Rather: 'Nobody Has Proved Documents Were Fakes'

NewsBusters ^ | Mark Finkelstein

[governsleastgovernsbest]

Partners in deception, partners in denial . . .

Earlier today I noted that in her HuffPo column, ex-CBS producer Mary Mapes continues to cling to the delusion that the Memogate documents were authentic. In an inteview on "Morning Joe," Dan Rather has now made a similar reality-denying claim.

Mika Brzezinski, who, as was repeatedly pointed out, used to work at CBS and has friends on both sides of the issue, conducted the interview. Bubbles didn't have the gumption to confront Rather with the crux of the issue: the forged documents at the heart of the story. Interestingly, Rather chose to raise the issue himself, and in doing so demonstrated his departure from reality and a twisted sense of journalistic standards.

View video here.

DAN RATHER: We haven't noted here, Mika, that nobody has disputed that the story of President Bush's service in the National Guard, how he got in, and what he did and didn't do when he went in there, nobody's disputed the story was untrue [sic]. We were, uh, made vulnerable on the documents which, by the way, let me point out also, that nobody has ever proven the documents are, quote, fraudulent or, uh, that they were, uh, fakes, as some people have written.

As I noted regarding the Mapes' column, fake-but-accurate rides again.

In any case, Mika didn't confront Rather with any of the mountains of evidence demonstrating that the documents were blatant forgeries. This "Little Green Footballs" overlay is my favorite. Brzezinski instead chose to ask a hanging curveball of a question.

MIKA BRZEZINSKI: Then why read the apology, Dan?

Host Joe Scarborough remains out on sick leave, but had called in and listened to the exchange. When it was over, he wasn't as accepting of Rather's claim as Mika.

JOE SCARBOROUGH: He said that these documents have yet to be proven false. I guess I need to go back and take a closer look at it, and I'm not being facetious here, either. I thought most everybody, from the New York Times to the LA Times had determined these documents were fake.

[governsleastgovernsbest]

Dan-in-denial ping to Today show list.

[BigDaddyTX]

Someone just posted this one in another thread, I like this one best.

http://img41.imageshack.us/my.php?image=60minbusted.swf

[Kozak]

[Mr. K]

If he is so stupid that he has yet to be convinced these documents are fake then we need to examine EVERYOTHER STORY this dumbass has ever reported.

[Shelayne]

Oh good grief, Rather. Give it up. Move on.

LET. IT. GO. Really.

[Dr. Sivana]

The gift that keeps on giving. The OJ of the MSM.

[Tenacious 1]

Nobody proved the documents were real. They are, therefore, fake. The difference is subtle but huge.

Why a journalists would think any different baffles me.

Bull$$1t is not “Presumed fact until it is refuted.” Rather it is the other way around. “It is pure BS until it is proven.”

I guess he is “Rather” confused.

[A.A. Cunningham]

Buckhead

[w1andsodidwe]

Hey Dan, I believe you were the one who needed to provide proof that they were authentic. Plenty of bloggers were able to figure out that they were fakes.

What an ignorant fool. I guess that is why he is liberal. His thought process is flawed.

[governsleastgovernsbest]

Perfect. Thanks for posting.

[Alouette]

The original Buckhead post that got the ball rolling

[Disambiguator]

PING

[Vigilanteman]

Dan Rather: the OJ of the MSM.

That wouldn't make a bad tagline. Except that Danny Boy isn't worthy of the attention.

[RoadKingSE]

..ex-CBS producer Mary Mapes continues to cling to the delusion that the Memogate documents were authentic. In an inteview on "Morning Joe," Dan Rather has now made a similar reality-denying claim.

"Dan, my man, I love you baby but you gotta cut back on the El Momo Dude. Hey I'm starvin'. Want to go to Mackie D's and get a couple of Quarterpounders?"

[TommyDale]

Better yet Dan, you cannot prove it is NOT a fake!

[Geostorm]

Dan is living in the past, when what the anchor said was the truth because He said it. They got to make the news not just report it. Too bad times have changed huh? Cronkite got to say Vietnam was lost and so it was.

[stylin19a]

MSM continues to react to Rather/Mapes assertion.."nobody can prove they were fakes ..blah,blah,blah."

Nobody is asking the question to Rather/Mapes about not being able to verify the authenticity of the documents.

[popdonnelly]

Further evidence that liberals are out of touch with reality.

[AmericaUnited]

Well the great thing is that Putzhead will now make CBS prove in court that the documents were fraudulent.

[marvlus]

later read.

[Mr. Brightside]

I hope Rather’s suit is as successful as Alger Hiss’ civil suit against Whittaker Chambers.

[TChris]

[amutr22]

You see, “their” answer, as I read today on an ABC site, is the docs were destroyed so there is no way to prove anything now.

[Slapshot68]

Hey Dan...no one ever proved they were genuine, which of course should’ve been your first priority being a journalist.

Christ, what a twit. Prove the negative?

[Tanniker Smith]

Danny, Danny, Danny,

The onus is on you. You haven't proved that the documents are authentic, other than your claim that they are. It was your news story; you provide the proof.

[Badeye]

At least Cronkite was smart enough to keep his head down for almost two decades.

