I watched the whole thing as well. The Dems will see it as vindication, but to my mind it was an obvious scam.
1. "Independent local producer contacted us."
2. Present Vietnam government decided to go along after they got drift of what the reporters were up to.
3. The purpose was to vindicate a presidential candidate that was their single most influential ally 35 years in the propaganda war in the streets of the US.
4. As O'Neill points out Kerry is honored as a hero of their side in their war museum.
5. All talking is with local peasants who supposedly were Viet Cong 35 years ago, interpreted by the official Vietnam government "monitor" along for the purpose.
6. Everyone "remembers" details including the name of the visiting RPG toting VC, even though he was not a local, there for only a day or so, etc."
7. Granny just happens to have the VC arms still buried under her garden 35 years later (although they didn't bother to dig to prove it) and admits it to (through) the government monitor. [Who would believe that a peasant with a bunch of automatic weapons hidden for 35 years in a communist country casually tells the government about it and noone thinks anything of it!?!?]
Instead of Ted Koppel's straight-faced Dan Rather moment, "We only reported what we found, if we had found Kerry exaggerated we would have reported it straight, like we always do..blah, blah,blah...."
I would have rather have John Stossel saying, "Give me a break!"
its running again now...
Koppel still in the review and interview of vietnamese.