NBC Launches Investigation Of Brian Williams

[Purveyor]

Source: USA TODAY

Roger Yu, USA TODAY 3:48 p.m. EST February 6, 2015

NBC News is investigating chief anchor Brian Williams over his now-retracted statement that he was in a helicopter in Iraq that was hit by enemy fire and forced to land, according to a person familiar with the matter.

The person declined to speak on the record due to the sensitivity of an internal matter.

The internal probe is being led by Richard Esposito, who heads the network's investigative unit and was formerly an editor at The Daily News of New York, according to a report by The Daily News.The Daily News was the first news outlet to disclose the investigation.

Meanwhile, further scrutiny of Williams' past statements surfaced Friday amid a challenge to his account of his experiences in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina.

Read more: http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2015/02/06/brian-williams-katrina-coverage-in-question/22980005/

[slumcamper]

1. Congratulations, BW! Your training for a journalistic career with FOX has been successful! n/t

[olddad56]

10. So true, Faux is always on the look out for an accomplished liar.

[hibbing]

17. ba da ding!

Hahahaha, always good to end my workday with a good laugh!

Peace

[leveymg]

29. I'm afraid we're only going to get worse. Look at who replaced Dan Rather.

[bulloney]

2. Apparently, Willliams may have gotten mixed up on whether he got dysentery from Katrina, too.

Just like he was mixed up on whether his helicopter was shot down or not.

Pretty easy to get mixed up on whether or not you experienced those things.

This is why I quit watching MSM for news. I don't care if it's NBC, CBS, CNN or ABC. Recent presidential elections and their collaborating with the warmongers in Iraq put them over the top. I don't put Faux Snooze in the same category as the other four networks listed: Faux is just a clown car full of RW propagandists. Everything the news media try to pass as news is all about hype, sensationalizing, keeping people in a state of fear and/or anger. The hell with being factual and honest.

[Ken Burch]

4. dysentery? SO he's not sure if he's in deep shit or not?

(somebody had to say it).

[Ken Burch]

3. Worst case scenario...next year, he gets a recurring role as Marnie's dad on "GIRLS". n/t.

[murielm99]

6. Actually, I see him on Celebrity Apprentice,

with Trump. Just like Geraldo now.

Will he get fired?

[Ken Burch]

16. Uh...do you know who PLAYS Marnie on "GIRLS"? n/t.

[MosheFeingold]

5. Brian Williams = Ted Baxter

Probably the only one old enough to know why.

[Purveyor]

15. lol! I loved ole Ted... eom

[99th_Monkey]

7. Wonder who is behind this

Williams is being Dan Rathered IMHO.. not a good thing.

He may not be the brightest bulb in the chandelier, but he's decent guy
who doesn't deserve to have his career tanked over this one minor incident
that happened over 10 years ago.

[Duval]

14. Agree, x 1,000! nt

[marble falls]

19. Getting laid can be an agenda in itself, can't it?

[Chemisse]

18. I hope this doesn't go any further.

I like him a lot.

[FLPanhandle]

21. How do you know he is a "decent guy"

Sounds like a liar and exaggerator at best and spreading false stories at worst.

[99th_Monkey]

24. Dood, he's being "Rather-ed"

aka "taken down" by someone with a 1% agenda, who he
wouldn't interview, or who he slighted somehow. <-- admittedly, just a wild guess, but bet i'm right.

Whoever is behind this dug up a minor "misremembering" from over 10 years ago.

Sound familiar?

Dan Rather, Leaving By the High Road
Washington Post * By Tom Shales * Wednesday, March 9, 2005
Emptying out his cubbyhole office in the CBS News building on West 57th Street in New York, wading through stacks and boxes of memorabilia accumulated over the years, Dan Rather came upon a piece of framed embroidery made and sent to him a couple decades ago by a nun who was, one might say, among the faithful -- a regular and loyal viewer.

"Be thou a soul to fullness grown," says one of her meticulously embroidered mottos. "Arise to gain thy dreams." Rather's voice warms. "Pretty nice, huh?" he says. Among the other embroidered words of wisdom: "Today's trials were meant to make you strong."

