More on CBSgate

Democrats in Self-Destruct Mode CCCLXXIII

I must confess, Faithful Reader, I was stunned by yesterday's developments. Yes, I, Mr. Cynic, couldn't believe that CBS would be so stupid as to either (1) get duped by forgeries and/or (2) try to dupe the public with forgeries. I must now confess that I'm surprised that mainstream media is starting to cover the story as a story about forged documents.

From the front page of today's Washington Post:

Documents unearthed by CBS News that raise doubts about whether President Bush fulfilled his obligations to the Texas Air National Guard include several features suggesting that they were generated by a computer or word processor rather than a Vietnam War-era typewriter, experts said yesterday.

Experts consulted by a range of news organizations pointed out typographical and formatting questions about four documents as they considered the possibility that they were forged. The widow of the National Guard officer whose signature is on the bottom of the documents also disputed their authenticity....

And from an Associated "Boo" Press story, yesterday:

The authenticity of newly unearthed memos stating that George W. Bush failed to meet standards of the Texas Air National Guard during the Vietnam War was questioned Thursday by the son of the late officer who reportedly wrote the memos.

"I am upset because I think it is a mixture of truth and fiction here," said Gary Killian, son of Lt. Col. Jerry Killian, who died in 1984.

Another officer who served with Killian and a document expert also said Thursday the documents appear to be forgeries....

Power Line — also taken by surprise that mainstream media is covering the forged-documents angle, not just the phony Bush-lied angle — notes the denouement:

.... Tomorrow morning, dinosaur media across the country will be headlining the 60 Minutes "scoop" as a blow to the Bush campaign. Before their newspapers are even printed, not only is the story obsolete, but CBS is in full retreat. As Stephen Hayes reported earlier today, Power Line "led the charge" against the 60 Minutes hoax today. But the credit really goes to the incredible power of the internet. We knew nothing; all of our information came from our readers. Many thousands of smart, well-informed people who only a few years ago would have had no recourse but perhaps to write a letter to their local newspaper, now can communicate and share their expertise in real time, through sites like this one. The power of the medium is incredible, as we've seen over the last fourteen hours....

Frankly, I think that MM is starting to cover this as a forged-documents story because they realize how very damaging this attempted fraud on the American public could be to both the Kerry campaign and to themselves. (Pardon the redundancy.) So, they want to get it out in the open and out of the way as soon as they can. My friend Paul writes:

Well, they might have gotten away with it 30-40 years ago, but that stuff doesn't work anymore. They're trying to use the same old playbook they've always used to manipulate public opinion. (I believe that would fall under "Core's Law of Old Media", would it not?)

Why, yes, Paul, I think it would. :-)

And Margaret writes: "George Soros's cash is working overtime!"

P.S. Two good articles today: CBS's Big Blunder? and What the Bush Guard Papers Really Say.

Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Fri. 09/10/04 07:50:44 AM
Categorized as Democrats in Self-Destruct Mode & Media.