Former CBS News anchor Dan Rather scolded his former employer for declining to fact-check during the CBS News Vice Presidential Debate, saying the network is "trying to avoid the blowback ABC got" for fact-checking former President Trump.
Rather stepped down from his role as CBS’ evening news anchor in 2005 and eventually left the network the following year after reporting a discredited story about then-President George W. Bush. He took to Substack Monday ahead of his old employer hosting the CBS Vice Presidential Debate between Sen. JD Vance and Gov. Tim Walz, which will be moderated by Margaret Brennan and Norah O’Donnell.
"There are few guarantees in life, but odds are that more than one lie will be told by Donald Trump’s protege and running mate, JD Vance. If there’s one thing Vance has learned from Trump, it’s that lying to get ahead is OK. If you get caught, just double down and lie some more. Who’s going to fact check you? Well, apparently not CBS News," Rather wrote.
Rather said he was "reluctant" to criticize CBS News, where he worked for 45 years, but he feels it is necessary. His call for fact-checking come after ABC News was widely criticized for correcting Trump multiple times but failing to fact-check Vice President Kamala Harris during the recent presidential debate.
"With that as background, it is necessary to report and comment on the fact that CBS News has decided not to fact-check the candidates in real time. I would love to know what went into this decision, because it feels spineless, especially after ABC’s Linsey Davis and David Muir effectively and correctly fact-checked Trump during the debate with Kamala Harris," Rather wrote.
"CBS says it is up to the candidates to fact-check, though ‘the moderators will facilitate those opportunities’ during rebuttal time," he continued. "While both fact-checking (ABC during the Harris-Trump debate) and not fact-checking (CNN during the Biden-Trump debate) have drawn criticism this year, for the most part, the criticism was unsurprisingly partisan."
Rather noted that CBS News would fact-check the candidates online, but dismissed viewers for being able to follow along in real time.
"Simply put, this ‘rule,’ imposed by CBS, incentivizes lying. It invites the participants to bend the truth, since their opponent then has to spend his rebuttal time calling out the lie, rather than giving an opposing view. And the calling out of a lie by an opponent rather than an impartial moderator is less credible," Rather wrote.
"It seems clear that CBS is trying to avoid the blowback ABC got after the presidential debate. A journalist, much less a news organization, should not be afraid to take heat," Rather continued. "Their responsibility is to call out lies. If they don’t do that on live television, during the most consequential election in modern history, they are the lesser for it. But the biggest loser is the American electorate."
CBS News did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Earlier this year, the 92-year-old longtime CBS legend appeared on his old network for the first time in nearly two decades for an interview about his time at the network and his career in journalism.
Fox News Digital’s Gabriel Hays contributed to this report.
