January 11, 2005

Deja Vu All Over Again

Rathergate isn't the first time an independent panel has investigated CBS News.

The network found itself on the receiving end of a $120 million libel suit from Gen. William C. Westmoreland after a Jan. 23, 1982, documentary, The Uncounted Enemy: A Vietnam Deception. The piece charged him with intentionally misreporting North Vietnamese troop strength to persuade President Lyndon Johnson that the war remained winnable.

CBS launched an independent internal investigation – as it did with the National Guard story – and eventually concluded that the report was seriously flawed. The principal correspondent on the piece, Mike Wallace, remains at CBS News. But its producer, George Crile, was chastised and fired. Mr. Westmoreland ended up dropping his suit before it went to a jury.

"Faceless Take Fall for CBS Blunder"