Sam Donaldson: Fire Geraldo

NewsMax.com ^ | 4/03/03 | Carl Limbacher and NewsMax.com Staff

[kattracks]

ABC News reporter Sam Donaldson is urging the Fox News Channel to fire loose-lipped swash-buckler Geraldo Rivera for giving away the location of the 101st Airborne over the weekend.

After praising most of the frontline reporters now covering the Iraq war, Donaldson told WABC Radio's "Curtis & Kuby," "There are two reporters who have been rotten apples. [Peter] Arnett is one and he's been fired. Geraldo Rivera is another, and he ought to be fired."

Taking note that Fox has apparently worked out a deal with the Pentagon that will allow Rivera to cover the war away from the front lines, Donaldson complained, "I believe in forgiveness, but first comes confession."

Meanwhile down the dial, New York Timesman Frank Rich was also complaining about Geraldo, telling Don Imus, "What could be a worse infraction than literally... giving away the position of our troops to the enemy. That seems to me a much more serious infraction, even if it were done innocently, than the stuff Arnett said."

Rich added that Rivera's gaffe was "certainly not helpful to the American war effort."

Oddly enough, neither Mr. Donaldson nor Mr. Rich seemed to object to Mr. Rivera's reporting while he was working overtime at MSNBC to save Bill Clinton from being booted out office, thereby allowing the ex-president another two years to continue dismantling the U.S. military.

In fact, since joining Fox after the 9/11 attacks, Rivera has been nothing if not a patriotic cheerleader, his serious blunder with the 101st Airborne notwithstanding. Arnett, on the other hand, is now reporting for the anti-American London Daily Mirror. He admitted Wednesday that he meant every word when he pronounced the U.S. war effort a failure during an interview with Iraqi TV.

Perhaps the reason some of Geraldo's former media buddies seem almost overjoyed at his predicament is because he has embarrassed the Fox News Channel, which is setting ratings records with its pro-American Iraq war coverage.

Read more on this subject in related Hot Topics:

Media Bias

[sarasota]

It's not going to hurt Fox. They only wish.

[SolutionsOnly]

Media catfight. I wish these people would grow up.

[Pest]

I always thought Geraldo was a chump anyway. Ever since that Al Capone's vault thing. I say get rid of him.

[CatoRenasci]

Donaldson can be bozo, but he's right about Jerry Rivers. fire him.

[pgyanke]

It's just an attempt to keep FNC dirt in the headlines. Let Fox handle it.

[UCFRoadWarrior]

The left has attacked Geraldo ever since he signed w Fox News. His gaffe was small compared to Peter Arnett's treasonous tirade.

Though, if the commanders of the 101st Airborne are not comfortable w Geraldo around...then their requests must be honored. FNC can find other things for Geraldo to do for war coverage.

[battlegearboat]

Geraldo is a gas bag

[Young Werther]

Geraldo has balls and a sense of timing that most of the "war correspondents" wish they had. Okay. Geraldo goofed. I still believe that the hourly briefings by the retired generals on FOX and elsewhere are as revealing as Geraldo's "strategy session in the sand".

I say give him a break. we don't need to "Lott" him. He's on our side!

Place flame ---- X

[gcruse]

Who is worse?

Peter Arnett - Saddam Hussein's bag man
Jerry Rivers - Bill Clinton's colostomy bag

[JIM O]

Whats the point, the media has no ethics. Peter was fired and then hired by another outlet. What is Sam's solution fire Geraldo and have ABC hire him tomorrow? They should both be gone and completely out of the buisness.

I also don't accept that Geraldos actions are comprable to Peters actions, Geralo is stupid but Peter is a traitor.

[amused]

Fox shouldn't fire him but rather move him to their entertainment division.

Maybe as host of Celebrity Boxing?

[O.C. - Old Cracker]

[thewah]

I've heard that Geraldo and Arnett are lovers....

[N. Theknow]

Geraldo reminds me of the bragaddocio British Colonel on the Underdog show that was always telling of some grandiose expedition where he had braved the wilds and bloodthirsty savages yet remained unscathed throughout the ordeal and had finally gotten the better of them.

