Statement by the President of CBS News, Andrew Heyward:What exactly is it you're doing? Finding more "experts"? Trying to get some "experts" to retract the damaging things they've said? Forging -- oops, finding -- more corroborating [non-sic] evidence? Asking the slick operator who sold you those forgeries to step forward and say that he's really on Karl Rove's payroll? Trying to get Dan Rather to admit the forgeries himself, then retire immediately? We can hardly wait to read the next installment of this thrilling serial mystery.
"We established to our satisfaction that the memos were accurate or we would not have put them on television. There was a great deal of coroborating [sic] evidence from people in a position to know. Having said that, given all the questions about them, we believe we should redouble our efforts to answer those questions, so that's what we are doing."
But wait, there's more from Drudge:
TRANSCRIPT EVENING NEWS:So, let's see what we have here:
RATHER INTRO: CBS News .. "60 Minutes" .. and this reporter .. drew new fire today .. over our reports that raised questions about President Bush's military service record .. including whether he fulfilled his obligations to the national guard.
CBS News correspondent Wyatt Andrews reports on the latest attack on the "60 Minutes" story .. and the CBS News response.
ANDREWS: Congressional republicans turned the high heat on CBS News, charging that last week's revelations about Lt George Bush, which aired on "60 Minutes" were based on fake documents and demanding that 60 Minutes and Dan Rather retract the story.
Sot Bennet
Its very clear the documents were forged. They were laid on him and this time he bit.
ANDREWS: 40 members of the House signed a letter accusing the network of deception--in a letter asking CBS if the documents are authentic, why wont the network say how it got them .
Roy Blunt (R-Missouri)
I think at the very least CBS should characterize the source. I think it's amazing that they haven't already done that.
ANDREW:
The dispute surrounds memoranda 60 Minutes says came from the personal file of Lt. Bush's Air National Guard Commander, Lt Col Jerry Killian. .... Memos that accuse Mr Bush of disobeying an order and of using connections to have Killian "sugarcoat" Mr Bush's record. (out)
However some experts doubt the authenticity of the memos. Killian's secretary--in an interview for tonight's 60 Minutes tells Dan Rather she too believes the memos are fake --but-- accurately reflect KIllian's view of Lt. Bush.
Sot MARIAN KNOX:
I know that I didn't type them however, the information in those is correct.
ANDREWS
Marian Knox says Col Killian liked Mr Bush but not his attitude.
Sot MARIAN KNOX
First of all Killian was very friendly with Bush they had fun together. And I think it upset him very much that he was being defied.
ANDREWS
CBS News officials say the memos came from a confidential source- and that they remain certain the content of the story is true.
ANDREW HEYWARD:
we would not have put the report on the air if we did not believe in every aspect of it.
Narr
However, News President Andrew Heyward also says the network will try to resolve what he calls the unresolved issues.
Sot ANDREW HEYWARD:
..enough questions have been raised that we are going redouble our efforts to answer those questions.
ANDREWS:
Some at this network believe the backlash against the 60 Minutes report is pure politcics. But that's the critics' point as well--that fake, or real, the fact that 60 Minutes got these documents during an election year was no accident. Wyatt Andrews CBS News Washington.
People who are questioning CBS's story -- in fact, have proved that it's based on forgeries -- are "attacking" CBS. And guess what, some of them are Republicans. Gee whillikers, imagine that!
Lt. Col. Killian's secretary admits she didn't type the forged memos. That's an easy one, we all knew she didn't type them, unless she typed them recently using Microsoft Word with Times New Roman.
Lt. Col. Killian's secretary says the information in the memos is "correct." Every last detail? Ah, the convenient, uncorroborated memory of an antiquated Bush-hater. CBS will just say that those who question her story are viciously attacking an old lady.
CBS News "believed" in the report. That is, CBS New ran a report consistent with what it wanted to believe.
Some at CBS believe the "backlash" is "pure politics". Right, blame it on "politics" instead of your own shoddy, blatantly biased journalism.
It's old hat: slippery logic, aggressive defense, and trying to shift the blame. It's lame and it won't work.
