Rather says he was victim of 'own shortcomings'

CNN ^ | 6-3-05 | my favorite headache

[ken5050]

Lawdie..he's still spinning..and they're going to let him n the Sunday 60 minutes?..the MSM keeps jumping into its own grave, digging it deeper..

[beyond the sea]

Rather says he was victim of 'own shortcomings'

---

That's a little more than we needed to know, Danno.

Just explain to the ladies, "You can't do precision work with a sledgehammer."

;-)

[GraceCoolidge]

"Clearly, there are some people -- for their own partisan, political and ideological reasons -- who want to jump on people who they perceive to be not with them."

And Dan Rather certainly would know! Talk about the pot calling the kettle black....

[PBRSTREETGANG]

Rather says he was victim of 'own shortcomings'

Not soon enough.

[Buckhead]

That excerpt is stunning. Rather's contact with reality is extremely tenuous.

[gridlock]

Although admitting the documents had weaknesses, he said that "the facts were supported by all kinds of things other than the documents."

If the story is supported by all kinds of things other than the obviously forged documents, why rely on the obviously forged documents at all? If it is still a legitimate story, why not present the case without using the obviously forged documents?

The argument could be made that CBSNews relied on the documents because TV news needs a visual item to flash on the screen, and that it is incapable of presenting a story that is purely verbal, without anything tangible to show. To me, this demonstrates the weakness of TV news, which is why I never rely on this medium. Stories with boffo visuals lead, and other stories languish or never make the air at all, because there is no visual angle. So you get ten days of wall-to-wall coverage on the Rodney King videotape, while more important stories are never heard.

Of course, in this particular case the entire story was BS from the git-go. But you will never hear Dan Rather admit that.

[gridlock]

The producer of the segment was fired, and three executives were asked to resign following the broadcast.

Somebody who has been following this train wreck... Did those three executives ever actually, you know, resign? Or is CBS going to rely on a semantic defense as bankrupt as John F. Kerry's "I signed my Form 180, I just haven't turned it in..."

[MinuteGal]

The transcript above shows that Rather is an incoherent mess. My parakeet can put better sentences together than that.

And he still thinks of himself as a "journalist"?

Someone in his family should rein him in with a butterfly net and set him up in a remodeled garage to live out his days.

Leni

[MissEdie]

So that's his excuse for being a mental midget?

[libs_kma]

"I've always tried to be an independent reporter..."

That quote struck me as funny coming fro Dan Blather also.

Trying to be an independent reporter is about as noble as it gets for your chosen profession Dan. Too bad you failed miserably and ended up as a partisan hack.

Maybe in your next life you'll reach a goal. Talk to moonbat Shirley McLaine and she may even tell you what you're coming back as, but smart money says a donkey.

[maggief]

Perhaps Rather has "snapped" ...

KING: As you reflect, and after seeing the report, what went wrong in your matter on the Air National Guard story? Where along the way did it snap?

RATHER: Without agreeing with the premise of whether it snapped or not...

KING: Well, I don't know another word. You might still believe the story, by the way.

RATHER: Well, without getting into that because the panel, this panel that was chosen by CBS to look into it, they issued their report. CBS adopted the report. I said at the time and I say now, I read the report. I absorbed it. I carried forward in my work. Anybody wants to know the panel's version of what happened should read the report.

The situation that we had and still have is the last line of this has not been written. I will be very interested to see the last line of this story (INAUDIBLE) written. But, you know, I've acknowledged that we didn't do it perfectly. I wish we had. Others may say, well, you didn't do it well. They're entitled to that judgment.

[Hatteras]

"My parakeet can put better sentences together than that."

Yeah, but can your parakeet do it gently?

[ken5050]

This is going to explode...it has a delayed fuse..wanna bet Rush goes ape over this today? I'll predict right now that CBS will be forced to pull Rather off 60 minutes..He will NEVER do a report on that show..

[American in Singapore]

"If you know you're a victim of your own shortcomings, why not just STFU?"

He can't STFU because he's trying to "fail up" - as Rush would say - and become a bigger liberal star.

[Sir Francis Dashwood]

What is with the suspenders? Is Damn Blather trying to be a Larry King clone now?

[Sir Francis Dashwood]

Larry and Dan should have worn matching suspenders for the show...

That would really lend credibility to their journalistic integrity!

[shibumi]

What's the frequency, Kenneth?

(Brain damage from a beating sometimes takes years to surface completely.)

[Space Wrangler]

Rather wasn't a victim of anything. He made a calculated move to bring Bush down using a fake story. He didn't want the fake memo to be vetted. He wanted it rushed to air in hopes that it would swing the election to Kerry. If the right thing were done, the FBI should have raided CBS, yanked their FCC liscence, and had Rather, Mapes, et al in federal custody awaiting trial on charges of election fraud. "Victim of his own shortcomings" my arse.

[Paine in the Neck]

"I'm stupid. I've always been stupid. I've known for a long time that eventually it would lead me to make a big mistake" - D.R.

[No Surrender No Retreat]

Yes he was a victim because he got caught lying&fabricating. He needs some cell time with a mega bubba to find his feminine side. It's everyone elses fault, not a liberals. NSNR