Couric Critiques Iraq War Run-Up Coverage
In a new book, former White House press secretary Scott McClellan charges that the White House press corps was too easy on the Bush administration in the run-up to the Iraq War. McClellan served as press secretary for nearly three years before leaving in 2006 and was a longtime aide to President Bush stretching back to their days in Texas.
The three network anchors were asked about those claims on CBS News' Early Show Wednesday morning, while promoting a special on cancer to air in September.
"I think it's a very legitimate allegation," said CBS News' Katie Couric. "I think it's one of the most embarrassing chapters in American journalism.
"And I think there was a sense of pressure from corporations who own where we work and from the government itself to really squash any kind of dissent or any kind of questioning of it," Couric added. "I think it was extremely subtle but very, very effective."
ABC News' Charles Gibson disagreed with Couric.
"I think that the media did a pretty good job of focusing and asking the questions," he said. "We were not given access to get into the country … to go along with the inspectors. But the questions were asked.
"It was just a drum beat from the government, and I think it's convenient now to blame the media, but I don't," he added.
NBC News' Brian Williams said it was the mood of the country after 9/11 that influenced the coverage.
"I think people have to remember the post-9/11 era and how that felt and what the president felt he was empowered to do, and that Colin Powell speech at the U.N.," he said.
Couric, however, countered Williams' assessment.
"Our responsibility is to sometimes go against the mood of the country," she said, "and ask the hard questions."
Copyright 2009 CBS. All rights reserved. The three network anchors were asked about those claims on CBS News' Early Show Wednesday morning, while promoting a special on cancer to air in September.
"I think it's a very legitimate allegation," said CBS News' Katie Couric. "I think it's one of the most embarrassing chapters in American journalism.
"And I think there was a sense of pressure from corporations who own where we work and from the government itself to really squash any kind of dissent or any kind of questioning of it," Couric added. "I think it was extremely subtle but very, very effective."
ABC News' Charles Gibson disagreed with Couric.
"I think that the media did a pretty good job of focusing and asking the questions," he said. "We were not given access to get into the country … to go along with the inspectors. But the questions were asked.
"It was just a drum beat from the government, and I think it's convenient now to blame the media, but I don't," he added.
NBC News' Brian Williams said it was the mood of the country after 9/11 that influenced the coverage.
"I think people have to remember the post-9/11 era and how that felt and what the president felt he was empowered to do, and that Colin Powell speech at the U.N.," he said.
Couric, however, countered Williams' assessment.
"Our responsibility is to sometimes go against the mood of the country," she said, "and ask the hard questions."
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is about 7 yrs. too late.
I cannot BELIEVE those New Yorkers are not even more inquisitive about all the UNANSWERED questions as to HOW those box-cutter wielding Saudis were able to pull off the hijacking...and then, the amazing collapse of BOTH TOWERS from jet fuel that doesn''t EVEN burn HOT enough to MELT steel girders, let alone cause them to explode to smithereens during the freefall demolition...and then who are the idiots that cannot ask a simple question about WHY/HOW Building 7 collapsed the SAME way, without even a box-cutter wielding Saudi flying a jet masterfully into its core.....AND why NOOOOOOBOOODY spoke of how and WHY the BBC reported the collapse of BUILDING 7 at 5PM that day, when owner Silverstein gave the "PULL IT!" command for the detonation at 5:20PM!!!!!!!!!
Does anybody have a brain out there to figure this *** out???????????????????????
I only have a BA in biology and it looks very, very suspicious to me.
Who is running this country, anyway?????????
Gibson on the other hand tried to congratulate himself and the MSM that they in fact asked the right questions- what those questions I certainly don''t remember. All I could remember were all these fancy graphics splashed on the TV screen promoting the invasion as if it was a sporting event. And I still vividly remember this one CNN newscaster who concluded her report on the war with and OH-RAH! like she was cheering on her favorite football team or something. If this lady and the rest of the Gibsons and the MSM were really serious about their role in a democracy, they should have had videos and photos of the carnage and destruction that the invasion was inflicting on the civilian population of Iraq and reporting the war as it happened.
Again, kudos to Ms. Couric (for at least accepting that she and the MSM were at at fault) and boos to Williams and Gibson!
Thank God that we have the guts to defend ourselves. As a decent democracy we are superior to the hordes of nations ruled by petty dictators and despots. Isn''t it about time we THANK Pres Bush for keeping u s SAFE all these years !!
Couric is honest and correct.
Williams gave a non-responsive answer; which puts him somewhere between Gibson and Couric.
News should be reports based on facts not opinions spun to create facts. She as a journalist should not be involved in commentary.