From Murrow to Couric: The Long, Sad Decline of CBS News

[Zomby Woof]

Bubbleheaded bleach blonde
Comes on at five
Tells you about a plane crash
With a gleam in her eye
It's interesting when people die
Give us dirty laundry
- Don Henley, 1982


Perhaps it was the retirement of Walter Cronkite in early 1981 that marked the beginning of the end for the once formidable and influential CBS News organization. The natural heir of Edward R. Murrow, Walter Cronkite was deservedly "the most trusted man in America" during the tumultuous Vietnam and Watergate years. It was fitting in hindsight that Cronkite's journalism career ended as the Reagan era bore down upon us and the upstart concept of "24 hour news" was still just the wild hunch of a mouthy Atlanta millionaire.

Ronald Reagan was the perfect president for this new period of vapid infotainment flavor of fake journalism which was insinuating itself within the growing television arena. Like the film "Network" coming to pass, had Cronkite not retired, one wonders if he would have been consigned to the same fate as Howard Beale: An anachronistic curmudgeon regarded more as a curiosity kept around for posterity and casual amusement. As it stands, Dan Rather was provided to fill the void, offering twice the curiosity value, with half the journalistic credibility of his predecessor.

It was during this period too that the young Katie Couric was working her way through the ranks as an assignment editor and reporter for various local news networks, including some time at national networks including CNN in its infancy. By the beginning of the next decade, she had arrived at her niche - the perpetually toothy co-host of NBC's "The Today Show". It was just the right venue for one of her disposition and shallow journalistic ethics.

Yes, with some irony it must be noted that due the personal hardship of losing her husband to the ravages of colon cancer, she did win (and deserved to an extent) the Edward R. Murrow Award for Overall Excellence in 2001 because she let America peer farther up her colon than Chris Matthews does with Dumbya when she broadcasted a live colonscopy of herself on the air. To her credit, she did win one more Peabody Award in her career than Bill O'Reilly for her raising awareness of the disease.

But really, what Couric represents is the breezy, shallow type of pseudojournalism that typifies the post-Reagan years. She is the natural choice for these un-natural times. From Murrow to Couric, the death knell of CBS News has sounded. Good Night and Good Luck to it all. And that's the way it is.

[Ignacio Upton]

1. You know what Katie will report on her first night at work?

Missing white girl still not found! Democrats took money from Abramoff too, and Bill Clinton responsible for Avian Flu!

[Zomby Woof]

2. Did you see Fahrenheit 911?

When they showed that clip of her cheerleading for the war, "Navy Seals RAWK!", I about wretched up my toenails. That was the nadir of her career. Until now.

[question everything]

25. No, she will start by pointing to her breasts and will say

"there are real"

and will demand a full frontal desk to show her shapely legs.

[Chiyo-chichi]

26. and for every news story...

she will do another examining whether the previous story will help Bush's poll numbers (with the strong implication that it will.)

[libbygurl]

3. A real reporter to watch - Lara Logan of CBS (from South Africa) who

...tells it like it is, calls a spade a spade, doesn't mince words, very passionate and outspoken. I haven't seen any US reporter like her out there yet.

On the other hand, her outspokenness might cost her, too, in some way.

[Mr_Jefferson_24]

4. She is great. nt.

[snacker]

28. Lara Logan is one gutsy lady. n/t

[pacalo]

6. Lara Logan is impressive, inside & out.

I've always thought that the CBS news division valued outspokeness; of course, these days we're in la-la land, so who knows.

No more CBS News or "60 Minutes" for me -- I can't stand Katie Couric. I stopped watching the Today Show during the Clinton administration because of her obvious Republican favoritism & because of her constant cackling & "look at me, me, me" crap. She's too old to be acting like a college sorority girl & she makes me ill.

[Stinky The Clown]

9. The same may be said of Christianne Amanpour

A journalist who is a journalist. We see so little of her lately. Perhaps because she is too good.

[anitar1]

11. Yes,.Husb2, I have wondered what happend to her. h/n

[libbygurl]

12. Yep, she was telling the truth, too, despite pressure from on high...

...to soften the stories, especially about the Iraq war. Katie Couric's doesn't try to even hide her Republican bias - she makes me ill, too!

[northzax]

29. she guest hosted Charlie Rose last night, at least (nt)

[kath]

5. Great post, Zomby!

But the word "decline" in your title doesn't quite cover it - what's a good twenty-dollar word for "descent into the deepest depths"?? :-)

And I also can't get that "Navy SEALs rock!!" clip out of my mind. Makes me want to :puke: :puke:

[Zomby Woof]

7. Thanks!

I'll take a ten dollar word and you can keep the change. :D

[norml]

8. Nothing Happened Today Lyrics

Nothing Happened Today Lyrics


Turn on the TV
Turn on the radio.
Turn down that sound
Turn down that sound

Open the curtains
Open the windows.
What's happening around
What's happening around

I'll do some washing
I might go shopping
I'm going downtown
I'm going downtown

Someone told me, "nothing happened today."

I woke up late
I had a headache
I went back to sleep
Go back to sleep

I stood there waiting
Waiting for something
There wasn't a thing
Not even one thing

Someone told me, "nothing happened today."