Wild eyebrows and mustache.

[jacquej]

I like Fox News, but have lost a degree of respect for, not to mention trust in, them for not firing Geraldo, and i have told them so.

[CFC__VRWC]

I respect what Donaldson had to say, but Rich is a jerk off.

You got that right. The only reason Rich claims to give a sh!t about the safety of our troops is that he can use the issue to take a shot at Fox. In reality, he's more likely to agree with Nicholas de Genova, and he's waiting for the day pictures of US soldiers being dragged through the streets of Baghdad are shown world wide by Iraqi TV.

[Aeronaut]

I agree. Fire him. He is not an asset to Fox.

[RetiredArmy]

Taking note that Fox has apparently worked out a deal with the Pentagon that will allow Rivera to cover the war away from the front lines, Donaldson complained, "I believe in forgiveness, but first comes confession."

Too bad Sammy boy did not apply this same thinking to his pal Slick Willie Klinton.

[RossA]

Let ABC fire Peter Jennings first. (Then it's win-win).

[JimDingle]

Fox shouldn't fire him but rather move him to their entertainment division.

Maybe as host of Celebrity Boxing?


Yeah he could have a rematch with that white supremacists who broke his nose

[small_l_libertarian]

Geraldo reminds me of the bragaddocio British Colonel on the Underdog show that was always telling of some grandiose expedition where he had braved the wilds and bloodthirsty savages yet remained unscathed throughout the ordeal and had finally gotten the better of them.

That is soooooooo funny! That never would have occurred to me, but it is so RIGHT!

[paul51]

I'm sure FOX is consulting with ABC reporters for advise. I'm no big supporter of GR however after watching his screw up, I think his enemies are blowing it out of proportion. The Pentagon obviously decided he deserved to be slapped and they did it but there are also reports he will be allowed back in. There are worse enemies to the troops and the war effort on the airwaves than the baffoon GR

[amused]

Yeah he could have a rematch with that white supremacists who broke his nose

Didn't he also fight another guy on Howard Stern?

[johnb838]

I'm waiting for the rest of the story to come out.

[JimDingle]

Yeah he did but I forgot who it was.

[swheats]

This is becoming much ado about nothing. It was a mistake.

[amused]

Yeah he did but I forgot who it was.

Behold the power of google! It was Frank Stallone of all people.

[k2blader]

Sorry to disappoint you, Sam. Geraldo's likely en route to Baghdad as you whine.

[HamiltonJay]

Small? Small? Giving away the location of the troops and the direction they are heading next in a time of war is not a SMALL GAFFE! Arnette may have been a dupe but even he didn't do this.... I think way too much bias is showing... Geraldo should be gone, or at the very least severely reprimanded and demoted by FNC....

Personally I think they should dump his sorry arse, he is a travesty. He brings down their entire organization IMHO. THis is at least the 2nd time he has done something to directly harm the credibilty of FNC that I know of.

[spetznaz]

His gaffe was small compared to Peter Arnett's treasonous tirade.

You must be joking! What Arnett did was basically act as a pawn for Saddam! No real damage ....apart from showing himself to be easily susceptible to manipulation from the Iraqis!

What Geraldo did on the other hand is draw, on live TV, current US military positions AND THEN say, with etching on the sand, where the troops would move to in the following hours and what strategy they would follow! That would have easily cost some of those troops their lives, especially when you consider it was live TV and there was a big chance Iraqi generals were watching.

Geraldo, by far, made the bigger error. Through his STUPIDITY he put US lives in jeopardy. Arnett on the other hand just proved he is shifty.

Anyways I lost all respect for Geraldo after the Afghan fiascos where he showed his wrecked thought patterns. For one he carried a gun, and boasted how he would use it (the significance of that is it put other journalists, who are normally not actively shot at, in danger of being viable targets. Remember in most campaigns journalists who die are usually the victims of 'passive' causes like stray bullets, landmines, and other events that are not specifically targeted at them. However armed journalists pretending to be GI Joe can put all in the role of armed combatant).

