MRC’s Media Reality Check Documentation of
Dan Rather’s Liberal Media Bias

Dan Rather Nods Through Clinton Whoppers, June 21, 2004
No one really expected Dan Rather to play Tim Russert on 60 Minutes last night, and probe Clinton on his every factual inconsistency. But Rather sat idly through a series of Clinton whoppers and forwarded them without objection to the audience at home.

For Clinton, Dan Rather is Putty in His Hands, June 17, 2004
Why would Bill Clinton choose Dan Rather to be the first TV interviewer — in effect the master of ceremonies — for his book unveiling? Because Clinton knows that for him, Dan Rather is a soft touch, a powder puff, an apple polisher, a lapdog.

Dan Rather Makes Nice, Not News, Jan. 27, 2004
On the CBS Evening News, Rather interviewed three Democratic candidates face to face. He made nice, not news. He moved with the mass. He didn’t make anybody mad. In excerpts CBS showed last night, the candidates were treated to non-ideological horse-race questions and soft-touch inquiries.

Dan Rather Stars in “Gullible’s Travels”, Feb. 27, 2003
Saddam Hussein enjoyed another pleasant rerun of his 1990 interview with Dan Rather in prime time last night on 60 Minutes II. But too many minutes of this hour were wasted on trivia and silliness, and Rather exhibited too much gullibility, for it to have any value to the American public.

Quick Take: CBS’s Rerun Publicity Gimmick: Saddam Floated Debate Idea in ‘90, Feb. 25, 2003
CBS is starting to milk the publicity machine for its exclusive interview with Saddam Hussein, but already its appetite for promotion is plugging up its nose for news. On last night’s CBS Evening News, Rather promoted the supposed scoop: “President Hussein has a surprising proposal for President Bush. He is challenging the President of the United States to join him in a live radio and television satellite linkup and debate the need for war before the entire world.”

Rather’s Bizarre Boycott of Condit Scandal, July 19, 2001
Dan Rather apparently feels every CBS News program, with the exception of the Monday through Friday CBS Evening News with Dan Rather, has shown a lack of journalistic restraint by reporting on the official police investigation into the disappearance of Chandra Levy, who until recently was the girlfriend of married Democratic Congressman Gary Condit.

Rather Praises Clinton As An "Honest Man", May 16, 2001
Appearing on the Fox News Channel’s The O’Reilly Factor Tuesday night, Dan Rather insisted he had no "inner bias...that goes easy on a Clinton and hard on somebody from the Republican side." But in his answers, Rather revealed that he sees the world through liberal-tinted lenses.

Dan Rather’s Donation to Liberal Tax Lovers, April 12, 2001
The next time Democrats invite CBS’s Dan Rather to star at a partisan fundraiser, as he obligingly did in Texas on March 21, he could remind them just how generously he gives at the office. A new study by MRC’s Free Market Project (FMP) documents that, while all three evening newscasts aided liberals’ fight against President Bush’s tax program, Rather’s CBS Evening News was by far the most hostile to the concept of tax cuts.

Bush Wins? Not As Democrat Dan Rather Sees It, Nov. 27, 2000
Katherine Harris may have certified George W. Bush as President-Elect last night, but don't expect the liberal media to concede this official result any faster than their friends in the Gore campaign will. Last night in live coverage on CBS, Dan Rather identified Harris as a Republican at least six times, and questioned the finality of her finding at least ten times.

CBS Evening News Questions Military Opposition To Gore, Sept. 26, 2000
Selectively quoting from a Sunday New York Times story about how Vice President Gore would be one of only four enlisted men to become Commander-in-Chief, CBS anchor Dan Rather darkly hinted on Monday evening that the U.S. military was assuming a more "political" role.

Dan Rather, Stenographer to Power, April 24, 2000
Just hours after the Saturday raid to seize Elian Gonzalez, at 9:03 a.m., CBS reporter Jim Stewart mourned Janet Reno would be remembered for the Waco raid and this raid: "It is appalling from her perspective because of the true compassion she has for children. If you’ve ever seen her around children, you know how much she truly cares for them, and this has got to be tearing at her." Throughout the morning, Dan Rather felt compassion for Reno, Fidel Castro, among others.

Rather's Anchorman Amnesia Over Hillary, Feb. 11, 2000
Call it anchorman amnesia. When the top TV titans put on their pundit hats, they suddenly recall every inconvenient story they've left out of their newscasts for the benefit of their liberal friends.

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