Rather accepts media award with nod to allies
Mon May 16, 2005 08:58 PM ET
NEW YORK (Hollywood Reporter) - With thanks to two former colleagues who left CBS in the wake of a scandal, CBS News' Dan Rather accepted broadcast journalism's most prestigious honor on Monday for the "60 Minutes Wednesday" story that exposed the shocking conditions inside Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison.
In one of his first public appearances since leaving the network's anchor chair in March, Rather and Mary Mapes received the Peabody Award at a luncheon at the Waldorf Astoria in Midtown Manhattan.
Rather took pains to acknowledge Mapes and former CBS News senior vp Betsy West (who also attended the ceremony), among others. Mapes was fired by CBS News, and West was forced to resign in the wake of another "60 Minutes Wednesday" report, which aired in September and used questionable documents as part of the sourcing for a highly critical report on President Bush's service in the Texas Air National Guard.
"They did most of the work, bore the heaviest burdens and took most of the criticism," Rather said of Mapes and the other producers who did the front-line reporting on the Abu Ghraib story. "It took guts, and they had them."
Rather received extended applause after telling the crowd, "Never give up, never back up, never give in while pursuing the dream of integrity filled journalism that matters."
Mapes, who is understood to be writing a book about her experience with the report and the network-commissioned investigation that led to her dismissal, went onstage with Rather to accept the award but did not speak. She did not go backstage with Rather for photographs and interviews.
In his post-presentation remarks, Rather said that he would not address the firestorm of criticism that attended the Bush story and its aftermath. He said he didn't feel that the Peabody for the Abu Ghraib story was any different than the other awards he had won in the past. He also brushed off any mention of his legacy.
"I don't have a legacy. I'm not going to have a legacy, and I shouldn't have a legacy. I work in news," Rather said.
Rather also said that he wasn't sure about the fate of "60 Minutes Wednesday," saying he was a reporter on the show and wasn't privy to the high-level deliberations about its fate.
"Wednesday" has been plagued by low ratings in the 8 p.m. time period opposite one of the season's runaway hits, ABC's "Lost."
Two months after he left "CBS Evening News," Rather says he doesn't miss the work as much as he thought he might.
"I don't think about it very much. I'm working full-time," Rather said, referring to his job as a correspondent for "60 Minutes." Continued ...
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=televisionNews&storyID=8508735
Mon May 16, 2005 08:58 PM ET
NEW YORK (Hollywood Reporter) - With thanks to two former colleagues who left CBS in the wake of a scandal, CBS News' Dan Rather accepted broadcast journalism's most prestigious honor on Monday for the "60 Minutes Wednesday" story that exposed the shocking conditions inside Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison.
In one of his first public appearances since leaving the network's anchor chair in March, Rather and Mary Mapes received the Peabody Award at a luncheon at the Waldorf Astoria in Midtown Manhattan.
Rather took pains to acknowledge Mapes and former CBS News senior vp Betsy West (who also attended the ceremony), among others. Mapes was fired by CBS News, and West was forced to resign in the wake of another "60 Minutes Wednesday" report, which aired in September and used questionable documents as part of the sourcing for a highly critical report on President Bush's service in the Texas Air National Guard.
"They did most of the work, bore the heaviest burdens and took most of the criticism," Rather said of Mapes and the other producers who did the front-line reporting on the Abu Ghraib story. "It took guts, and they had them."
Rather received extended applause after telling the crowd, "Never give up, never back up, never give in while pursuing the dream of integrity filled journalism that matters."
Mapes, who is understood to be writing a book about her experience with the report and the network-commissioned investigation that led to her dismissal, went onstage with Rather to accept the award but did not speak. She did not go backstage with Rather for photographs and interviews.
In his post-presentation remarks, Rather said that he would not address the firestorm of criticism that attended the Bush story and its aftermath. He said he didn't feel that the Peabody for the Abu Ghraib story was any different than the other awards he had won in the past. He also brushed off any mention of his legacy.
"I don't have a legacy. I'm not going to have a legacy, and I shouldn't have a legacy. I work in news," Rather said.
Rather also said that he wasn't sure about the fate of "60 Minutes Wednesday," saying he was a reporter on the show and wasn't privy to the high-level deliberations about its fate.
"Wednesday" has been plagued by low ratings in the 8 p.m. time period opposite one of the season's runaway hits, ABC's "Lost."
Two months after he left "CBS Evening News," Rather says he doesn't miss the work as much as he thought he might.
"I don't think about it very much. I'm working full-time," Rather said, referring to his job as a correspondent for "60 Minutes." Continued ...
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=televisionNews&storyID=8508735
posted by Kangaroo Brisbane Australia at 11:21 AM
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