Rather keeps fighting
Dan Rather’s
legal battle is in the news again, after a judge who previously dismissed his
$70 million lawsuit against CBS and Viacom restored the claim. Sidney
Blumenthal’s Salon.com article,
Dan Rather
Stands By His Story, provides detailed background on CBS’s alleged manoeuvres
to suppress 60-Minute’s Air National Guard story, along with the program’s
scoop on Abu Ghraib. Back in 2007, this
Washington Post report characterized Rather’s battle as a quest driven by
resentment and ego. But Rather, who now files his investigative work for Dan Rather Reports on HDNet, says
he’s a journalist protecting “the red, beating heart of our
democracy.”
(Dave Winer photo)
Dan Rather’s
legal battle is in the news again, after a judge who previously dismissed his
$70 million lawsuit against CBS and Viacom restored the claim. Sidney
Blumenthal’s Salon.com article,
Dan Rather
Stands By His Story, provides detailed background on CBS’s alleged manoeuvres
to suppress 60-Minute’s Air National Guard story, along with the program’s
scoop on Abu Ghraib. Back in 2007, this
Washington Post report characterized Rather’s battle as a quest driven by
resentment and ego. But Rather, who now files his investigative work for Dan Rather Reports on HDNet, says
he’s a journalist protecting “the red, beating heart of our
democracy.”
(Dave Winer photo)
Patricia W. Elliott is a magazine journalist and assistant professor at the School of Journalism, University of Regina. You can visit her at patriciaelliott.ca.
August 22, 2009
I have long believed that we
I have long believed that we have much to learn from Dan Rather and his experiences. I for one am glad he has persevered with his lawsuit. It is not just a matter of ego and self-preservation. We all need to know what it’s like for a journalist at his level; the pressures brought to bear on him, the stories that get spiked. This is as important as what gets on the air, these days, I suspect. I think writing a tell-all memoir would be the best option for him, however.