Dan Rather has become such a quirky relic that it's easy to forget he was once a pretty good newsman. During the Nixon Administration, he was the guy who asked the blunt, cut-through-the-spin question…the kind that few have put to any president in a long time. I think all chief execs, including the ones I like, should have a few of those interrogators lurking in the Press Corps. It's sad that one of the effects of the recent election is that Bush seems to feel he has a mandate to not only do what he wants but not to have to answer questions from reporters about any of it.
It's also easy to forget why the Nixon White House put Rather on its enemy list and accused him of Liberal Bias. It was largely because Rather was reporting things that they were denying but which turned out to be accurate. Rather was way too serious for his own good and he always seemed to project this snotty attitude that all three branches of government were answerable to CBS News. But he was also a good reporter and a working example that the role of the press is not to just accept dictation from those in power — or even their opponents — but to dig, question, demand proof and to even, at times, decide the facts of an issue. Today, what too often passes for "investigative reporting" is being a conduit for leaks that frequently turn out not to be true. (And by the way, it's amazing how little it has harmed some careers to pass that stuff off as legitimate news.)
Rather was named to his post on the CBS Evening News in part because Conservatives were lobbying against this, and CBS wanted to not be seen as yielding to their pressure. Rather's critics were furious when he got the job anyway but they should have celebrated. By giving him Walter Cronkite's desk, CBS turned a dangerous reporter into a usually-safe anchorperson. It also helped contribute to the growing irrelevance of the evening network newscasts. As the world of communications has changed, Rather has steadfastly adhered to the old school of broadcasting, thereby putting his show out of touch with much of America. The cold, clipped delivery and bizarre folksy expressions have also contributed to this.
The interesting thing to me is that when Rather steps down, he'll have held the CBS anchor chair for 24 years, which is five longer than Cronkite…and yet, no one seems to care all that much who replaces Dan. When it was Uncle Walter stepping down, it was a matter of national concern as to who'd be his successor. The post was that important. That so little attention will go to the question of who'll get it now is a pretty good sign of how much it's been devalued. And while a lot of that is not Rather's fault — the communications industry changing and all — some of it is. He stuck around long past his usefulness…long enough to downgrade the job and make it an easy one to fill. I'm thinking Tom Arnold…maybe Carrot Top. Looks like Ozzy Ozbourne's going to have some free time…