Update from TV Spy: Rather will not be anchoring the 5 p.m. newscast, KCTV told TVSpy this afternoon. “As it turned out, his schedule of events is making it tough for him to do the interview and try and do the show at 5 p.m.,” a spokesperson for the station said. “He will appear on KCTV5 News at 4 p.m. for an extended interview.”
Dan Rather, 80, one of America’s premier anchors for 24 years on the “CBS Evening News,” will be a special guest anchor Wednesday (6/20) on Kansas City’s CBS affiliate KCTV at 5 p.m., according to the station.
In a superb PR stunt for his new book “Rather Outspoken: My Life in the News,” Rather will spend time at KCTV’s anchor desk and will also do an extended interview during the station’s 4 p.m. newscast.
In 2005, Rather became embroiled in controversy about a disputed news report involving President Bush’s Vietnam-era service in the National Guard and was let go by the network after 43 years in 2006. In 2007 he filed a $70 million lawsuit against the network that was dismissed in 2009.
Rather was the first network television journalist to report that U.S. President John F. Kennedy had been assassinated in Dallas on November 22, 1963. He reported Kennedy had died before he had official confirmation of the president’s death.
Legendary anchor Walter Cronkite passed on Rather’s update: “We just have a report from our correspondent Dan Rather in Dallas that he has confirmed that President Kennedy is dead.”
Thanks to readers for letting me know the updates. It would have been nice if KCTV would have done likewise rather than simply changing the story on its Web site.
UPDATE: DAN RATHER NOW NOT GUEST ANCHORING ON KCTV
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I guess it is a stunt, but I don’t know if it’s superb. Doing local news in a small market, after being anchor of the national CBS news, seems strange.
It’s more of a stunt for KCTV.
Does anyone regard Dan Rather as a legitimate newsman, anymore?
I think it is great idea for KCTV. If it was during a sweeps period I’d have him do the 10 p.m. news.
He has far more “legitimate” than all of Fox News put together… Does that answer your question?
Yes, Ike, your comment answers a lot of questions, mostly about you, if we had a clue as to who you are, or if we actually cared.
As for Fox, do you have any links indicating that Fox ever manufactured documents to do a hit piece on a political candidate? If so do you have any links where whoever was involved with that hit piece is still running around years later telling people that the story was good even though the evidence it was based on was a complete joke?
As for Rather, I think this quote from a review of Cronkhite’s book is telling. “An increasingly bitter Walter Cronkite never hid his disdain for his “CBS Evening News” successor, Dan Rather — until his bosses ordered him to zip it as part of his final contract with the network”
Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/entertainment/tv/damn_rather_3Txozf3ab3C2778ih8wxEO#ixzz1yIZyTYPM
No, it doesn’t. Dan Rather is a discredited, dishonest newsman. Fox News has nothing to do with it.
I, too, remember the days when “legitimate” meant being on one of the Big 3, who all told us the same thing and controlled the news. The only difference is you yearn for those days. I say, good riddance!
Thank you, John, for your response to the first post…..I think KCTV has taken a good step by using Rather while he is town on his book tour..if KMBC or KSHB good have used a major retired anchor from their network they would have done it in a New York minute….
I’m confused. I clicked on the link above that takes me to the Channel 5 website, where this announcement is posted. It says he’ll be giving an extended interview on the 4 pm news, but it doesn’t say anything about him being the anchor at 5. Where did the information about him anchoring at 5 pm come from?
Actually, that part was reported by TVSpy, which is the bible of the TV industry. Not sure why KCTV isn’t announcing it.
http://www.mediabistro.com/tvspy/dan-rather-to-anchor-kctvs-evening-news-on-wednesday_b52240
John, TVSpy has now posted an update that KCTV is backtracking on Rather doing the 5pm news, due to scheduling issues. They confirmed the extended interview during the 4pm newscast.
A scheduling conflict will keep Rather from anchoring the newscast. http://mediakc.wordpress.com/2012/06/19/dan-rather-to-anchor-kctv-wednesday-night/
The Rather event at the downtown library last evening was a huge success. Over a thousand people in the audience. Crosby Kemper did a superb job of interviewing Rather about his personal and professional lives. Whether you love or hate Rather, he is an incredibly interesting interview.
Mike Shanin
Barry Bonds or Jim Carrey would bring more than 1,000 to the downtown library, are comparable journalists, and are more interesting interviews.
I feel bad for Crosby Kember in that situation. He may have felt obligated to do it.
As for KCTV5, its news release was a complete joke — they called the fabricated “George W. Bush National Guard controversy” among “some of the biggest news stories,” as if it was a compliment to Dan Rather (http://www.kctv5.com/story/18816222/dan-rather).
This is fitting for KCTV5, the station that blamed its producer and fired him (not management) after a KCTV5 news crew followed in a car the teenage daughter of former Attorney General Phill Kline.