So, what do you think is going to come of the CBS document fiasco?

[cyberhound]

Growing up, I used to really like Dan Rather. I thought he might be bit left leaning but he was pretty much straight shooter. I began to lose that feeling in the late 80's. But, this time I think he and CBS have ruined themselves. That interview with the old lady last night was a fucking joke. I think the guy is toast.

[nubby]

Maybe, but I don't really realy too heavily on people like Dan Rather for my news.

[cyberhound]

Maybe, but I don't really realy too heavily on people like Dan Rather for my news.
I don't either anymore, but it's pretty lame what they are continuing to do.

[Rippy]

I missed it. whats the interview with the old lady about?

[sliver108]

yes what was it about?

[Jake]

Rather has always been a Democrat, and made no qualms about it. he donates to the dems, which used to be fine...


then he got into a fight with the 1st Bush back in 88, and from there he kind fell apart, and grew more hateful and spiteful in his tone. I'll never forget his 2000 election coverage when he 'encouraged' democrats that it wasn't over despite Bush's wins in a few key states.

This is just the capper to his career. He should've heeded the advice of admitted liberal Walter Cronkite and retired at 64. Now, what little people that watch CBS news are gone, and they're behind King Of Queens reruns in the ratings.

[Carbon Copy]

i guesss im the only one here that still loves him to death. i remember him crying on david letterman after the 9/11 attacks..it touched me and ill never forget that

[barefoot]

From what I have seen the coverage of the " mistake " is not as prevelant as the coverage when the thought the memo was legit. This of course doesnt surprise me because most of the media is def liberal biased. ( except Fox of course :lol )

[mwjorgens]

Growing up, I used to really like Dan Rather. I thought he might be bit left leaning but he was pretty much straight shooter. I began to lose that feeling in the late 80's. But, this time I think he and CBS have ruined themselves. That interview with the old lady last night was a fucking joke. I think the guy is toast.
you thought he was left, maybe right? you mean the people who write the cards hes reading off of. he has no opinion, no newscaster does. if they did they wouldnt be on the news. they do what they are told, they do what keeps their job.

[cyberhound]

you thought he was left, maybe right? you mean the people who write the cards hes reading off of. he has no opinion, no newscaster does. if they did they wouldnt be on the news. they do what they are told, they do what keeps their job.
:lol So niave.

[Jake]

you thought he was left, maybe right? you mean the people who write the cards hes reading off of. he has no opinion, no newscaster does. if they did they wouldnt be on the news. they do what they are told, they do what keeps their job.


you know not of what you speak.

Rather writes stories as well as reads them. He is also an executive producer, so he is responsible for the content of what is on the air.


it's a misnomer that the talking heads don't write their own stuff. Some generic stories are written by producers, but on the local level, about 90% of the stuff you hear is written by the person reading it.

[Daevian]

I think Rather is pretty much over with. His credibility is pretty much ruined. I also think they're going to find who made the docs and very possibly prosecute them......









if they're a democrat. lol

[DollyLlama]

I think conspiracy theorists will have a field day. The right will say someone associated with Kerry did this. They wouldn't be this stupid. The documents wouldn't have left any questions as to their authenticity at the very least. The left will say that this is an ingenious scheme by Karl Rove. Same story. If this ever got traced to him, he and his candidate would be history. Others will say this is a hateful liberal in Dan Rather who concocted something to bring down Bush.

More likely, this is the work of some random Joe who thought it would be a good idea to concoct documents and fax them to CBS. CBS got them, saw ratings, put the blinders on, and ran with it. Oops. Unfortunately, I think this will further discourage the type of investigative journalism that we've been lacking since the watergate days.

I hope that these documents turn out to be genuine, not because they would be damaging to Bush, but because it would mean the news media isn't completely terrible. I think the forgery story has gotten so much air time though, that people would still have it in their heads that they're fake, even if they're proved to be otherwise.

[chellek23]

I will agree that niether campaign would be so stupid as to directly connect themselves with such a scandal.

But as to the whether or not these documents may be fake...? What more proof do you need??

1. Supposed author's son and wife say that he would not have written such a document.
2. Secretary for Gaurd at the time says the documents are absolutely fake. She did not type them, they are not in the correct form of the Gaurd at the time, etc. etc.
3. Numerous characteristics in the documents that are identifiable as part of MS Word.
4. CBS's OWN document 'experts' say that they never vouched for the authenticity of docs and that they in fact WARNED CBS not to base their story on the docs.


There's more but that's what I can think of off the type of my head.

If anything the whole CBS report is a blatant example of the BIASED views of a news organization. Their thirst for the scoop and to 'get' a sitting President Bush blinded them to any and all warning signs. Hell, they flat out ignored evidence to the contrary including a warning from one of their OWN experts that the documents are questionable. The shoddy reporting from a supposedly 'reputable' news organization is shameful. It not only ruins the reputation of Dan Rather and CBS news but it brings into question the true motives of all traditional news imo. If they are so eager to run with a story with so many ovious holes now, what have they done in the past?

This latest scandal is just an example of why a majority of Americans distrust journalist as much or more than lawyers.

[ss10mets]

Hey, everyone can make mistakes with docs.... your beloved Bush made some mistakes about documents and look where it has taken us!

[DollyLlama]

I will agree that niether campaign would be so stupid as to directly connect themselves with such a scandal.

But as to the whether or not these documents may be fake...? What more proof do you need??

1. Supposed author's son and wife say that he would not have written such a document.
2. Secretary for Gaurd at the time says the documents are absolutely fake. She did not type them, they are not in the correct form of the Gaurd at the time, etc. etc.
3. Numerous characteristics in the documents that are identifiable as part of MS Word.
4. CBS's OWN document 'experts' say that they never vouched for the authenticity of docs and that they in fact WARNED CBS not to base their story on the docs.


There's more but that's what I can think of off the type of my head.

If anything the whole CBS report is a blatant example of the BIASED views of a news organization. Their thirst for the scoop and to 'get' a sitting President Bush blinded them to any and all warning signs. Hell, they flat out ignored evidence to the contrary including a warning from one of their OWN experts that the documents are questionable. The shoddy reporting from a supposedly 'reputable' news organization is shameful. It not only ruins the reputation of Dan Rather and CBS news but it brings into question the true motives of all traditional news imo. If they are so eager to run with a story with so many ovious holes now, what have they done in the past?

This latest scandal is just an example of why a majority of Americans distrust journalist as much or more than lawyers.

First off, I do think the documents are fake. But that's based on gut feeling as much as evidence. I just have some misguided hope that the media is better than that.

Secondly, I haven't followed the story all that closely, so I may be missing some details or getting other details wrong.

All that said, in my opinion, all this "My husband/father/friend/son wouldn't do that" evidence is not evidence at all. So, it shouldn't even be considered. I think all the other evidence does make a compelling case that the documents are fake, but not an irrefutable one.

So the secretary said she didn't type them. First off, could Killian not have typed them himself? Maybe he didn't want other people to see them because they were a lit stick of dynamite. Also, do you remember all the e-mail you sent a year ago? Do you really think you'd have a complete recollection of something you may or may not have typed 32 years ago? I'm just speculating, of course.

Yes, the proportional font and superscript is fishy. But, it has been proven that typewriters at the time did have that feature, although it was rare. Plus, apparently some of the other documents that have been released shared the same typographic characteristics. Does that mean they were forged too? I have a funny feeling the ones that are positive towards Bush won't really be questioned.

As for people at CBS saying this story shouldn't be aired, I really haven't heard much about that. The only thing is that any such opinion does not necessarily mean the documents are fake. It just means that CBS did not fulfill their obligation to make sure their story was rock solid. If they had done so, either the story wouldn't have aired, or there really is something to the guard story that is rock solid and needs to be aired.

Again, I think the documents are fake, but it is within the realm of possibility that there are genuine. It is up to CBS to make the case that they are.

[Dancing Ants]

you thought he was left, maybe right? you mean the people who write the cards hes reading off of. he has no opinion, no newscaster does. if they did they wouldnt be on the news. they do what they are told, they do what keeps their job.


good one. they write there own stories and have them edited.

[Dancing Ants]

Hey, everyone can make mistakes with docs.... your beloved Bush made some mistakes about documents and look where it has taken us!

no he didn't . CIA and Russian Intel and British SIS made the mistakes. Bush made the decision, but did not get the docs mixed up.

[Davenumber40]

More likely, this is the work of some random Joe who thought it would be a good idea to concoct documents and fax them to CBS. CBS got them, saw ratings, put the blinders on, and ran with it. Oops. Unfortunately, I think this will further discourage the type of investigative journalism that we've been lacking since the watergate days.

I think this is great for journalism. Ever since Watergate the press has been trying to make marginal stories into Watergates for prestige. Maybe they will learn to check sources and think about the stories they're running again. I doubt it.

[michael822]

no he didn't . CIA and Russian Intel and British SIS made the mistakes. Bush made the decision, but did not get the docs mixed up.

Right, Bush had no responsibility at all in that situation huh?

[NavyBoy41]

gotta love the Communist Broadcasting System.... :monkey

[marco j]

I don't either anymore, but it's pretty lame what they are continuing to do.


what's wrong with it???? lying in the name of freedom?!?! sounds very bush/cheney to me.

[The Difference]

I don't really realy too heavily on people like Dan Rather for my news.Or CBS. But I think they will lose some respect for their scam.

[cyberhound]

what's wrong with it???? lying in the name of freedom?!?! sounds very bush/cheney to me.
While Bush may be subject of those documents, the thread is about CBS, Dan Rather, and their handling of a news story. It should be plainly obvious to you what is wrong with it.

[marco j]

While Bush may be subject of those documents, the thread is about CBS, Dan Rather, and their handling of a news story. It should be plainly obvious to you what is wrong with it.


nah not really. if Fox news can get away with what they put on their programming , then i think it'a ok for CBS to do the same.

both are wrong but if people don't hold Fox responsible for the lies and misdirection of information then why start with the liberal lie first?!?

[Gregb486]

so my brother interns for CBS, and his boss is at the epicenter of this whole thing.....

[watchtwrwildcat]

gotta love the Communist Broadcasting System.... :monkey
funny you should say that....I grew up hearing Rather referred to as "Red Dan"...

[cyberhound]

nah not really. if Fox news can get away with what they put on their programming , then i think it'a ok for CBS to do the same.

both are wrong but if people don't hold Fox responsible for the lies and misdirection of information then why start with the liberal lie first?!?
And you can provide specific examples?

[Daevian]

And you can provide specific examples?
Not to be pessimistic or even offense but my answer is doubtful. So now I'm just gonna change my title to Fox News Fan Boy.:lol

[pkpro1]

is there a transcript of the interview? i wasn't home at the time......

[pkpro1]

is there a transcript or video/torrent of the interview? i wasn't home at the time......

[bdb23]

Latest from cnn.com...

BREAKING NEWS CBS says it cannot vouch for authenticity of documents broadcast on '60 Minutes' that cast doubt on President Bush's National Guard record. Details soon.