With a few parting words and possibly -- but unlikely -- a few parting shots, Dan Rather will make his last appearance tonight as anchor of "The CBS Evening News," 24 years to the day since his first telecast as anchor and a full year sooner than he planned. As virtually all of our world knows, Rather agreed to step down in the wake of a scandal involving a discredited "60 Minutes Wednesday" story on George W. Bush's supposed preferential treatment while in the National Guard.

The case, which resulted in four of the top people in CBS News being told to leave, has caused a tremendous schism within the organization, ruining Rather's exit not only by moving it up a year but also by hanging a dark cloud over it. Rather, who's had many trials and certainly seems a soul to fullness grown, is told it's a shame he couldn't be leaving on a high note.

"First of all, from where I sit, I am leaving on a high note," Rather says, "and a higher note than I deserve and certainly a higher note than I ever thought possible when I walked into this job. Secondly, what's gone on these past few months, it all goes with the territory, as the cliche goes. It's part of the turf, particularly if you're determined to at least try to be an independent reporter. And I understand that very well."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A18755-2005Mar8.html

[FLPanhandle]

27. I know about Rather, but that doesn't mean the two are equivalent situations

And wild guesses aren't proof, not when he has already admitted some of his lies.

[99th_Monkey]

32. De minimis

De minimis - a Latin expression meaning about minimal things, normally in the locutions de minimis non curat praetor ("The praetor does not concern himself with trifles&quot or de minimis non curat lex ("The law does not concern itself with trifles&quot .[1][2] Queen Christina of Sweden (r.1633-1654) favoured the similar Latin adage, aquila non captat muscas (the eagle does not catch flies).[3]

A tempest in a teapot.

Much ado about nothing.

GWBush, Reagan, Hillary Clinton, Joe McCarthy, Mark Kirk, Dick Blumenthal, and a VERY long list of others
have lied about their experiences on/off the battlefield. To my knowledge NONE of them has had to "step down"
from their careers or their professions. Not. One.
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/brian-williams-motley-crew
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/dc/top-moments-in-politicians-lying-about-military-service

[FLPanhandle]

33. It's not just one instance

One slip, people can overlook.

Someone who repeatedly lies, is not going to be a credible news person.

[former9thward]

25. He lied about it just last Friday on the news.

It wasn't just something that happened 10 years ago.

[onehandle]

30. Dunno, but there sure are a lot of newbies here at DU cheering his downfall.

Newbies sure like to come to DU to concentrate on narrow issues.

And the owners just count ad clicks...

[LovingA2andMI]

39. Going Out on a Limb....

No, not really because I LIKE Brian Williams. Aside from this lie (which is a problem indeed) he is a good nightly news anchor who I perceive as fair in the age of polarized politics. Also, do not believe Williams should lose his job for this. Instead, what should cease is Williams blurring of the lines from this point forward of being a news anchor OR entertainer. One cannot do both so Williams must choose, period.

[tularetom]

31. A network anchorman lying about experiences in a war zone is more than a minor incident

But if that isn't enough for you here's a little story about Brian heaping praise on none other than fat ass druggie Rush Limbaugh:

http://mediamatters.org/research/2005/01/24/nbc-nightly-news-anchor-brian-williams-thinks-l/132611

[Corey_Baker08]

36. I Can't Agree More, Brian Williams Has Put His Life In Jeopardy Countless Times Reporting....

Whether on the battlefields of countless countries, to the wildfires burning behind him across the country, to being on the ground after Katrina to show the entire world not just the destruction & devastation the storm caused, but to also show the outrageous lack of response from the federal government, at a time when Bush would only fly over in a helicopter, Mr. Williams was on location...

In today's age of 24/7 news in which you are no longer getting the news ' fair & balanced', Brian Williams is a real journalist at a time when political affiliation is more important than a degree or experience BW has a great career that he has worked to achieve...

Now has he been wrong in his reporting of this story, yes, but he has been right more than he has been wrong...

[olddad56]

37. don't you mean HAD a great career.

[Corey_Baker08]

38. No I Don't Believe This Will Be The End...

[LovingA2andMI]

40. Agreed!

And let's hope not. "He (She) who is without sin, cast the first stone"..... no one has a stone to throw...

