CBS "Fraud" Hurt Dan Rather's Income: Lawyer

NEW YORK — Dan Rather could have made millions of dollars more per year if CBS had not defrauded him before firing him, his lawyer said Tuesday.

Martin Gold discussed the finances after a hearing on Rather's ongoing $70 million breach-of-contract lawsuit. Rather says he was removed from the evening news anchor chair and given little to do after a disputed September 2004 "60 Minutes II" story about President Bush's military service.

CBS' lawyers say Rather was paid everything he was owed and the network used his talents as the contract required.

Gold said the network was supposed to use Rather on other news shows or pay him and let him go.

Gold said CBS held on to the 77-year-old newsman and denied him a chance to take a $4 million-a-year job at another network. The lawyer said Rather now earns about $1.5 million at the high-definition TV network HDNet.

Judicial Hearing Officer Ira Gammerman dismissed Rather's earlier fraud claim, while letting other parts of the case continue. He said Tuesday he would consider Gold's request to filed an amended fraud claim.

Rather left CBS on June 16, 2006, after more than 40 years at the network.

Comments

[Gina322]

I really miss Dan Rather. I have been a fan since I was a little girl. If this story had been about anyone other that GB we would not be having this conversation. It is truly a sad day when the government controls the media. Are we in China?

[kassandrasduplex]

Dan Rather's treatment at CBS is part of a larger pattern since Reagan's days of installing compliant talking heads to deliver the daily propaganda. He was backstabbed by Les Moonves and Murray Rothstein aka Sumner Redstone.

[odoreida]

"Murray Rothstein aka Sumner Redstone."

What is your problem with anglicized names? Redstone's given name was, in fact, Sumner. Murray is his middle name.

[TheHandyman]

What was wrong with his original name? Was he ashamed of it? Did he not want anyone to know he was a Jew? Why?

[rivirobo]

Dan did this 8 years ago, my bad.

[rivirobo]

Dan Rather was ahead of his time with the Bush story. Had he broke out a story on McCain right now he may have still had his old job. Somehow, during the Bush elections, no news media would speak against Bush. He had them in fear like he had the rest of the country. Now media like MSNBC, CNN, and sometimes Fox bring pro's and con's to both sides' issues. Dan Rather has big balls for being the only news person to challenge Bush 4 years ago. I hope his old bosses go away with Bush/McCai­n/Palin/Ch­eney. After this lawsuit, Dan needs to come back strong.

[jake106]

Oh Bullshit! I've been listening to non-stop anti-Bush news stories for nine years. Ever since he first started running for office back in 1999, the media has been posting anti-Bush stories. Just because they didn't start spouting nonsense about him drinking human blood doesn't mean they haven't been anti-Bush.

[DEl19713]

A lot of Dan Rather haters! Did you drink your hater-aid? If Dan still had his job, maybe your boy Georgie wouldnt have gotten away with all he did, ever think of that? That was the end of point and counter-point journalism on main stream media, they cut the gut out of fair and balanced reporting. The Bush Adminstration really kicked into gear. I'm sure you trust this Bush adminstration to handle your 401 K.

[VictorLudorum]

around 60s a person is unfit to tarry intelligen­tly.......­..........­......... the old channels lived in a world without a music channel in thier neigbourhood and had completely remote vision of world affairs ,the international commentators faced cakes,there isnt a big name too..the old channels are instead just holding back reality whichs shadow has become a serious economic threat and brought us/washingtons share in world profits very low too..the new generation of speed internet dont even know these chaps ..........­..........­..........­..........­..........­......

[InofTouch]

WOW...a Katie free comment

It just funny because whenever there a topic about this....th­ere a jab at her.

let be honest and say both CBS News & Dan Rather failed for what they were suppost to do instead of picking which one failed worst because no body had there facts covered for in cause something was wrong. heck the Mark Foley scandal was covered on ABC news online.

[castlerider]

Lots of wide stance trolls on this blog. It's hard to tell which one is the bigger idiot.

Nothing they say is too ridiculous or too surprising­... It's hilarious how Rather brings out the true dispicapality in them.

Great to see that quite possibly this gent will be getting an awesome case of the last laugh. I sure hope so. I'm pullin' for ya Dan.

[Britta100]

By using those false documents Rather screwed up. What was in those documents may have been true but it was still a bogus document and careless mistake for a journalist of his caliber. . Rather should have been more thorough.

[jerryfromcalifornia]

I would bet what is left of my 401K that this was a Karl Rove opperation to get rid of Dan Rather.

[MissingAmerica]

Dan Rather was another victim of Bush's deceit. It's a shame that after so many years of trustworthy newscasting he should lose everything to the likes of this corrupt administration.

[jake106]

Yes...I bet Bush typed up those fake documents late and night and secretly had them given to Rather. And then, because Rather was such a GREAT and NON-BIASED reporter, Bush had him brainwashed in his sleep, in order to convince Rather to submit a story based on documents so easily proven fake.

It hurts the mind.

[TheHandyman]

It would if you had one. What you are experiencing is the increase in vacumn in the area where most humans have brains. Yours was replaced by Bush during the night!

[thacher]

How is this man not in jail for election tampering? What a fraud Dan Rather is...

[DMSmith]

Sorry. He did not tamper with the election. The network did. His report was accurate and truthful with the possible exception of the one document. The content of what the document said was true. In fact, the document itself may well have been real. Its detractors have not proved that it is false and have never even attempted to prove its contents to be wrong!

The fraud was on the American public - because we were led to believe the information was not correct. It was and still is.

He was had and WE as a nation lost because he was effectively censored, and abused.

He needs to win this one bigtime.

[backsassing]

HERE, HERE!

[kae]

Yes! C-BS is all kinds of wrong regarding Rather....­don't believe the corporate media smears. Rather was trying to be a journalist, something CBS obviously does not value.

[colonel]

CBS and Dan Rather deserve each other. A plague on both their houses.

[patianneb]

I hope Rather takes CBS for a bundle and that it becomes a precedent for all of the really good journalist­s~commenta­tors who were all but driven off the air, much to our loss, by the manipulations of the Administration after the '04 election when the Republicans owned Congress, the White House & the Supreme Court.
Wielding fear, operating in secret and marketing wholesale cynicism and lies, they tried their best to suffocate the free press. Though showing promising signs of life, it still hasn't fully recovered.

[rcpmac]

Lots of opinions and hatred here on Rather and the Bush documents. Sorry folks, that isn't what this is about. It's about CBS violating a contract with him. Please reread it.

[jerryfromcalifornia]

Wake up and smell the stink form the Bush manulpation of the media.