Dateline Illustration

Byron York on how CBS should clean up its memo mess. It’s been done before by NBC's Dateline in 1993 when it falsely reported the tendency of GM trucks to catch on fire in side collisions.

True to TV-news-magazine form, Dateline wanted some dramatic video to illustrate the problem. So producers set up a test in which a car would slam into the side of one of the trucks, leading — hopefully — to a spectacular, caught-on-tape explosion.

But what if the truck didn't blow up? Would the Dateline team have to get another one and try again? That could get expensive.

So to ensure a positive result, the Dateline producers placed small incendiary devices in the truck. And sure enough, it blew up very nicely.

The people at General Motors thought there was something suspicious about the report. A few months later, having done an extraordinarily detailed study of the matter, they filed a defamation suit against NBC.

Michael Gartner stood firm. While he admitted that NBC had used what he called "sparking devices" in the demonstration, he claimed that GM's accusation was a distraction from the real story. "GM sought to divert attention from the central issue," Gartner said, "namely that there appear to be fundamental problems with the safety of its trucks."

"We remain convinced that, taken in its entirety and in its detail, the segment that was broadcast on 'Dateline NBC' was fair and accurate."

The short version of that is that Gartner was arguing that the Dateline demonstration was fake but true. But that tough stance didn't last long.

Numerous people were fired, including the then president of NBC News, Michael Gartner, and the lawsuit was settled within a day. The scenario sounds familiar doesn’t it?

York’s solution:

Later, CBS News announced the "independent investigation" of the matter to be run by former attorney general Richard Thornburgh and former Associated Press chief Louis Boccardi. So far, however, CBS News executives seem more interested in setting up Mary Mapes, the producer of the segment in question, as the fall-person.

Of course Mapes should go, but remember the lessons of Dateline. If that example were followed, then the 60 Minutes Wednesday producer, senior producer, and executive producer would all have to go. And then the president of CBS News. And then — well, then the on-air reporter.

Sounds like an excellent solution to me. If most of us had made a colossal blunder such as Rather and CBS News has, we would be out looking for a new job. The Dateline example should be used here as well. So long, Dan…