[MosheFeingold]

41. Not really the same as Rather

This is more like Walter Mitty. I served in the military and can't stand people who fake stuff like this.

And it's not a one-time deal: he's been telling the story over-and-over, and the lie kept getting bigger.

It hurts the credibility of the news and make the complaints of the wing-nut Republicans more plausible to the general public.

[99th_Monkey]

42. I refer you to Michael Moore

Who maybe says it better than I could.

Michael Moore: "Let's see... So George W. Bush is now an artist and a painter & roots for dear brother "Jeb in 2016;" Dick Cheney now appears on many networks as a grumpy old man pundit; Condi Rice gets to be on the board that picks college football's Final 4... but it's Brian Williams who's to be punished for Iraq? Are u effing kidding me? I mean, an entire country was demolished, trillions were wasted, thousands of our troops were killed & wounded, tens/hundreds of thousands of Iraqi civilians were killed, and now, FINALLY, someone is paying for Iraq war lies... and it's Brian fucking Williams????? Yes, there is much that can be said about all the network reporters in 2003 who were embedded (i.e., Pentagon-approved) with the troops and getting to "play war" instead of asking the Bush administration the hard questions THAT DID NOT GET ASKED, and yes there is much to say about how all the networks have dumbed down the nightly news and made it unwatchable... BUT - to let the real liars who were responsible for the Iraq War roam free while instead going after Brian Williams for committing the crime of Faux Macho due to his claim of being on the wrong chopper, well, this just begs to be ridiculed and stopped. Sinners (that means you, too, Paper of Record of Judith Miller), put down your stones. Social media mob, put down your noose. Have the guts to go after the big cheese. Let Brian Williams get back to telling us about the next big storm that's going to drop 3" of snow on New York City and the exclusive report on the lost dog who made it home to help its handicap master. (Note: I don't know Brian Williams personally, but I'll say this about him: in the post-9/11 years, he did the nightly news hour on MSNBC/CNBC, and he was one of the few people in TV news who would allow an opposition voice such as mine on the air. I remember thinking this is a man with integrity.)"

[Botany]

8. NBC Launches Investigation Of Brian Williams aka "his days are numbered"

n/t

[jakeXT]

9. TYT with his Letterman interview

[Duval]

13. Thanks, jakeXT! nt

[Duval]

12. They better stop! He

has already retracted, as Purveyor mentioned. There is no sense in pursuing it further, unless there is something else going on I don't know about. I like Brian Williams.

[Teutonic Samuel]

20. More Brian Williams Exaggerations

[TheNutcracker]

22. Never listen to Brian Williams again! I put him in the box with Lara Logan, the other propagandist!

[Fred Sanders]

23. Who will launch the investigation of NBC management's decade long active coverup?

While they are it, how about looking into the role of NBC in promoting the obvious Iraq war lies of Bush and company?

For starters?

Self policing by corporations of their own corporate ethics is a fool's errand.

"Who will watch the Watchmen?"

The watchmen?

[rocktivity]

26. Candidate for this year's "You Call this NEWS?" Awards

Special Achievement category.

Whatever Hillary had must be contagious.

And what is there to investigate? Either he said it or he didn't, and either it's true or it isn't -- and he says it isn't true. Just get him psychologically evaluated or fire him.


rocktivity

P.S. Click here for 2014's "You Call this NEWS?" Awards.

[jen1980]

28. "declined to speak"

Why do these corporations always protect the dishonest? Why not just tell the truth instead of constantly spouting misleading or redirecting statements. This is a disgusting action by NBC. They have lost our trust forever by defending a liar.

[tavernier]

34. My opinion

http://billmoyers.com/2015/02/06/shame-us-journalism-destruction-iraq-fake-helicopter-stories/

[MrMickeysMom]

35. LOL… If it's like the other "network" investigations, don't foresee real objective content..

… Just who IS IT reporting the real news these days? Not NBC…. CBS… ABC…. Fox…. CNN… MSNBC's not much better...

I get a much MORE objective investigation via TV news by Al Jazeera… BBC America… Democracy Now! … Bill Moyers and the Real News, most of these available to me online!