That's My Story and I'm Sticking to It...Um..Maybe Not

[easysurfer]

Brian Williams got 6 months suspension without pay:

Brian Williams, the embattled NBC news anchor whose credibility plummeted after he acknowledged exaggerating his role in a helicopter incident in Iraq, was suspended for six months without pay, the network said Tuesday night.

Lester Holt will continue to substitute for Mr. Williams now, the network said.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/11/b...ams-suspended-by-nbc-news-for-six-months.html

Sure hope Lester Holt will get some of that lost salary

 

[robnplunder]

False memories are more common than you might think...

It wasn't likely for Brian's case. He kept adding to the story as time goes by, like a typical fish story. The funny thing was ... on a Fox channel show two days ago, the host(ess) and one of her guests tried to defend Brian by saying something to the effect of "it happens to anyone," "we all did this sort of thing." Really? Occasional false memory is one thing. Keep adding on to a lie is another. BTW, Brian already came out with his story and he didn't hide behind false memory excuse. I gave him a small credit for that.

 

[easysurfer]

It wasn't likely for Brian's case. He kept adding to the story as time goes by, like a typical fish story. The funny thing was ... on a Fox channel show two days ago, the host(ess) and one of her guests tried to defend Brian by saying something to the effect of "it happens to anyone," "we all did this sort of thing." Really? Occasional false memory is one thing. Keep adding on to a lie is another. BTW, Brian already came out with his story and he didn't hide behind false memory excuse. I gave him a small credit for that.

It'll be interesting to see how this plays out after the suspension. Will NBC cut ties with Williams and go a different way or not. They could have replaced him with David Gregory, but oh yeah, Gregory kinda mysteriously went MIA and got booted off Meet The Press without explanation.

To replace him or not could be another Leno vs Conan thing for NBC

Good to hold news anchors to a higher standard. If we someday find that Charlie Rose or Bob Schieffer are telling tall tales, then the world is coming to an end

 

[Major Tom]

He is, however, in the entertainment business, so rather than puffing to make his reputation, he may have just been trying to make the story sound better. Maybe that's whats wrong with entertainment news.

Sadly, this is true, and he just did his bit to help make network "news" even more irrelevant.

 

[easysurfer]

I think Brian Willams is out with NBC. He's lawyered up.

The anchor was said to be in a bad place, under self-imposed house arrest in the gilded suburb of New Canaan, Connecticut, conferring with his Washington-based agent/attorney, Williams & Connolly senior partner Robert Barnett, and taking phone calls from a few sympathetic colleagues offering advice as well as from the news division’s PR department. Besides negotiating on behalf of Williams, the ubiquitous Barnett also has represented Turness, possibly creating a thorny situation should talks about the anchor’s future become contentious.

I think the next 6 months is the Lester Holt audition. The bigwigs at Comcast will have to decide if he is lead anchor material or give him the Ann Curry treatment.

“The Comcast people have a track record of marching out all these million-dollar figures to buy their way through their problems,” says an NBC News veteran, referring to the Philadelphia-headquartered cable television and broadcasting behemoth, the news division’s parent company. “[Fired Today cohost] Ann Curry cost them a bundle. [Fired Meet the Press moderator] David Gregory cost them a bundle. [Former news president] Steve Capus cost them a bundle. But Brian Williams is different—he’s a $50 million problem. If it was a lot less than that, you’d have to wonder whether they’d keep him.”

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/02/10/fear-and-loathing-at-nbc.html

 

[harley]

Just out of curiosity, and not trying to be more of a smartass than I usually am, does anyone really care who is reading the news? I only really know who Brian Williams is from this story, and probably wouldn't have been able to pick him out of a line-up. If asked about him by name, I would probably have thought he was the leader of the Beach Boys. I haven't assigned any integrity to news readers probably since Walter Cronkite, and I'm too young to really know anything about him. I know it's fun when the hypocrisy behind the machine gets exposed, but some of the comments seem to be about who will take his place. Is this something the general public cares about?

I prefer my news readers to be attractive females, but that's a personal preference. Other than that I don't really care who's head is on the screen. I don't believe most of what they say, so it's not like a personality gives credence to the reports. Or am I just off on one of my paranoid conspiracy theories again, and this is something most people care about?