However the main thing in afghanistan which put me off Geraldo was the whole 'bullets are flying all around me' when the nearest conflict was miles away! That showed him to be unprofessional and petty.

Anyways what geraldo did, even if it was a mistake, was worse than what Arnett did, even if Arnett meant every word.

[k2blader]

I think this is the latest:

The Pentagon says Geraldo Rivera is welcome to go back into Iraq with U.S. troops - now that he's learned his lesson.

Chased off the frontlines by charges he'd compromised troop safety, Geraldo Rivera yesterday left Iraq for Kuwait - where he was immediately re-assigned as a "general war correspondent."

But the Pentagon last night said Rivera can go back if Fox gets another opportunity to "embed" a journalist with troops, Pentagon spokesman Lt. Col. David Lapan told The Post.

"As long as it is clear to him and to [Fox News] what was wrong the first time and that it not happen again," Lapan said.

HOW MANY LIVES? - Pentagon says Geraldo welcome to go back to Iraq

[D. Brian Carter]

Not only am I disappointed in Fox for not dropping Rivera, it seems they hold some of the blame in this incident as well.

What was the producer of the show doing allowing this content through? What was the cameraman thinking? How about the engineers? A bunch of people are complicit in this idiocy.

On top of the typical "delay" in a live program, there is even more of one with the equipment they are using, which is quite discernable when you watch interviews and reports coming from the field.

Some people at Fox messed up, too. Nevertheless, fire Geraldo.

[joesnuffy]

Geraldo has balls and a sense of timing that most of the "war correspondents" wish they had. Okay. Geraldo goofed. I still believe
that the hourly briefings by the retired generals on FOX and elsewhere are as revealing as Geraldo's "strategy session in the
sand".

I say give him a break. we don't need to "Lott" him. He's on our side!

Place flame ---- X




Geraldo is that U?.....

[nightdriver]

"Arnett, on the other hand, is now reporting for the anti-American London Daily Mirror. He admitted Wednesday that he meant every word when he pronounced the U.S. war effort a failure during an interview with Iraqi TV."

Let's wait just a little bit longer and after we have Iraq pretty well wrapped up, let's ask any left-over Saddamites if they agree with Arnett's statement.

[hnorris]

Was what Geraldo did any worse than what the rent-a-generals have done on EVERY network since the war began?

And since when does Sam Donaldson suddenly care about not hurting America military forces?

Ask guys like Donaldson why they were such anti-American defeatists early on in the war ( a week ago) and they'll talk about Geraldo, instead.

[dljordan]

I like Fox but "Jerry Rivers" is a major Gomer. There's something about the guy that screams "secret liberal". I've never liked him, he's just too oily or something.

[Revolting cat!]

I tell you, watching these soap operas starring millionaire media personalities with big hair(pieces) and low voices who for mysterious reasons are considered "journalists" even by some here, makes me wish for faceless, anonymous drones they (presumably) have on North Korean television. Enough of this prancing, enough of these fan club discussions, there is a war going on, make these pampered asses go away!

[maxwellp]

If Fox doesn't get rid of a person (Geraldo Rivera) who endangered our troops, well I don't know what I'll do. We like FoxNews, the only news we watch, but...

[spetznaz]

Was what Geraldo did any worse than what the rent-a-generals have done on EVERY network since the war began? ----Hnorris

Actually yes .......and i tried to explain why to another poster in # 32.

The talking-head 'ex-military/expert' rent-a-general types who come on the evening news everynight cannot even be compared in the slightest to what Geraldo did Hnorris. And this is why.

The ex-military types (and some of them are quite adept at what they did and extremely well versed in military matters) engage basically in intelligent speculation. they delve into what they would do, and what they think the armed forces will try to achieve and how they would go about it. However they do not know exactly what is going to happen (since all they are doing is saying what they would do if the decisions were up to them). But since they are out of the loop they are not saying anything of major significance. You can get most of their info from reading past US maneuvres.

However this is what Geraldo did.

He went on live TV, that was being broadcast around the world, and gave the stratagems of the US military division (the 101st i believe) he was travelling with. Not only did he give away their current position but he also said what their plans and objectives were! As if that was not bad enough he then proceded to say what the next location the 101st would be moving to was! And to emphasize the fact he dres his silly little etchy sketches on the sand!

