[YaYa123]

Your # 165 VERY insightful!

I didn't know the local DC station was an NBC affiliate. Have they always been? (I know local Atlanta stations have switched networks, so it's possible). Maybe they were ABC back then and had to give ABC first dibs on the tape.

But my guess is NBC turned down the tape.

I'm guessing media insiders knew about the tape for awhile. The Saturday NYT column now reads like an innoculation attempt.

I continue to think that if ABC really wanted to roast Kerrey on this, Peter Jennings would have aired it on his night news, before GMA.