 

[MichaelB]

I think the next 6 months is the Lester Holt audition. The bigwigs at Comcast will have to decide if he is lead anchor material or give him the Ann Curry treatment.

Funny. If the "evening news" really was a sober analysis of important news from the US and around the world, this might be more meaningful. As it stands, though, the evening programming is more melodrama than news, and critical thinking is conspicuous only for its absence.

 

[Bestwifeever]

One article said Brian Williams, who loved being a guest on all the late night shows, wanted to be considered for Jay Leno's job, which of course went to Jimmy Fallon. Now Jon Stewart is leaving The Daily Show. I think I see a solution--just swap the two, as more young people got their news from Stewart and Williams needs a job where people won't have to take him seriously.

PS I adore Lester Holt.

 

[easysurfer]

Funny. If the "evening news" really was a sober analysis of important news from the US and around the world, this might be more meaningful. As it stands, though, the evening programming is more melodrama than news, and critical thinking is conspicuous only for its absence.

I don't watch cable and glad I don't as so much of that "news" is just folks yelling at each other trying to get the last word in. I don't watch CBS with Scott Pelly as though he's credible (at least as far as I know ), watching him makes me feel like I'm sitting in a dull history class. I don't watch ABC news with David Muir as he looks like someone with a bad imitation of Brian Williams.

For me with Williams suspended, now it's a choice between Lester or history class

 

[easysurfer]

Just out of curiosity, and not trying to be more of a smartass than I usually am, does anyone really care who is reading the news? I only really know who Brian Williams is from this story, and probably wouldn't have been able to pick him out of a line-up. If asked about him by name, I would probably have thought he was the leader of the Beach Boys....

Well, more like B-Dubs than the Beach Boys

 

[MichaelB]

I don't watch cable and glad I don't as so much of that "news" is just folks yelling at each other trying to get the last word in. I don't watch CBS with Scott Pelly as though he's credible (at least as far as I know ), watching him makes me feel like I'm sitting in a dull history class. I don't watch ABC news with David Muir as he looks like someone with a bad imitation of Brian Williams.

For me with Williams suspended, now it's a choice between Lester or history class

The evening news program I prefer is The PBS Newshour. DW prefers another, she's the boss, so that's that.

 

[calmloki]

Brian Williams has the best eyebrows and sad puppy eyes on tv - nothing has changed there and he is a story teller by trade - guess I just don't see the fuss. I'm sure not expecting him to be other than human. Humans have warts.

 

[easysurfer]

Brian Williams has the best eyebrows and sad puppy eyes on tv - nothing has changed there and he is a story teller by trade - guess I just don't see the fuss. I'm sure not expecting him to be other than human. Humans have warts.

Would be ironic if 6 months from now he's back in the anchor chair reporting on the findings of deflategate

I think the question is can his image recover. The range is probably from folks who think "What? He was off the air?" to "Liar, liar, pants of fire" and everything in between.

If after 6 months, NBC decides he's too much a liability and go separate ways (payout like Conan?) and NBC decides to give someone else the anchor chair not named Lester Holt (who paid his dues), I don't see why Lester would want to stick around either.

Or maybe Williams and his lawyers feel the 6 months suspension is too harsh and prefer to part ways?

I've even read a rumor that Brokaw wants his old chair back.

Only time will tell.

 

[HFWR]

The evening news program I prefer is The PBS Newshour.

Don't watch regularly, but for most stories they cover they provide a talking head from each side of the issue. And not the frothing-at-the-mouth talking heads often featured on other outlets...

 

[greydog17]

Jon Lovitz ‏@realjonlovitz Feb 8
I just misremembered. I wasn't on the helicopter that got hit. No... I was the helicopter! Yeah, that's it.

 

[easysurfer]

One article said Brian Williams, who loved being a guest on all the late night shows, wanted to be considered for Jay Leno's job, which of course went to Jimmy Fallon. Now Jon Stewart is leaving The Daily Show. I think I see a solution--just swap the two, as more young people got their news from Stewart and Williams needs a job where people won't have to take him seriously.

PS I adore Lester Holt.

After about a week in the change, um .... "Brian who?"

Lester's doing a fine job as the interim #1.

 

[easysurfer]

It's official. Monday begins "The Nightly News With Lester Holt".