The Dan Rather File Decades of Liberal Media Bias

Spotlight on Dan Rather’s Liberal Media Bias
Dan Rather ascended to the CBS Evening News anchor chair on March 9, 1981. Since then, his on-air liberal bias has become the stuff of legend. To find out why, read and watch MRC-selected Dan Rather highlights.

• The Dan Rather File Home Page
   

More Rather Bias, By Category, March 2005 – Present:

• Media & Bias

• Media Praise Dan Rather

• National Guard Memo Scandal: ‘Rathergate’
   

Media & Bias

• Rather Critics: "Drop Dead"; No "Crazy Biased Liberals" at CBS

• CNN Media Critic: Fundraiser Won't Alter Dan Rather's Objectivity

• CBS Cancels 60 Minutes Wed, But Rather to Move to Sunday Edition

• NY Post & FNC Pick Up on CyberAlert Item on Rather's Speaking Fee

• Dan Rather Signs With Speakers' Bureau, Fee: $75,000 Per Speech

• Sans Dan Rather, CBS Evening News Hits All-Time Viewership Low

• Rather Returns to 60 Minutes, Has "Howdy" & "Adios" Voice Mail

Media Praise Dan Rather

• Rather Receives Standing Ovations from "Investigative" Reporters

• Audience Awards the "Quote of the Year" to Dan Rather

• Rather & Mapes Win Peabody Award for Abu Ghraib Abuse Story

• Koppel and MSNBC's Kaplan Heap Praise on Rather, Belittle Critics

Video:
Ted Koppel Honors Dan Rather

•   See CyberAlert  | Video:  Real • Windows Media

Ted Koppel: "Those of us who have competed against you, know you to be a man of honesty and integrity and decency. You and your colleagues it appears made a mistake in your report on George Bush's military service. I would simply urge your most vociferous critics to take a page from the White House's own playbook. When one of their own makes a mistake, they stress the importance of looking to the future and of not playing the blame game."

-- ABC's Ted Koppel praises Dan Rather at the News and Documentary Emmy Awards, National Television Academy, broadcast by C-SPAN, Sept. 19, 2005.

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Video:
MSNBC President Praises Dan Rather

  Listen to MP3 audio clip | See CyberAlert  | Video:  Real • Windows Media

Rick Kaplan: "As was the practice in all he did, Dan was meticulously careful to be fair and balanced and accurate. When did we stop believing that this is indeed how we all perform our jobs or try to? When did we allow those with questionable agendas to take the lead and convince people of something quite the opposite? It's shameful. But I digress. Dan has led a generation of great reporters to the top of America's most-admired professions -- at least in the '70s. And deservedly so. His legacy as he practiced then is the gold standard journalists today have struggled to live up to. And working to serve the needs of his fellow citizens as admirably as he has is how he deserves to be spoken of. I'm very proud of my good friend. Thank you Dan. We have all benefited by your great work."

-- MSNBC President Rick Kaplan praises Dan Rather at the News and Documentary Emmy Awards, National Television Academy, broadcast by C-SPAN, Sept. 19, 2005.

National Guard Memo Scandal: ‘Rathergate’
Rather: Bush Guard Memo Story "Accurate," Never Proven Not So

Video:
Dan Rather Defends Bush Guard Story as "Accurate"

Listen to MP3 audio clip  | See CyberAlert  | Video:  Real | Windows Media

Dan Rather: "One supporting pillar of the story, albeit an important one, one supporting pillar was brought into question. To this day no one has proven whether it was what it purported to be or not. In terms of [unintelligible "myself"?] it was 'he stuck by the story,' I stuck by the story because I believed in it. 'He stuck with his people.' Listen I've made nearly every mistake in the book. But my attitude when we go into stories, we go into them together, we ride through whatever happened and we come out the other end together. You know, I didn't give up on my people, our people, I didn't and I won't." [Applause]

Marvin Kalb: "Dan, thank you. You said, I believe you just said that you think the story is accurate."

Rather: "The story is accurate."
-- Exchange between Dan Rather and Marvin Kalb at the National Press Club, broadcast by C-SPAN, Sept. 26, 2005

• Rather Stands By What He Won't Call "Memogate," Will Get Emmy

• Rather Insists Guard Story True, "Not Fact" to Call Memos "Fake"

• FNC Picks Up on CyberAlert about Rather's Praise of Mapes

• Rather Praises Mapes, CBS News: "Kingdom of Journalistic Knights"

Video:
Dan Rather talks about the "magical mystic kingdom" of CBS News.

Listen to MP3 audio clip | See CyberAlert

Tina Brown: "What are the realistic chances that you're going to be able to do a story that really shakes and rattles the Bush administration?"

Dan Rather: "Excellent. The Bush administration, the Democratic leadership or any future Democratic Presidents. CBS News has a culture, has a history that those of us who work here, it's very real -- that we see it as a sort of magical mystical kingdom of journalistic knights -- and I know I can mentally hear people rolling their eyes, that's the way we feel."
-- CNBC's Topic [A] with Tina Brown, May 22, 2005.

Video:
Dan Rather Says Forged Documents Not Disproven, Guard Story True

Listen to MP3 audio clip | See CyberAlert

Dan Rather: "Important point: [Panel] said, 'We don't know whether the documents are fraudulent or not.'"
Larry King: "So, are you saying the story might be correct?"
Dan Rather: "Well, I'm saying a prudent person might take that view."
-- Dan Rather on Larry King Live, June 2, 2005