CBS News' Lara Logan Taking Leave Of Absence

[Geoffrey 779]

Lara Logan, along with a producer, were asked to and will take a leave of absence after the apparently bogus 60 Minutes story on Benghazi a few weeks ago.

 

Tweets from Brian Stelter:

 

RT @mlcalderone: BREAKING: Lara Logan and producer producer Max McClellan taking leave of absence from 60 Minutes, per Fager memo.

 

CBS sources say that @FagerEP60 is meeting with staffers this afternoon about the botched Benghazi story and Logan's leave of absence.

 

Fager says he "asked" Lara Logan and her producer to take leaves of absence. They agreed. "We are making adjustments at 60 Minutes" he says.

 

 

I always thought she was a rising star at CBS News, despite not appearing on air as often lately.

[Mrtraveler01 737]

 

Lara Logan, along with a producer, were asked to and will take a leave of absence after the apparently bogus 60 Minutes story on Benghazi a few weeks ago.

 

Tweets from Brian Stelter:

 

RT @mlcalderone: BREAKING: Lara Logan and producer producer Max McClellan taking leave of absence from 60 Minutes, per Fager memo.

 

CBS sources say that @FagerEP60 is meeting with staffers this afternoon about the botched Benghazi story and Logan's leave of absence.

 

Fager says he "asked" Lara Logan and her producer to take leaves of absence. They agreed. "We are making adjustments at 60 Minutes" he says.

 

 

I always thought she was a rising star at CBS News, despite not appearing on air as often lately.

 

Lara Logan basically did the same thing that Dan Rather did with that Bush National Guard story. She didn't double check to make sure the sources she was going to use were legitimate. I'm honestly surprised they haven't fired her yet.

 

Although it's also worth noting that the Benghazi story was a way to publicize a book that's being published by an affiliate company of CBS so that might explain why this wasn't vetted as much as it probably should have (and is probably the reason she didn't get fired yet).

[A3N 996]

 

Lara Logan basically did the same thing that Dan Rather did with that Bush National Guard story. She didn't double check to make sure the sources she was going to use were legitimate. I'm honestly surprised they haven't fired her yet.

 

Although it's also worth noting that the Benghazi story was a way to publicize a book that's being published by an affiliate company of CBS so that might explain why this wasn't vetted as much as it probably should have (and is probably the reason she didn't get fired yet).

 

You could also argue that Dan Rather was the face of CBS News which comes with a lot of scrutiny, more so than just being a correspondent. Yes, she is a rising star at CBS News, but she is not the face of the division. I think a suspension is appropriate in this case.

[mark 55]

It's also worth noting that the timing of Dan Rather's story came right before an election. Not to say that it's OK for the quality of journalism to dip in non-election cycles, just to note that timing was a large part of what angered people about Rather's piece. I agree that suspension seems appropriate here.

[Mrtraveler01 737]

 

You could also argue that Dan Rather was the face of CBS News which comes with a lot of scrutiny, more so than just being a correspondent. Yes, she is a rising star at CBS News, but she is not the face of the division. I think a suspension is appropriate in this case.

 

 

 

It's also worth noting that the timing of Dan Rather's story came right before an election. Not to say that it's OK for the quality of journalism to dip in non-election cycles, just to note that timing was a large part of what angered people about Rather's piece. I agree that suspension seems appropriate here.

 

Both of you raise some valid points that I didn't consider earlier.

 

So what do you guys think will ultimately happen with Lara Logan then? Will she still be a part of 60 Minutes or will they just relegate her to doing foreign affairs news stories again?

[News 9 Viewer 100]

The fact that Logan and McClellan are taking leaves of absence at the request of Fager seems to send the message that CBS News is looking for their replacements. I think Logan will be reassigned to a foreign bureau and McClellan will also be reassigned.

[MidwestTV 1174]

I wouldn't be surprised if she was allowed to come back, but was kicked off of 60 Minutes. I also feel as if that people will be a lot more skeptical of any foreign news reports that she does from now on, I know that I would.

[sanewsguy 509]

Have any of y'all considered this. I'll let Scott Jones FTV Live tell the story (original article):

Why CBS Will Not Fire Lara Logan

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

November 14, 2013/ Scott Jones

 

 

 

 

 

 

The 60 Minutes gang is walking around Black Rock with their tails between their legs.

 

Ever since Lara Logan took a minute and a half out of last week's 60 minutes to say that her report on Bengahzi was wrong and the person featured in the report, Dylan Davies could not be trusted.

 

When Dan Rather put a not factually correct report about the President Bush on the air, Producers were fired, people were demoted and Rather himself lost his job.

 

Logan does it and it gets 90 seconds.

 

Many have said that Logan and others should be fired for their roles.

 

But it is likely that won't happen.