Its pretty clear Rather has some serious mental health issues that have yet to be addressed professionally.

[wayoverontheright]

The documents were purported to have been typed by Bush’s commander, they are now proven to have been produced on equipment that was not in existence at the time. How does this not prove them to be FAKE?

[Spaghetti Man]

You’re so correct. They have to be proved real before they are ever featured in the news story. BTW, I don’t believe Bush ever denied that his TANG career was less then stellar. Where’s the story?

[syriacus]

I guess that is why he is liberal. His thought process is flawed.

Yes. Instead of looking at the facts and trying to determine a conclusion, liberals determine which conclusion they want us to believe and then manufacture the facts to "prove" it.

When they did this at the time of the Clarence Thomas hearings, I left the Liberal party.

Folks who need to lie like that in order to win, don't have much else going for them.

[Kozak]

Buckhead gets "Freeper of the Year" at the Freeper Inaugural Ball.

[adgirl]

So here’s my take on the story after seeing Mr. Rather on CNN. CBS realizes that Mr. Rather is, to put it kindly” not the “journalist he once was,” but Rather will not bow out gracefully and retire. So CBS puts him out to pasture in a show no one watches.

Dan realizes that they are giving him the bum’s rush so he tries to prove them wrong by breaking a “HUGE” story. Unfortunately it really isn’t a story. Mr. Rather has “lost his sense of smell” so to speak and can’t spot a fake any more which is why he’s over at 60 Minutes 2 in the first place.

The whole thing comes to light as these things usually do and Dan Rather’s ego is so huge he just can’t accept the fact that his lack of objectivity in this matter led him astray.

In retirement, he’s had a chance to ruminate on the facts and he truly believes he’s been set up by CBS and its best friend the evil Bush Administration, because he, Dan Rather, is THAT BIG-they needed to take him down.

Here’s my question, does anyone else think Dan is in the early stages of dementia or is his ego just that huge? Either way he is an entirely pitiable character.

[snarks_when_bored]

Dan Rather makes dirt look smart...

[Maumee]

No one has proof the documents are fake,

But...Rather has proven himself a Flake.

[Arrowhead1952]

Note to dan and cBS, when you are stuck in a hole, stop digging.

[angcat]

I wish the President would sue this piece of sh—.

[Inspectorette]

Folks who need to lie like that in order to win, don't have much else going for them.

Unfortunately, they have the support of the Far Left, along with too many gullible people who are willing to vote for them. Case in point: The Clintons

[popdonnelly]

Is that the news media’s standard of authenticity? “Here’s a document. Prove that it’s fake.”

[Slapshot68]

Actually Dan’s words make an interesting statement about what Rush has deemed the “Drive-By Media.” It’s clear the media has no intention of presenting fact. Their goal is to report something and make it the responsibility of the viewer/reader to prove if it’s false.

Which is why message boards such as this exist.

[popdonnelly]

Most of the crap the liberals say on the news has no factual basis, either.

[Kozak]

Christ, what a twit. Prove the negative?

Exactly. Hey Dan PROVE there are no Unicorns or Faeries...

[Kozak]

At least Cronkite was smart enough to keep his head down for almost two decades.

Until his senility got the better of him...

[syriacus]

It looks like Dan has figured out the legacy he is leaving behind when he dies. His legacy will be similar to Dick Nixon's.

He is going into the index of history books, under "S" for "Scandals, election" as well as "R" for "Rather, Dan".

This audacious plot was hatched to influence the results of a presidential election.

Rathergate rivals Watergate. The American people should sue Dan Rather.

[MarkL]

Sorry Dan,

You’re making an accusation based on a document that can NOT be verified to be true. It’s NOT up to anyone else to prove that the documents are fake... Let me give an example of what I’m talking about...

In this theoretical scenario, let’s say that I’ve got some documents that say that during the Viet Nam war, Dan Rather met with the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong military, giving away US positions and causing the deaths of thousands of American troops. Oh, and I’ve also got some photos of Dan Rather having sex with farm animals. So Dan, you need to prove that these documents are false.

Oh, and by the way, “even if the documents are proven to be false, that doesn’t mean these events didn’t happen.” Sound familiar?

Mark

[syriacus]

Unfortunately, they have the support of the Far Left, along with too many gullible people who are willing to vote for them. Case in point: The Clintons

True. Rowing upstream against the Cascades of Falsehood isn't easy.

[Slapshot68]

“Most of the crap the liberals say on the news has no factual basis, either.”

And yet they usually claim intellectual superiority. Which is why Michael Savage has properly labeled them as having a mental disorder.

[Proudcongal]

I wonder if anyone like O’Reilly, Hannity or even Larry King have attempted to get Buckhead on their show, and if he would agree? I would love to see Buckhead and Rather appear together. Now wouldn’t that be something? :-)

[NonValueAdded]

Nope, nobody      :)

[jmaroneps37]

Courage Dan. PLEASE don’t let anybody talk you out of this suit. BTW what IS the frequency anyway?

[varyouga]

So something that is supposedly typed on a certain date with a font that was impossible on that date isn’t fake?

Are people that dumb?