Posted on 09/09/2004 4:42:30 PM PDT by dep
DOCUMENTS CITED Wednesday by 60 Minutes in a widely-publicized expose of George W. Bush's National Guard Service are very likely forgeries, according to several experts on document authenticity and typography. The documents--four memos from Killian to himself or his files written in 1972 and 1973--appear to indicate that Bush refused or ignored orders to have a physical exam required to continue flying. CBS News anchor Dan Rather reported the segment and sourced the documents this way: "60 Minutes has obtained a number of documents we are told were taken from Col. Killian's personal file," he said. The 60 Minutes story served as the basis for follow-up news reports for dozens of news organizations across the country. The memos were almost immediately questioned in the blog world, with blog Power Line leading the charge.
And according to several forensic document experts contacted by THE WEEKLY STANDARD say the Killian memos appear to be forgeries. Although it is nearly impossible to establish with certainty the authenticity of documents without a careful examination of the originals, several irregularities in the Killian memos suggest that CBS may have been the victim of a hoax.
"These sure look like forgeries," says William Flynn, a forensic document expert widely considered the nation's top analyst of computer-generated documents. Flynn looked at copies of the documents posted on the CBS News website (here, here, here, and here). Flynn says, "I would say it looks very likely that these documents could not
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have existed" in the early 1970s, when they were allegedly written.
Several other experts agree. "They look mighty suspicious," says a veteran forensic document expert who asked not to be quoted by name. Richard Polt, a Xavier University philosophy professor who operates a website dedicated to typewriters, says that while he is not an expert on typesetting, the documents "look like typical word-processed documents."
There are several reasons these experts are skeptical of the authenticity of the Killian memos. First the typographic spacing is proportional, as is routine with professional typesetting and computer typography, not monospace, as was common in typewriters in the 1970s. (In proportional type, thin letters like "i" and "l" are spaced closer together than thick letters like "W" and "M". In monospace, all the letter widths are the same.)
Second, the font appears to be identical to the Times New Roman font that is the default typeface in Microsoft Word and other modern word processing programs. According to Flynn, the font is not listed in the Haas Atlas--the definitive encyclopedia of typewriter type fonts.
Third, the apostrophes are curlicues of the sort produced by word processors on personal computers, not the straight vertical hashmarks typical of typewriters. Finally, in some references to Bush's unit--the 111thFighter Interceptor Squadron--the "th" is a superscript in a smaller size than the other type. Again, this is typical (and often done automatically) in modern word processing programs. Although several experts allow that such a rendering might have been theoretically possible in the early 1970s, it would have been highly unlikely. Superscripts produced on typewriters--the numbers preceding footnotes in term papers, for example--were almost always in the same size as the regular type.
So can we say with absolute certainty that the documents were forged? Not yet. Xavier University's Polt, in an email, offers two possible scenarios. "Either these are later transcriptions of earlier documents (which may have been handwritten or typed on a typewriter), or they are crude and amazingly foolish forgeries. I'm a Kerry supporter myself, but I won't let that cloud my objective judgment: I'm 99% sure that these documents were not produced in the early 1970s."
Says Flynn: "This looks pretty much like a hoax at this point in time."
CBS, in a statement Thursday afternoon, said it stands by the story. The network claims that its own document expert concluded the memos were authentic. There are several things CBS could do to clear up any confusion:
(1) Provide the name of the expert who authenticated the documents for Sixty Minutes.
(2) Provide the original documents to outside experts--William Flynn, Gerald Reynolds, and Peter Tytell seem to be the consensus top three in the United States--for further analysis.
(3) Provide more information on the source of the documents.
(A spokeswoman for CBS, Kelly Edwards, said she was overwhelmed with phone calls and did not respond to specific requests for comment.)
Stephen F. Hayes is a staff writer at The Weekly Standard.
ROTFLMSO!
ROFL...
Yes!!
I think Kitty and this forger will end up helping the President. Add that to the 9/11 memorials and the Vet rally on the mall in DC, and Bush should pick up a few more points over the weekend, in my opinion.
P.S. Harkin is a moron.
This is Hillary's caper!1 Give a faked doc to Carville or Begala or Korb orany other Clintonista to pass along to the Kerry camp to give to CBS, and when it's found to be a forgery, it blows Kerry out of the campaign!!
AMAZING!! I have said at several points throughout this campaign season that even if all else fails the MSM would have been exposed for the leftists they are. Now that is beginning to be a footnote to a much larger story.
Didn't a 'typewriter' do in Alger Hiss?
Refresh my memory about Harkin. Wasn't there some sort of sleazy political activity involving his staffers a couple of years ago?
Amid questions raised on Internet weblogs about the authenticity of National Guard documents potentially damaging to President Bush, CBS News told WorldNetDaily it stands by its claims.
Spokeswoman Kelli Edwards said she was aware of the charge that the documents, purportedly produced in 1972 and 1973, appear to have been forged with a modern word processor.
"As is standard practice at CBS News, each of the documents broadcast on '60 Minutes' was thoroughly investigated by independent experts, and we are convinced of their authenticity," said Edwards.
Edwards refused to comment further, referring back to her statement as the final word.
Later, however, she sent an e-mail to WND, adding, "CBS verified the authenticity of the documents by talking to individuals who had seen the documents at the time they were written. These individuals were close associates of [Bush commander] Colonel Jerry Killian and confirm that the documents reflect his opinions at the time the documents were written."
Well, they no longer have the "these aren't the original documents, but were enhanced for TV viewing" option.
So the questions arise:
Did someone want to ruin Rather?
Did someone want to ruin 60 Minutes/CBS/Viacom?
Did Rather/60 Minutes/CBS run with a hoax?
If any are true, I can think of lots of folks who would want to see these guys fall, and fall hard. If so, good, reap what you sow.
If it is the good guys behind the fakes, they are sure playing the MSM like a fiddle… It pretty much makes the MSM look like biased fools, not a bad thing, BTW.
For starters -- and for irony -- Harkin claimed that HE was in Vietnam until somebody proved he was flying in Japan the entier war.
"Either these are later transcriptions of earlier documents "
If so, the signatures are forgeries.
In addition to CBS and Dan Rather owing apologies, let's not forget about Senator Harkin and his tirade today, calling President Bush a liar. Harkin should be removed from office for general stupidity.
..in my best Ralph Kramden voice
HUMMADA HUMMADA HUMMADA
too fuuny
Doogle
LMAO! @ #5 post
What, you mean dead men can't sign their signature?
Come on, we're talking Democrats here...
The expert, George Soros, could not be reached for comment.
"If you make a charge against a candidate that initially seems damning but is quickly discredited, it ends up enhancing the candidates credibility. It also casts doubt on all future charges."
So maybe Carl Rove is responsible..he fakes up the doc's, gets them into dem hands..and voila..National Guard stuff is done..
just kidding, mostly...
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