And that is where he diverges from talking-head experts on TV. Geraldo had real info ...... not just speculation but veritable stuff that was 100% legit! Furthermore he gave it away on live TV. And to add insult to injury he even gave what would be happening in the near future.

US soldiers might have been killed due to his stupidity! The Iraqis cold easily have set up an ambush that might have wounded or even killed those soldiers (and probably stupid Geraldo himself).

An analogy for you: In football opposing teams know basically what the other team is going to try to do. Basically win through effective offense and efficient defense. After all that is football. And sport comentators can come and talk all they want on sunday ....but allt hat talk is moot come monday night.

Now imagine if somehow the plans and strategies of a team was made known to the other team. Not just general stuff but exactly what the team oulod be doing, their starting list, the tactics, what maneuvres, and everything play by play! It might not assure victory for the other team ....but it would still be a big mistake for that info to be just given away!

Geraldo foolishly gave the Iraqis valuable info, tht thankfully was not (as far as we know) used against our soldiers.

And as i said in post # 32 that is far worse than anything Peter Arnett did (at least Arnett's spinless cowardice did not put even one soldier in jeopardy .....but Geraldo's lack of prudence did).

Basically in my opinion Geraldo bogs down Fox. He did in Afghanistan when he lied about being in the middle of a battle that was miles away (and trying to make himself into Rambo with a mike by totting a gun ......and i can bet if any action did take place he would be cringing behind a real soldier pi$$!ng his pants). Fox News is a respected channel, respected even by those who hate it (trust me, everytime CNN looks at the ratings it respects FOX LOL). However Geraldo is a blight on Fox .....like the foolish drugee reckless sot of a kid that shames his otherwise respectable family.

And criticizing Geraldo for what he did is not 'Lott-ing' him (ala Trent Lott) but just calling a spade a spade not a big spoon! Geraldo messed up yet again, and this time he put the whole freaking 101st airborne in jeaopardy!

And anyways, what is Geraldo doing in Iraq anyway? He should be covering sunday brunch lemonade-sipping contests! (Unless ofcourse the reason he is sent to battlezones by Fox is because he is their most expendable 'journalist')

And as a matter of principle i have to apologize for referring to geraldo as a journalist.

[sinkspur]

I'm no big supporter of GR however after watching his screw up, I think his enemies are blowing it out of proportion. The Pentagon obviously decided he deserved to be slapped and they did it but there are also reports he will be allowed back in

This is much ado about NOTHING!

Geraldo drew a map. If what he did was so bad, why did the supposedly-peeved commander allow him to stay and report with the 101st for another 24 hours?

The Pentagon's got egg on its face, which is why it's allowing Geraldo back in.

[hope]

I couldn't stand Geraldo's boot licking of the Clinton clan but, I think he's found his niche in Iraq....I hope he comes back if nothing more than to tick off the rats who are making all the noise...

[dalebert]

THis is about FOX not Geraldo.

[BRL]

[NonValueAdded]

Ted Koppel PINGGGGGGGGggggggggg

Sorta changes the whole complexion of this thread. What say you NOW, Sam????

[Beck_isright]

I agree with this except for one thing; Frank Rich from the NY Pravda has no room to complain. That pos rag has done more to hurt our troops and spread lies that Radio Baghdad.

V

[Torie]

I saw the map drawing on the tube. It was a line with Basra at one end, and Bagdad at the other, with Nasiriyah and Najif in between, where Geraldo said there was resistence. The map was not particularly accurate, and reminder laughing how ham handed and show boaty the whole thing was, with nothing really new or of interest being reported. He didn't say where anyone was or was going, except that the goal was Bagdad. The whole thing is bizarre. Someone in the right place in the DOD had it in for Geraldo.

[citizen]

the phrase "the pot calling the kettle black" comes to mind...

[citizen]

I hope he comes back if nothing more than to tick off the rats who are making all the noise...

Great minds think alike....well, at least yours is great but I'm working on it