NBC under fire: Vets assail Brian Williams over ‘reprehensible’ false claims.

Well, I guess there is no honor, creditability and/or integrity (food for thought...he isn't the only one with 'Milk of Amnesia' [because it runs, and runs and runs]...think Hilary years ago).

Martin Matishak - MSN News - 5 Feb 15

"Prominent veterans service organizations are blasting Brian Williams over the NBC anchor’s false claims that he was on a helicopter forced down by enemy fire in 2003.

But the groups are stopping short of calling for the Nightly News anchor to resign.

“As an organization of wartime veterans, The American Legion finds his behavior reprehensible, and we hope that Mr. Williams will redeem himself,” Michael Helm, the group’s national commander, said in a statement.

“But ultimately, the American people will judge his character,” he added.

...That didn’t stop viewers from going online to voice their disbelief over his claim that he 'misremembered' the event, chalking it up to 'the fog of memory over 12 years' [yeahhhh...right...].

Read More: http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/vets-assail-brian-williams-over-%E2%80%98reprehensible%E2%80%99-false-claims/ar-AA92dyN
"Integrity is choosing your thoughts, [words] and actions based on values rather than personnel gain". Author Unknown

When dealing with the press one should always remember that journalism is a pseudo-profession which requires for success only that the aspirant have a minimum level of expertise with language and a complete lack of ethics.

Remember when NBC News blew up Chevrolet pick-up truck with model rocket engines when it wouldn't explode spontaneously from a side impact accident?

The media has squandered all it's credibility.

That is a terrible thing to say that journalism is a pseudo profession.

Modern media hacks are no longer content to just report a news story. There is an increasing trend for "journalists" to try and make themselves a part of the story. Of course when they do that it ceases to be journalism, and becomes sensationalism.

This glorified teleprompter reader repeatedly lied about his experiences for a decade. When the lie was eventually exposed, he apologized. However, HE LIED AGAIN IN THE APOLOGY. Claiming he "misremembered" the incident, he says now that it was the helo ahead of him that actually got hit. It is now being revealed that the helicopter "ahead" was WAAAAY ahead of his -- as in, A COUPLE HOURS AHEAD! Williams arrived on scene long after the helicoper was hit by ground fire, in a helicopter from a completely different unit.

Brian Williams not only has a loose association with the truth, but probably also with reality. You gotta love the video where David Letterman (another guy with some credibility issues) calls Williams "a hero" after relating the story on the Late Show.

Edcculus said:

That is a terrible thing to say that journalism is a pseudo profession.

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Hmmm...

Edcculus is absolutely right, everyone.

There is nothing that could remotely be considered "professional" about misrepresenting facts to push an agenda. Calling journalism a "profession" is an insult to real professionals... like hookers and assasins.

Be careful how you post in this thread, in case is crosses the boundary, and gets deleted.

Just a fair warning of ymmv.

Cricket1 said:

Be careful how you post in this thread, in case is crosses the boundary, and gets deleted.

Just a fair warning of ymmv.

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Wise words. The topic is fair game, including the credibility of the media generally. Attacking the "liberal" or "conservative" media is out of bounds.

Edcculus said:

That is a terrible thing to say that journalism is a pseudo profession.

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I agree. We need real journalists that dig and uncover issues that need to be addressed. Those that do this professionally provide a real benefit to society and should be appreciated. Unfortunately, real journalism is in decline, as it doesn't seem to attract enough viewers/readers to make it profitable. So we end up frauds like Brian Williams being desperate for attention, lying to try to boost his persona and stay relevant. Kind of sad, really.

He always seemed slimy.

Cricket1 said:

Be careful how you post in this thread, in case is crosses the boundary, and gets deleted.

Just a fair warning of ymmv.

Click to expand...

Cricket:

...I'm sure we'll keep it PG (no imbedded criteria...or 'other' agenda), and 'sensitized', but I was just pointing out that for some (in a 'holistic point of view'...there have been 'many' others in the public spot-light who've made this 'misremembered' mistake),...there is no honor, creditability and/or integrity.

However, it really 'grinds my gears' that others would take credit for pure fabrications because 24/7...George Orwell said it best that [FONT=&amp]"[our] People sleep peacefully in their beds at night only because [our serviceman & women] stand ready to do violence on their behalf".[/FONT]

"If you have integrity, nothing else matters. If you don't have integrity...nothing else matters". Alan Simpson

Journalism is a business, and the media exist to make money. They make money by selling advertising, and they price their service by the amount of exposure their news stories generate. When an event isn't newsworthy enough to generate viewership, it can be spun to the left or to the right, or simply misreported in whichever way will create the most outrage. The media has become very adept at pouring gasoline on any spark of a story so as to make it explode.

We see them reporting "witness statements" of people who were not, in fact, witnesses to anything. They carefully select rumours and hearsay when there are no facts present, or if the facts are not sensational enough, or of these facts don't relate to the particular news agency's political ideology (yes, even ghouls can be politically-divided). They gleefully report the most bloody stories they can find, and if the story isn't bloody enough, they kick it a few times to get a few more drops put of it.

