HOUSTON – Dan Rather’s daily CBS radio broadcast is off the air where he grew up.
Houston CBS radio affiliate KPRC hasn’t been running it for the last couple of weeks in reaction to his “60 Minutes” report questioning President Bush’s National Guard service.
“I felt no anchor … should ever be the story or bigger than the story,” said Ken Charles, program director of the news-talk station, on Monday. “I thought it was appropriate to take him off the air.”
Rather last week apologized on behalf of CBS News because researchers could not authenticate documents used in the Sept. 8 story that suggested Bush received preferential treatment.
Rather was born in Wharton, about 50 miles southwest of Houston, grew up in Houston, went to Sam Houston State University north of the city and worked at Houston’s KHOU-TV before joining CBS in the early 1960s. President Bush’s parents, former President Bush and Barbara Bush, also live in Houston.
At least one radio station, WNIS in Norfolk, Va., last week dumped CBS because of the story.
Meanwhile, New Jersey businessman Doug Forrester unveiled an advertising campaign pressing CBS to oust Rather. Forrester, a GOP Senate candidate who lost to Frank Lautenberg in 2002, planned for ads to start Tuesday on radio, television and the Internet.
Forrester said he expects the campaign to gather names for a petition drive to oust Rather.Last week, a Texas congressional candidate started running campaign commercials linking his opponent to Rather, accusing him of airing ads that have “more holes than a CBS News story by Dan Rather.”
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