Blog-GateYes, CBS screwed up badly in ‘Memogate’ — but so did those who covered the affair

Columbia Journalism Review ^ | January 3, 2005 | Corey Pein

[Blue Screen of Death]

I couldn't even get half way through this tortured "logic" and erroneous equivalencies this guy tries (and naturally fails) to make.

He is a journalism major. If most journalism majors could understand enough logic and reasoning to meet minimum math requirements, they would have real majors.

[FreedomPoster]

>>And he took 30 paragraphs saying it........LOL.

Exactly. Diarrhea of the mouth, and total denial of reality. A not-atypical Leftie.

[RAY]

The AH and their supporters in MSM's rationalization for their actions borders on fraud (or damn right lying) -- don't trust any of them and like them less!

[Howlin]

But on close examination the scene looks less like a victory for democracy than a case of mob rule.

I couldn't quite figure out what that meant.

[agincourt1415]

"It was Agincourt"

It wasn't, I only watched, LOL!

[AZ_Cowboy]

My hat's off to you. Obviously, you caught them with their pants down, because if Rather had a prayer of surviving the investigation, they would have kept him and used the whole thing as a bludgeon against the blogosphere. One can be all but certain that Rather didn't just fall off his high horse with a mouse fart, as it were.

Kudos to all you folks. The MSM finally did it to itself.

[Earthdweller]

I don't think it means he is making nice. Maybe it's just me.

[Dog Gone]

I read the whole thing and all I can say is that someone is drinking Dan Rather's Kool-Aid. This is pathetic.

[BushisTheMan]

We know Killian’s name was on them. We don’t know whether the memos were forged, authentic, or some combination thereof.

However, CBS's Mary Mapes didn't even bother to contact the man's son or wife about the memos. How can that me good reporting?

[Pharmboy]

Why isn't the CSJ calling for the results of the the see-BS investigation? What did Cap'n Dan the Newsman know and when did he know it? (And, does Kenneth know the frequency yet?)

[cyncooper]

But on close examination the scene looks less like a victory for democracy than a case of mob rule.

I couldn't quite figure out what that meant.

The impression I got was this was the liberal idea that "truth is what you want it to be" and this time, (to this schmo's great ire), the common man (aka "mob") won the day as if they didn't have objective fact on their side, but managed to get the upper hand by talking loud and long.

[cyncooper]

However, CBS's Mary Mapes didn't even bother to contact the man's son or wife about the memos. How can that me good reporting?

Exactly. It's not.

It also exposes the "Mary was working this story like a dog for five years!" story for the lie that it is. I've never believed that pile of garbage. It was a matter of manufacturing and crafting a lie and presenting it when they felt the time was right.

[MarineBrat]

Newcomer begins with the presumption that the documents are forgeries, and as evidence submits that he can create a very similar document on his computer. This proves nothing — you could make a replica of almost any document using Word. Yet Newcomer’s aggressive conclusion is based on this logical error.

Er, ah.... pardon me Mr. Spock, but the "logical" point goes the other way. You can produce many different document styles with Word, but you can't do it with a typewriter.

[Howlin]

Oh, I get it now: "the great unwashed masses."

[processing please hold]

I stopped reading after about the seventh paragraph. It all began to read blah blah blah. Same ole same ole. MSM making excuses.

[cyncooper]

"the great unwashed masses."

Yup. The Coreys of the world look down on us, as you can see. We didn't behave and listen to what the nice MSM was telling us. We dared to question it. And the worst---was the questions brought out a very nasty little truth: We were being lied to. Now Corey is trying to tell us not to believe our lying eyes.

[Southack]

My, my, how the mighty Columbia School of Journalism has fallen.

First of all, Dan Rather told the world that his source for the documents was unimpeachable. Who today still thinks that Burkett, with wild-eyed lawsuits and an axe to grind, remains "unimpeachable?" Since Burkett (or Bartlet) isn't/aren't unimpeachable (and certainly Mary Mapes has a left-wing axe to grind as well), then Rather's sole legitimate defense is gone.

Second, the 4 memos used the wrong terminology. The correct word useage for that time period was "Airman's Medical" not "physical examination."

Third, the documents' font spacing was incompatible with memos written on military typewriters of that era, and the characters used, much to Dan Ra^ther's disappointment, weren't compatible with typing up a quick and dirty CYA memo.

Fourth, the documents contained military orders. Military orders require signoffs for the officer so being ordered, and must be filed with the official military system. CBS's 4 memos aren't in the official military system, and they have no signature from Lt. Bush.

So the 4 memos missed the correct terminology, technology, protocol, and formatting of the day.

The source behind the 4 memos turned out to be impeachable, Rather than unimpeachable, too.

No originals were ever produced, either. CBS staked its credibility on faxed "copies" that are clearly forgeries, yet the CSofJ goes to bat for them despite the obvious.

The beauty of this liberal double-standard, however, is that it means that liberals will be caught again and again repeating these sorts of mistakes in the future.

Because liberals aren't policing their own side, they will remain tainted and dirty. They simply haven't cleaned up their act yet.

This will yield victory after easy victory to our side. Liberals will burn themselves time and again defending such obvious future forgeries, too.

Life is good.

[Mister Baredog]

Welcome aboard, see my tagline, resistence is futile.

[Buckhead]

Where do you begin with this idiot?

Accusing Joseph Newcomer of logical fallacies and unsupported hyperbole by reducing his analysis to nothing more than Newcomer recreating the documents in MS Word is a screaming, flaming, flashing neon sign 1,000 feet tall that the author is a deliberate, malicious liar.

And how did I know? I'm 46 years old and I am not a blithering idiot.

How's that?

[TankerKC]

Awwww, look at that! Columbia School of Journalism is trying to be relevant...

I'm not familiar with CJR. I knew a story was coming out because I got a phone call from them. I assumed that they were a "middle of the road" journalism review. Perhaps I was wrong.