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Giving Proper Credit to CBS 2 and Scott Weinberger
Scott Weinberger's exclusive reports this week on security guards sleeping like Homer Simpson at the Peach Bottom Nuclear Plant just outside of Philadelphia were an eye opener, since a major catastrophic event there could have its effects felt over a hundred miles away. Plus the same company, Wackenhut, is also under contract to the federal government to provide security.
Thanks to Weinberger's three month investigation and video from a whistle blower, Wackenhut is on its way out at the plant. It was a fine piece of investigative journalism that got results. It also was the second time in the past few months that a New York station has beaten a Philadelphia station with a story on their turf.
But wait. KYW, the WCBS' co-owned sister station in Philadelphia (where former Access Hollywood host Larry Mendte co-anchors with Chris Wragge's alleged girlfriend), also broadcast a version the story. However what they aired made it appear that the investigation was done by Walt Hunter the investigative reporter there and the stations "I-Team." We should also point out that KYW aired their report on Tuesday; the day after WCBS aired the first of two reports.
We viewed both stations reports, which are available online, and Hunter's report reused much of the footage and part of the interview with the whistle blower were directly lifted from Weinberger's reports, and the WCBS exclusive graphics were covered up with graphics from the Philadelphia station. Hunter’s report was also not as in depth as what aired on WCBS.
We do have to say that Hunter did do some actual reporting in his story, going out and interviewing some locals near nuclear plants, along with crafting his piece for the Philadelphia market, and that KYW did provide some assistance with things like camera crews and logistics during the WCBS investigation. However, Weinberger and his team to did all the leg work to get the story. They should have at least gotten a mention from the Philadelphia station for bringing the story to light, since Hunter would have had nothing if it wasn’t for CBS 2.
Kenneth Rather Bitter?
The San Francisco Examiner reports that at a recent question and answer session at a Washington restaurant former CBS News anchor and hurricane hunter Dan Rather may have let it slip that the real target for his lawsuit against CBS is both George Bushes. The host of the event, Carol Joynt, asked Rather if he would call the current president to the stand, to which he replied, "I'd like not to answer the question." However Joynt told the paper how she read between the lines, "From the look in his eye -- and he gave me a definite Ratheresque look -- I got the impression he will call the president as a witness. Possibly both of them: 41 and 43. He implied the suit is not against them, but what the suit is about stems directly from his antagonistic relationship with them."
Rather still sticks by his report on Mr. Bush’s national guard service calling it “the truth” and seems to still have a well of dislike for both Bush the father and the son.
The Virgin Money Honey
If you head down to Wall Street for the next couple of days, you may find in front of the New York Stock Exchange a Geoffrey Raymond portrait of CNBC anchor Maria “Money Honey” Bartiromo on display in front of the building. There is of course a twist to the painting, with Raymond casting the Money Honey as the Virgin Mary.
ABC Call up
WABC’s general manager Dave Davis has been called up to ABC News. He’ll leave channel 7 after four years there to become Executive Vice President of ABC News where he will be in charge of all of the networks news programs. This is the latest in a series of moves at ABC to trim down to redirect resources to digital platforms. No word on who will replace him at WABC.
MSNBC Where Temporary Becomes Permanent
The 9:00 p.m. “Live with Dan Abrams” hosted by Dan Abrams, who has been general manager of MSNBC since June 2006, is staying where it is after being put on as a replacement for Joe Scarborough’s Scarborough Country after he moved to mornings to fill the abruptly vacated Don Imus morning slot. Abrams will step down from the general manager position next month with his boss, NBC News vice president Phil Griffin, taking over the reigns at the cable channel.
WCBS to Air the Tunnel to Towers Run
This Sunday (September 30) at 10 a.m. WCBS will be broadcasting the 3rd annual Tunnel to Towers Run. For those of you who don’t know the history behind it, it commemorates firefighter Stephen Siller’s run through the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel on 9/11 wearing 75 pounds of firefighter gear.
Along with coverage of the event hosted by Chris Wragge and Kristine Johnson, channel 2’s one hour special will feature Dana Tyler interviewing Stephen Siller’s widow, Sally Siller, in her first extended television interview.
WNBC’s Reel Talk Goes National
WNBC’s Saturday morning movie centered show Lyons & Bailes Reel Talk with film critics Jeffrey Lyons and Alison Bailes goes national this weekend. NBC Universal, the parent company of WNBC, will have its NBC Universal Domestic Television Distribution subsidiary distribute it. The show has been seen on a few other NBC owned stations, but not fully nationally.
Top 20 TV Earners
Forbes has released a list of the top 20 money earners on television. It is no surprise that Oprah Winfrey is #1 on the list with $260 million. On the news side, the low rated CBS Evening News anchor Katie Couric was the highest paid at $15 million a year.
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If you know anything about broadcast news, you know that it isn't unusual for two network-owned and -operated affiliates (i.e., WCBS and KYW) to collaborate on a story, and indeed it would be considered bad form for WCBS to do an investigative piece on KYW's turf without approaching KYW first. There was no "mention" because I'm sure that was part of the deal.
Obviously if WCBS' version was more meaty, then they probably came up with the story and did most of the legwork. It easily could have been the other way around. It certainly wasn't plagiarism or copycatting, as your article suggests. In fact, everybody wins, because two markets saw the piece instead of one.
Network newscasts do this with local affiliates all the time. The local affiliate has the reporters and the know-how, and the networks have the money and the audience. When the segment airs on the national newscast, a local reporter will actually sign off as if the report were done by the network.
Given the increasingly limited funding available to newscasts, these partnerships are often the only reason certain stories make it on the air.
If this is a vendetta by Rather then maybe it's just another sign that he is losing his mental capabilities due to age or perhaps he's bipolar.
Yes, I know all of the thing with affiliates and affiliate services.
but the two stations have mentioned their cooperation in the past (think back to the Golan Cipel interview) and the fact that the investigation was conducted by Weinberger and WCBS, not the other reporter. I happened to read on a message board that the report aired down there so I looked into it and found the repackaged report.
Now if you watch the KYW piece, they packaged the report as if their investigative unit did the leg work. That just does not seem right.
gothamist rips peopele's stories for a living. other people do all the leg work and you guys re-report it.
How is what you people do any different from kyw?
To address matukonyc comment, Yes it is common to share stories but RARE in the case of an Investigative story. Let's take this one by the facts. WCBS only borrowed a shooter from KYW to conduct an interview, even that interview (along with all the rest) were done by WCBS. I't unlikely Weinberger would call KYW concerned about being "on their turf".
Maybe Walt was pushed, but I agree with Toby fair is fair, give credit where credit is due
Sounds Like Weinberger in line for a Peabody & Dupont for this one.
>>He implied the suit is not against them, but what the suit is about stems directly from his antagonistic >>relationship with them
Is it possible that he still does not understand the concept that he is/was/purports to be a newsman, and as such his "relationship" with them should not factor into his reporting? The fact that he is doing stories based on "antagonistic" reasons is what got him into this trouble in the first place.