Mapes obsession

Howard Fineman on Imus:

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Fineman: "...My take on what happened here is that the producer, who I've never met, and who has a great reputation, but the producer, Mary Mapes, became obsessed with this story. In 1999, she began looking for evidence that then Governor Bush, you know, had not shown up for and been derelict in his duty in the National Guard. She probably didn't like him politically, judging from everything I've read about her, and was gonna save the world from a George Bush presidency, and in the last five years, she's tried to find that smoking gun that would allow her to do that. And they went to this guy, Burkett -- I mean, to me, one of the most amazing things about this story is that they searched him out, even knowing what an unreliable source he was. And that, to me, means obsession, and as you pointed out the other day, you know, that's what editors are for. Editors are there to harness the energy, sometimes obsessive energy of reporters and they clearly didn't do it in this case."
Imus suggested: "...Rather doesn't have any friends who do not hate George Bush. His friends are all -- we know who they are. I mean, the Molly Ivans of the world, and they all hate Bush. Maybe Rather doesn't, but he's the only one of anybody who he ever talks to or hangs out with...He may not, but that makes him unique in his circle of friends."

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Fineman: "...
I've got to say, if Roger Ailes and Fox had done something like this, you know, the world would be on fire, but they didn't. It's CBS that did it."

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