 

The Daily Banter's Chez Pazienza writes that the correct answer from an ethical standpoint, of course, is that there’s no way Logan should escape from this monumental public fuck-up with her job at CBS intact. She wasn’t simply the face of the entirely discredited Benghazi piece that accused the President of the United States essentially of lying to the American people, some talking head brought in to track the work of an anonymous staffer at the last minute; she was at the helm of it alongside her producer, Max McClellan, for more than a year. And yet either through gross negligence or intentional dishonesty and obfuscation, they both botched the story and Logan was forced to issue an on-air apology and retraction for it. In a just universe, neither of them survive this at 60 Minutes or CBS News.

 

But there’s a nearly 100% chance that Lara Logan isn’t going anywhere, and the reason why is as simple as it is unfortunate: she’s a star — a big, bright, beautiful star.

 

In the eyes of a television executive, Logan is a one-in-a-million TV newsperson: smart, tough and, yes, incredibly easy on the eyes. The last part of this equation may sound somewhat sexist and if so, good, because it is — but never forget that it’s also true: Logan owes her largely unassailable status at 60 Minutes and CBS News to the fact that she has the ability to back up the looks and the looks to top off the ability. If Logan possessed every single quality as a journalist she already does but wasn’t also a former model, she’d be as vulnerable as most other journalists would be right now were they in her position. Logan’s “total package” prestige makes her something more than simply another television newsperson. She’s a celebrity, a pop culture figure, and CBS News executives know they can’t get rid of her because doing so would simply allow another network to scoop her up and use her against their product. As I’ve said before many times, scandal doesn’t stick these days — our attention spans are too short — and someone like Lara Logan would be ripe for redemption and forgiveness by the public. Better CBS benefits from that redemption than another network.

 

I do understand that this is both unfair and, again, undeniably sexist, but it’s the visual medium of television we’re talking about and anyone who tells you that looks don’t matter — particularly a woman’s looks — is lying. The business is, ironically, ugly as hell.

 

Logan holds an elevated place at CBS News because she sells tickets, and while there’s certainly plenty of fuel for speculation as to what CBS News might be hiding that’s even more damning than mistakenly calling the Obama administration liars, the fact is Logan very likely won’t be taking the rap for any of it. She should — but she won’t. She’s simply too valuable to the network, even if her journalistic reputation is temporarily tarnished. Lara Logan isn’t a rising star, she’s already arrived, and CBS will do anything to protect her and to keep her in its sky. As for everyone else associated with the bad story, including producer Max McClellan, they may be vulnerable because they’re not Logan.

 

But, 60 Minutes simply doesn’t worry too much about taking fire from the left or center, only the right. 60 Minutes EP and CBS News chairman Jeff Fager knows that anyone sacrificed over this will be held up as a martyr on the right and, again, will be in a position to be scooped up and used against the network. There are political considerations overriding ethical ones.

 

More from the Daily Banter

 

 

 

 

 

 

[24994J 5280]

 

Have any of y'all considered this. I'll let Scott Jones FTV Live tell the story (original article):

 

I'm going to go even deeper into the politically incorrect discussion. In addition to her potential star power, is it possible that she keeps her job because CBS might still feel guilty after what happened to her in Egypt in 2011?

[A3N 996]

 

I'm going to go even deeper into the politically incorrect discussion. In addition to her potential star power, is it possible that she keeps her job because CBS might still feel guilty after what happened to her in Egypt in 2011?

 

That's something to consider. However, this will blow over and that's what CBS wants/hoping for and the less visible she is, the better for her and the company. For all we know, this could be a vacation masked as a suspension just to appease those who were outraged. CBS will not get rid of Lara Logan for the reason that another network will snatch her right up, and this issue aside, Lara is a very good correspondent- smart and beautiful to boot.

[Mrtraveler01 737]

 

I'm going to go even deeper into the politically incorrect discussion. In addition to her potential star power, is it possible that she keeps her job because CBS might still feel guilty after what happened to her in Egypt in 2011?

 

I think you're both up to something.

 

 

 

That's something to consider. However, this will blow over and that's what CBS wants/hoping for and the less visible she is, the better for her and the company. For all we know, this could be a vacation masked as a suspension just to appease those who were outraged. CBS will not get rid of Lara Logan for the reason that another network will snatch her right up, and this issue aside, Lara is a very good correspondent- smart and beautiful to boot.

 

After this incident, it will be very hard for me to take her seriously and actually trust what she's saying. I imagine I'm not the only one with that opinion.

 

That's why I think she'll still be part of the foreign affairs team but possibly at a reduced capacity (at least for the short-term), they might bring her back to 60 Minutes after this has all blown over.

[susquvalleywgal 494]

Watch ... within six months, she will be hired by The Blaze. Just watch.

 

-- matt

[MorningNews 1295]

I like Lara and she was pretty damn good. But to investigate a story for nearly a year and not realize or know that it was fabricated? Her intelligence as a journalist is severely diminished. As for the FTV Live article, I understand where they're coming from and while I think she'll remain with CBS I doubt their reasoning for not firing her is simply because she's too big of star-- hell they fired their biggest star ever for something similar to Logan's mishap.