"Courage" Dan....
Posted on 03/09/2005 3:28:47 PM PST by Former Military Chick
NEW YORK (AP) -- Dan Rather, whose network reporting career spanned from the Kennedy assassination to the deadly tsunami, prepared to sign off Wednesday after 24 years as "CBS Evening News" anchorman.
Rather was the public face of the legendary news division since replacing Walter Cronkite on March 9, 1981. His first newscast included a story about English girls imitating the hairstyle of Price Charles' bride-to-be, Diana.
He's the second of the three men who dominated network news for more than two decades to step down in four months. NBC's Tom Brokaw exited in November, leaving ABC's Peter Jennings remaining at "World News Tonight."
Bob Schieffer is Rather's temporary replacement starting Thursday. CBS expects to name a permanent anchor team to succeed Rather in the coming months.
Rather, 73, is returning to full-time reporting for CBS' "60 Minutes" broadcasts.
His exit comes at a low ebb for his career. Rather took much of the public blame for a discredited "60 Minutes" story last fall about President Bush's military service, and he's a distant third in the ratings behind NBC's Brian Williams and Jennings.
He was a target of conservative viewers who accuse the media of bias for more than three decades, since his coverage of the Nixon White House during the Watergate era, and many have exulted in his recent misfortunes.
But he had his supporters, too.
Marian MacNeil of Windsor, Calif., said she watched Rather regularly and admired him. "I feel terrible the way he's being treated now," MacNeil said. "I think they're smearing a good reputation and overshadowing his 50 years. I hope he's able to rise above this."
Meanwhile, a CBS affiliate in northern Michigan that had said it would let its viewers decide whether it should run Wednesday's prime-time CBS tribute to Rather backed off those plans. The station in Cadillac, Mich., said Wednesday its poll had been grossly misinterpreted.
"We were simply trying to maintain the great tradition of local viewer input that is the foundation of our modern day broadcasting system," said William E. Kring, the station's general manager. "It was never our intent to embarrass Mr. Rather or the CBS network."
Both Jennings and Williams planned to pay tribute to Rather on their broadcasts.
As they say he made his bed he now must lie in it. He will have a lot of time for reflection and not to be shocked when the CBS Nightly News ratings soar after your departure.
I think that will be the most telling and should it bring in huge numbers -- Rather will only have himself to blame.
Nixon must be grinning...
Its my birthday today. I can't think of a better present!
I hope his retirement documents ARE FAKES!!!!
he is not going away, just like the Clintons
How long did this reporter have to search before he turned up Marian MacNeil?
Dan who?
GOOD-BYE
From the land of fruits and nuts...
Well for my part Ol'Danny boy left a long,long time ago.
Sorry I'm going to miss his Opus Night at see BS tonight.
Just hope he disappears like a wad of stink-bate in a Cat Fish pond.
Just to remind of the obvious, she's NOT talking about Rather and crew attempting to calumniate BOOOSH (the real enemy!, you see). No, she's crying about the man who attempted the dirty deed. Poor wiwwle. Snidely is tying Nell to the tracks, in the old 19th century melodrama. And not much less than half the audience is cheering mustache-face on, because he has such a "good reputation" (his fellow media never described him as anything but a respectable 'banker', or whatever Snidely is supposed to be).
I guess if they have people speaking this way then they're performing the 'play' in the right county.
The old bastard vampire ain't dead yet. He will be returning to the communist broadcast system periodically to fly around the TV studio calling out some of his old sayings, like "In southern states they beat him like a rented mule."
Also Dan Blather will be accompanied by his side-kick "Baghdad Bob", who will have such things to say as: "Nobody came here. Those America losers, I think their repeated frequent lies are bringing them down very rapidly.... Baghdad is secure, is safe."
Bye Dan! Don't let the blogosphere hit you on the can as you leave the stage!
eeeeeeeeeeewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!!!!!! Don't do that.
and don't forget the flakes.
Oh, DAAAAAAAAAN, BUSH WON! And you helped!
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