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August 30, 2005

See? BS!

Sometimes one can read something and truly marvel at the absolute thickheadedness of the people involved.

Marvel, rather then doing what your gut wants, to throw-up.

After a controversial run-in with bloggers last year that helped sink "60 Minutes Wednesday," CBS has hired a "nonbudsman" to write a blog that will go behind the scenes at the news division.
Oh. CBS had a (not explained) "run-in" with bloggers so what to do? Have one's OWN blogger.
Former "Hotline" editor Vaughn Ververs will report his findings on "Public Eye," which debuts next month on http://www.cbsnews.com.

Ververs will be a kind of media reporter, mostly focused on CBS News, reporting and writing about how the news is gathered, produced and placed. In addition to providing Journalism 101, "Public Eye" also could offer extended versions of segments that appeared on CBS, interviews with correspondents and producers and maybe even the daily story meeting for the "CBS Evening News."

Ahhhh. Isn't that sweet? CBS figures people are so stupid about journalism they need to have it explained to them in a 101 class. Of course, don't expect really TOO much ...
"I'm not here to set the rules," Ververs said. "I'm not even here to voice my opinion. That's not my job."
Well, what IS your job, Ververs? Outside of teaching Journalism 101?
"It's going to be an honest, fair, unvarnished look at what we do, and that means that it's an experiment," Heyward said. "It's a risk. Not everybody approves of what we do. But I'm banking on the fact that people will also see how much effort we make about being fair and being ethical."
BHWAHAHAHAHA! Oh my that's rich. Notice, too, that no mention of what caused the "run-in with bloggers" yet? Oh, but wait for it, see how they frame it ....
In the wake of the discredited "60 Minutes Wednesday" report about President Bush's service in the National Guard, CBS News was criticized for not being immediately forthcoming after questions about the reporting emerged.

Kramer thinks that in the case of last year's "Memogate" involving Dan Rather and "60 Minutes Wednesday," something like "Public Eye" would have been useful.

"It would help a news organization deal with controversy because it brings it out into the open," Kramer said. "If you believe as I do that we're an honest, hard-working news organization, all you need to do is have the ability to explain how you do what you do and they'll understand."

CBS was criticized for not ANSWERING questions fast enough? Sure nuf. Had NOTHING to do with the deliberate attempt to pass fraudulant --- FRAUDULANT --- documents as real in a blatant attempt at political manipulation before an election. Nothing to do that such documents were easily proven frauds by the "run-in" bloggers and the controversy was NOT about so-called transparency but about outright fraud.

What I understand, after all the stonewalling, whitewashing and circling of wagons, Ververs et al, still are trying to pretend that an "honest mistake" took place.

I'm only sorry that criminal charges were not levied against Dan Rather and his producer.

Posted by Darleen at August 30, 2005 12:53 PM

Comments

- No one... and I mean no one, including the oft-vaunted FOX news would really go after this because it was just to freeking big. The problem is theres too much evidence that it would have led eventually back to the DNC, and set of a round of finger pointing and law suits unlike anything else ever seen. Add to that the very real possibility that criminal indictments would have had to be issued, Kerrys campaign would have been halted in mid-step leaving the Dem's with no viable candidate and the entire election process in a shambles, and its not hard to see why it wasn't pursued. The same thing happened with the swift boat mess, and the dead end, no pursuit rule, concerning Kerrys dishonorable discharge(s). The idea is to beat your opponent, not turn the whole election process into a joke.

Wrap that big pile of stinking fish in the fact that Mapes and Heyward and several other players, including top management at CBS, all not only approved of the fraud, but were in on it from the very beginning, and you'll understand why nothing has really happened to any of them. Mapes let them know right from the gitgo that if she went down she was going to take them all with her. I notice the much feared "expose" she casually mentioned, when it looked like CBS was going to use her for CYA practice, has still yet to see the light of day. No one with a working brain cell is buying this whole viscious politically motivated scheme. And I don't care if Rove did send the guy with the pack of phoney papers to the Dems in the first place. *chuckle*

Posted by: Big Bang Hunter at August 31, 2005 11:44 PM