Kerry Spot    [ jim geraghty reporting ]
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In DC Journal: "It only smells like victory, because: 1) Rather's still working for 60 Minutes. 2) The findings of the independent investigation are overdue. 3) No action has been taken against Producer Mary Mapes or CBS News President Andrew Heyward. In contrast, the CBS News producer that dared to interrupt the final minutes of "CSI" was canned within a few days. That says a great deal about their priorities."

Roger Simon: "He will still be keeping his role on "Sixty Minutes II", but I imagine that's going to be only slightly more popular than the McEnroe Show. Of course, the role of blogs in all this will be denied or down-played, but we know the truth, don't we?"

Captain Ed: "Two years ago, this announcement would have been a blockbuster. By this point, the reaction will mostly focus on why CBS waited so long to make the announcement. Rather had long since squandered any semblance of credibility even before he "personally vouched" for the authenticity of forged documents that CBS used to smear President Bush. He leaves an incredibly damaged news organization in his wake, which won't recover until after his departure and that of Andrew Heyward, CBS News President. CBS now has to find a fresh face to slap onto its tired and crumbling news division. It should also find some fresh faces for its management."

Will Collier respectfully disagrees with my pessimism:

A number of readers, and much of the blogosphere, apparently considers Rather's departure from the CBS Evening News, but not from CBS entirely, to be less than a triumph for Rather's critics.

I scoff. I scoff.

This is a humiliating comedown for Rather. Yes, it's a half-step. It's CBS trying to finesse its way out from under a disgraceful fraud committed by the network's most high-profile employee, but it is still a major, major defeat for CBS, and a crushing blow to Dan Rather. The CBS Evening News, even given plummeting ratings and a long slide in relevance, is still the crown jewel of CBS News. From its summit, Dan Rather has ruled the news division for a generation, effectively shaping a vast amount of the information that's broadcast over the network.

He never — never — would have voluntarily given up that much power and prestige under pressure. No way in hell would Rather give his critics the satisfaction of seeing him removed from that chair if he had any prayer of holding on to it.

The "this is no big deal" spin is a lie. The king is dead, and the blogosphere killed him.

[Posted 11/23 04:33 PM]