Metadish, Fresh from NYC

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At least that’s the way we’re going to spin it since even though he specifically said he wasn’t talking about Katie, that headline is much more sensational and (said with jazz hands) FUN!

It’s no secret that after an initial boost in ratings, we’ll call it the “freak show” effect, likening it to the same people who line up at Coney Island to watch the guy stick nails up his nose and the woman dance around with the snake and play with fire, Katie is solidly back in third place in the evening news ratings.

Of course to be fair, Dan Rather was in third place when he left the Evening News too. So, more than likely the problem is that CBS, more specifically Les Moonves, just sucks at the news.

Rather told Joe Scarborough on MSNBC’s Morning Joe, “The mistake was to try to bring the Today show ethos to the Evening News and to dumb it down - tart it up in hopes of attracting a younger audience.”

He’s right though. CBS doesn’t understand that while younger audiences are more informed on today’s news events, they’re not getting it from the evening network news shows. You know who watches those shows? My dad. You know who doesn’t? Me.

Moonves responded calling Rather’s remarks “sexist” while an executive producer for the Evening News called him a “loose cannon”.

Rather defended himself saying, “It doesn’t have to do with Katie. It doesn’t have to do with gender, it has to do with the corporate leadership.

“Leslie Moonves knows about entertainment,” Rather said. “But he doesn’t know about news.”

Let me just say this, Dan Rather is a real fucking journalist. An old school anchorman. He has been through Vietnam and seen a lot of crazy stuff during his tenure as a journalist. I’ve seen his show on HDNet which Rather basically has complete control over and it’s amazing. It has gripping news stories, with in depth coverage and gritty social commentary and no fluff.  Something you would never see on any of the network newscasts.

If Dan Rather wants to call that hack Katie Couric a tart then so be it. I’m not positive but I’m pretty sure the ratings are even lower now than when Rather was there so that should tell you something.

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