CBSNEWS LAUNCHES INTERNAL INVESTIGATION AFTER SUSPICIOUS BUSH DOCS AIRED (drudge Siren)

Drudge ^ | 9/9/2004 | drudge

[Keith in Iowa]

CBSNEWS LAUNCHES INTERNAL INVESTIGATION AFTER SUSPICIOUS BUSH DOCS AIRED

Nothig more yet...

**********More***

XXXXX DRUDGE REPORT XXXXX THU SEPT 09, 2004 22:45:32 ET XXXXX

CBSNEWS LAUNCHES INTERNAL INVESTIGATION AFTER SUSPICIOUS BUSH DOCS AIRED

**Exclusive**

CBS NEWS executives have launched an internal investigation into whether its premiere news program 60 MINUTES aired fabricated documents relating to Bush's National Guard service, the DRUDGE REPORT has learned.

"The reputation and integrity of the entire news division is at stake, if we are in error, it will be corrected," a top CBS source explained late Thursday.

The source, who asked not to be named, described CBSNEWS anchor and 60 MINUTES correspondent Dan Rather as being privately "shell-shocked" by the increasingly likelihood that the documents in question were fraudulent.

Rather, who anchored the segment presenting new information on the president's military service, will personally correct the record on-air, if need be, the source explained from New York.

MORE

[txbill]

I do not have a web site to post an image to, but I used Smart Capture to grab the signature from a CBS MEMO and then two from official government records released by the President. You should see the difference. I showed them to my wife who has no knowledge of all of this and she said they were not even close. If someone e-mails me I will send the *.jpg as an attachment to them so they can be posted.

[ArmyBratproud]

The only thing I want to hear out of Dan is....

"As of today....I am retiring from CBS."

[Robert A Cook PE]

"The document is a log of some sort. Different entries were made on different dates probably by different people using different typewriters.

Huh? What kind of CBS is that? The supposed author COULDN'T TYPE. He supposedly wrote these FOR HIS OWN RECORD, then kept them privately at home away from his office - which is not legal!

Have you READ the 4 memo's?

You're claiming a "smudge" rather than a superscript?

[Enlightiator]

No kidding. I've never posted a thread this hot before...and, the mods bumped it into "Breaking"...

Everyone wants to be in on the celebration thread. It's hugh, series, and for great justice! Am I logged on?

[Happy2BMe]

ping - only 9 more nails left in Kerry's coffin!

[Braak]

I love it, we caught them RED HANDED!!! We are gonna send W back where he belongs for a second term, and after the dust settles, I predict a butt whooping of epic proportions!

[LikeLight]

He said that a CBS reporter read the documents to Hodges over the phone

Something like, "Okay, now how does it sound? About right? Our backroom boys are pretty good, huh?"

[mass55th]

"Debunked. A couple of threads already going about that doc."

Does anybody have the link to this so I can bookmark it? Thanks.

[Naplm]

I Don’t Do Interviews

In 1980, Rather and CBS were hauled into court when a California doctor named Carl Galloway claimed that a Rather report on 60 Minutes wrongfully implicated him in an insurance fraud sceme. It got wide publicity while Rather was grilled on television, causing many a headache at CBS. After the trial, Rather kept refusing interview requests from a reporter.

Exasperated that Rather kept ignoring him, the reporter tried to get a surprise interview (à la 60 Minutes) as Rather was entering CBS's studio building. Rather agreed with a smile, "Get the microphone right up, will you?" With the camera rolling, Rather looked him in the eye and said: "Fuck you. You got it?"

The clip was played over and over again on TV and Rather was forced to apologize: "I mistook who you were and what you were doing. That was inexcusable, rude and un-Christian behavior, for which I am remorseful," Rather's statement said.

[Phantom Lord]

I don't think the "regular" media can ignore this like they would like to.

This isn't the SwiftVet ads. Which were paid advertisements. Easy to sweep stuff like that under the rug.

This however is one the the supposedly "most respected" news programs on TV today. It was not an opinon piece, nor the communication of "what people are talking about." This was presented by one of the big 3 as an absolute fact about the President of the United States.

Other big MSM players have no choice but to carry the story, and because of the competitive and cut throat nature of the news biz, they will also want to mortally wound CBS.

[afropick]

This will be the deciding blow that pushes Bush over the top. Most of the muddled middle will see this blatant attempt by a major media outlet to oust a President. Can I say a possible 40 state blow out?

[litany_of_lies]

I actually checked the PO box # and it's legit. Some others from the doc dump have the same PO Box, and there is a working zip code for the PO box even today (77234 instead of 77034).

Like you, I thought it looked bogus. But then, unlike a certain news anchor, I checked it out.

[I'm ALL Right!]

Re-written in more believable "Dan Rather" language.

Blather's Apology:

"It has come to our attention, here at CBS, that the documents we hoped would be the nail in Bush's coffin were forgeries. We’re sorry our reporting is shakier than cafeteria Jell-O. We're really very sorry the documents were not genuine. We're even more sorry the world found out about that. Right now we’re about as uncomfortable as a too-small bathing suit on a too-long ride home from the beach. We're sorry we didn't have any REAL dirt on President Bush. We're sorry that Kerry is such a weak candidate. We're sorry that none of the mud we continue to throw at the President seems to be sticking. We've lived by the crystal ball, we're eating so much broken glass. We're in critical condition. We're sorry, we're sorry, we're SO sorry."

[NavySEAL F-16]

I have no doubt someone was trying to set CBS up with these documents

It had to be someone that was pretty sure Danny would run with them, and not bother to have them authenticated.

But, my guess is that CBS/Dan Rather just do not understand the power of the "new media", and that they would be taken down in less than 14 hours.

They are probably still spinning trying to figure out how the "common people" could take them down.

[Keith in Iowa]

I got onto Harkin's web site to ask the question about how he feels now that the source material he used for his attack on Bush is forged. And told him he's a schmuck.

[hoosiermama]

Reminds me of something I typed last night....Everyone does their part...Some have ideas, some are the grunts in the field, some are encouragers, some validators, some play devils advocate, but ALL contribute....

.That's what's so wonderful about FR, we all have a chance to get involved....and we are making a difference.

[Mike Fieschko]

Hey, I didn't know Dan slept on the highway.

[Jim Robinson]

LOL

[mplsconservative]

I think you are spot on.

Arrogance ala Kerry, and the like, will sink them every time.

[Timeout]

But what these [MSM] wonks really wanted was to tell people what they should read and what was authoritativ

Authoritative, huh? The forgery story broke in the blogospher mid-day and at the AP 3 hours ago. It's been on the WashPost front page for almost 2 hours.

Sooooo-- I checked around and CNN, the NY Times, the LA Times, the Boston Globe, and the Chicago Tribune still have the original Guard story up, citing the CBS documents.

As I wrote to the LA Times: DON'T YOU GUYS READ THE PAPERS?!