“Dan Rather became a part of American folklore,” writes Leve. “He was the longest-serving anchor [in] American news — there for nearly 25 years. But at CBS he was also the managing editor, the man who was personally responsible. It was a role he sought — and when the story blew up in his face, who else was there to blame?”

According to Rather, CBS itself. He discusses the reason for the lawsuit and his take on the end of his career with the network. “At CBS News, the history had been, we back our people,” he says. “The company had changed in ways I didn’t realise. I had believed that they would stand up for their people and back stories. And I was wrong.”

Rather also talked about the former head of CBS, and his old boss, William S. Paley. “[He] was the best of them,” says Rather. “His attitude towards news was: CBS was an entertainment company, news is a public service.”

Rather may bring up Paley again tonight, as he joins others on a panel at the Paley Center discussing “Media and the Voting Rights Act of 1965″ (we’ll be there and report tomorrow).

Click continued to see Rather’s take on the web sensation video of the anchor and his collar, Mark Cuban‘s HDNet ratings discussion and more…

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