I no longer watch the mainstream news, I get tired of the news agencies like CNN promoting their news anchors, showing them visiting dangerous places, or interviewing famous people. These anchors are simply talking heads who read what is written for them to read. When it comes to news, I want simple objectivity, I don't want an editor's or producer's "take" on the news as expressed by a talking head with a full head of hair and a nice suit or dress.

The worst thing about the entire situation is that these greedy, corrupt, and unscrupulous media organizations are the main mouthpieces through which we get so much of our information about the world. Many, if not most people believe what they see or read, it is a terrible situation.

As Poe said, "Believe nothing that you read, and only half of what you see." Wise words indeed.

To begin with, anyone who gets their news from the talking lamp is a fool.

It used to be that the newsreaders you saw every night were actual journalists at one time, craftsmen who learned how to write, how to get off their butts and knock on doors, how to find the "who, what, when, where, why" about a story and report it.

Nowadays we have talking haircuts who have their jobs because the demographics researchers said they have the most appeal to viewers.

I've even given up on most American newspapers--I get better news reporting on American stories from the English papers these days.

I'm sad that Brian Williams has committed such a "fireable offence". I liked the tone of his newscast that seemed to add a more serious tone to news. I do believe that such a significant fabrication requires that NBC remove him from it's anchor slot.

I understand that Veterans groups are upset with Williams, but that's not the reason that he should be fired. I'll remind everyone that our founding fathers felt that a healthy press was an essential part of our democratic republic. They all understood that the new experiment of the general public choosing it's leaders required that public reading a variety of newspapers and pamphlets and vigorously debating with their fellow citizens. Without a vigorous press, the opponents of our new democratic republican government would be proven right in their belief that only the aristocrats were qualified to participate in government.

Brian Williams should be fired because he has betrayed his professional ethic of placing his self promotion above a straight reporting of the news. In doing so he has let down the American public by subordinating his public obligation to embellishing his "war stories".

P.S. Walter Cronkite and Andy Rooney both had numerous combat flights with the eighth air force where there was heavy German anti-aircraft fire and fighter attacks against the bomber groups that they were flying with. Yet they only reported those stories in end of career biographies. Those men, along with others were true professional journalists.

Edcculus said:

That is a terrible thing to say that journalism is a pseudo profession.

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Agreed. Walter Cronkite, Edward R. Murrow, Ernie Pyle, Bob Woodward, Carl Bernstein were all professional journalists.

shevek said:

I agree. We need real journalists that dig and uncover issues that need to be addressed. Those that do this professionally provide a real benefit to society and should be appreciated. Unfortunately, real journalism is in decline, as it doesn't seem to attract enough viewers/readers to make it profitable.

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Agreed, unfortunately. Journalists have reported on and broken some the most important stories of the day and age.

Talking lamp? Is that jargon for the TV set?

I'm sorry to learn about this, but not surprised.

Apparently, he may have done the same type of reporting during the Katrina Hurricane. Williams claimed he saw bodies floating in the water in the French Quarter of NO and got dysentery drinking water. However, according to the New Orleans Advocate the French Quarter was the high ground of NO and was not impacted by the flood water. The former health official who manned the EMS at the time said he did not recall a "single, solitary case of gastroenteritis during Katrina.

I think his lie presents an ethical challenge for himself. I feel as if he should for more than apologize. He should resign. That's my two cents.

Journalism is a true profession, even a calling. However, there is plenty of pseudo-journalism out there. Brian Williams crossed the line. All a true journalist has is expertise, integrity, and credibility. Williams has shown he lacks the first two and lost the third. While I respect him FINALLY coming forward, his poor judgment from the first time he told the story and every time he continued to and never fessed up is something he must atone for.

TRWXXA said:

This glorified teleprompter reader repeatedly lied about his experiences for a decade. When the lie was eventually exposed, he apologized. However, HE LIED AGAIN IN THE APOLOGY. Claiming he "misremembered" the incident, he says now that it was the helo ahead of him that actually got hit. It is now being revealed that the helicopter "ahead" was WAAAAY ahead of his -- as in, A COUPLE HOURS AHEAD! Williams arrived on scene long after the helicoper was hit by ground fire, in a helicopter from a completely different unit.

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Except http://www.mediaite.com/tv/helicopter-pilot-who-flew-williams-he-messed-up-but-whatever/

According to Rich Krell, who piloted the Chinook helicopter in which Williams was riding during the Iraq invasion in 2003, the vehicle did receive enemy fire, just not from an RPG. He also said there were just three helicopters flying together — with his being the middle one — and not four as Williams previously stated. It was the “first bird” flying out in front that was struck by the RPG and forced to land.
“Some of things he’s said are not true. But some of the things they’re saying against him are not true either,” Krell told CNN, noting that the bridge expansions it was carrying “took most of the hits” during the attack. He said his helicopter dropped off the cargo it was carrying and met up with the other helicopters 45 minutes later, explaining the reports from crew members of the 159th Aviation Regiment who said Williams “arrived in the area about an hour later on another helicopter” after they were forced to make an emergency landing.

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TRWXXA said:

Brian Williams not only has a loose association with the truth, but probably also with reality. .

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It might be contagious.