Harry Hooper living in No. 10
Bought a toupee and glued it to his head
"It looks very natural," everybody said.
But then his wife said "Toupee, isn't that a French word?"
And Harry said, "Ole." She said, "That's a Spanish word."
And he said "O.K., can't tell the difference these days."

I watched TV
Cos I wanted to see
The late news at 10
It came on and then

She shuffled her papers
She swivelled in her chair
She looked up and said

The weather was fair
And then it turned cold
It started to rain
Pouring with rain.

Some people died
Some people were born
And some stayed the same
And some went insane

Tomorrow's Wednesday
Today was Tuesday
And this is the date
March 28th

It was the morning
Then afternoon
And then the night came
And then the night came

Oh...and someone told me, "Nothing happened today."
Yes, someone told me, "Nothing happened today."
It happened today.
_________________________________________
*taken from the album entitled "The Fine Art Of Surfacing"
*Written by Bob Geldof


http://www.sing365.com/music/Lyric.nsf/Nothing-Happened-Today-lyrics-Boomtown-Rats/58939287F3DEE98848256E8C0010429A

[flordehinojos]

10. can we blame the decline of CBS on undocumente aliens? Lou Dobbs blames

them for everything else under the sun. Why not blame them for the decline of CBS too? they are the perfect scapegoats--no matter what the reality is!

[question everything]

27. You mean, instead of blaming Clinton?

:headbang: :banghead:

[flordehinojos]

32. }( i think i got your groove.

}(

[AndyA]

13. CBS News' decline will speed up significantly when

Couric arrives on the scene. I wonder how long they'll give her until they pull the plug. I used to like 60 Minutes, but if she's going to be a part of it, I won't watch it ever again.

I'm beginning to see why CBS News is in third place, with leadership making bad decisions like this.

[dbt]

14. The Sellout Of The Alleged News Media Is Now Complete.

No more Conspiracy Theory is needed. The Tinfoil is now Made Manifest. The black helicopters have landed on top of the CBS Building and Richard Nixon's Wet Dream Of Network has come true at last.

There is no clearer indication that CBS has given up on even the appearance of Journalism than putting Katie Couric into the chair that once held Uncle Walter.

"This war is unwinnable" now passes into the realm of "Navy SEALS rock!"

:argh:
dbt
Remember New Orleans

[salin]

15. Throwing in a Costello lyric:

From the Album King of America:

She said that she was working for the ABC News
It was as much of the alphabet as she knew how to use


Okay Ms Couric may not be that stupid - but she does herald in the full throttle era of airhead news.

[Supersedeas]

16. Interesting when a news network dies too...

[Peter Frank]

17. It Doesn't Matter Who the Talking Head Dejur is...

Multinational corps already own the balls of "mainstream" media.

[JanMichael]

18. Good post man. It's great that the Revolution won't be televised.

Ironic ain't it?

[MadHound]

19. Look, I'm not a Katie fan, OK.

I don't watch the Today Show, in fact I watch very little news that one gets on the MSM.

But still and all, I say give the woman a chance, you might be suprised. Before she was hired onto the Today Show, she worked some serious hard news beats at ABC, CNN and NBC. In fact she won an Emmy for her pre Today Show work:shrug:

And consider, what was she hired for on the Today Show? To be bright, perky, upbeat, the girl-next-door in the morning. And she did that quite well. Would you really want the uber seriousness of Cronkite or Wallace with your morning coffee?

So I say give her a fair chance. If she's still doing the over perky, over the hill sexpot act a month after her debut, then I'll be first in line to condemn her. But until then, I'm not going to pre-judge based on her stint with the Today Show.

[4_TN_TITANS]

22. Fair assessment...

I'm the first to leap to condemnation, but I'll give the gal a chance before I pull the plug on CBS.

I miss Scheiffer already! :cry:

[Bridget Burke]

23. Yes, Katie is not the disease, she's a symptom.

I'm not optimistic, but I'll give her a chance. CBS has been the only network news I can watch without yelling & scaring the cats.

[nini]

31. She gets no chances from me.. She shilled herself for the right

over and over on the Today show. She's not fair in her approach. That alone makes her unqualified. I guess by today's standards for some she is.. Now how f'ing sad is that?

[Ishoutandscream2]

20. Good post, and so very true.

Cronkite leaving not only was the beginning of the end for CBS news, but all broadcast news networks in general. The day of the real broadcast journalist is gone. As long as you're attractive to look at and can read a teleprompter, then you too can be a news anchor.

[Armstead]

21. You hit it on the head

The major change was both a change in public policy and in our corporate values.

Network news was once considered the spinach of television. Not much fun to eat, but necessary for nourishment.

The government and the networks had an unspoken (and real) agrteement that CBS could make money by broacasting crap like the Beverly Hillbillies,but they were expected to operate the news divisions outside of the "profit centers" in exchange.

IN addition, the networks saw the networks as their prestige centers, whih provided them with at least ther appearance of serving the public.

But in the "profit uber alles" mentality that took over in the 80's, those rules were tossed outthe window. Now news is inseperable from the Beverly Hillbillies.

[jus_the_facts]

24. "Otherwise...it's merely .... wires and lights....

...in a box.



Good night, and good luck." :nopity:

[CatWoman]

30. My big brother must be rubbing off on me

:hi:

:loveya:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x848903

[Zomby Woof]

33. LOL!

I honestly didn't see that! :D

Great minds and all that. :loveya: