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| A Study In The Arrogance And Egotism Of Dan Rather | ||||||
| It appears that CBS news stalwart Dan Rather might finally be on the road to recovery. Rather, infamous for his arrogance and egoism, made headlines most recently with his "60 Minutes Wednesday" gaffe when he went on a story about President George W. Bush's National Guard record. The story should have underwent at least a minimal fact checking session, something any good journalist would demand, but didn't, and ultimately cost Rather his job. Now, according to a New York Daily News story, Rather has admitted that the many attacks he has endured that have questioned his credibility actually got to him. Well, well, well, apparently somebody does have a conscience! | ||||||
| Rather, in an interview with the Daily News, said the following: "No rhinoceros has a hide so thick that some well-placed, hard-thrown, pointed spear can?t get under it." This quote, reminiscent of Rather's famous "Ratherisms," could seriously be considered as the first step to recovery in a career that has, at times, had many people collectively scratching their heads and wondering, "Is he for real?" As a journalist, I have to say that Rather's way of doing things has always left me at a loss for words, and that isn't a good thing. Let's take a trip down memory lane, shall we? | ||||||
| Dateline - June 2, 1988: This date marks what was definitely one of Rather's more scandalous debacles. In what CBS was touting as the "rebirth of the TV documentary," Rather's stunning "expose" on Vietnam, "CBS Reports: The Wall Within," stands as yet another beautiful example of when fact checking would have done an anchor good. In "Wall," Rather interviewed several Vietnam "veterans" who described countless unspeakable acts and atrocities that they were behind during their tour of duty. The horrors described included the skinning of humans, the torching of villiages and the killing of civilians, all of which had Rather nodding in awestruck numbness, yet were later totally debunked when evidence came out that most of the "vets" interviewed hadn't even seen battle with their own eyes, and served in many less-than-heroic positions. Strike one. | ||||||
| Dateline - 1980: After "60 Minutes" was sued by California doctor Carl Galloway for saying that he took part in an insurance fraud, several reporters embarked on the ever-elusive interview with Dan Rather, which is something the newsman usually doesn't do because he is, after all, above us, right? Rather was finally ambushed by a reporter outside the CBS building, and smiling with his trademark Texas grin said the following: "Get the microphone right up, will you? Fuck you. You got it?" Rather later said that he didn't know it was a reporter who he was talking to and was forced to apologize by CBS. Gee, Dan, whoddathunk it was a reporter that approached you and stuck a microphone in your face? Strike two, and please Dan, stop lying...I thought you were a good Christian, as you have so often vocalized. | ||||||
| Dateline - Sept. 11, 1987: Here, in one of the worst televised temper-tantrums ever, Rather walked off the set for six minutes after a tennis match went long and interrupted his uninterruptible newscast. I think this act speaks for itself, and demonstrates the complete arrogance that Rather has demonstrated over the years. Strike three, you're out! | ||||||
| These three examples only represent a minute fraction of all of the times that Rather has either misspoken, didn't check facts, or just plain acted like an ass. For a complete list of Rather's many gaffes, check RatherBiased.com. In the meantime, though, just find some solace in knowing that one of America's most bigheaded newsmen is finally admitting the error of his ways. "What's the frequency, Kenneth?" | ||||||
| Copyright Gerry Wachovsky, 2005, and Yahoo! Inc. All rights reserved. | ||||||
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