The feud: In 2005, Dan Rather stepped down from his coveted seat as anchor of CBS Evening News following his acknowledgment of significant flaws in a September 2004 60 Minutes report concerning then President George W. Bush's National Guard service. In September 2007, Rather filed a $70 million lawsuit charging that CBS had violated his contract and that the investigation was severely compromised in order to mollify the Bush Administration.
Chance at reconciliation: Eh, it's all old news now. It's not likely that Rather will be able to drum up enough support or sympathy, but stay tuned. A judge has allowed the former news anchorman's $70 million breach-of-contract lawsuit to go forward but dismissed the portions that named three of the company's executives, including CBS president Leslie Moonves.
He said/They said:
"We are gratified that the court has
dismissed the majority of Mr. Rather's claims, including the spurious claims
against Mr. Redstone, Mr. Moonves and Mr. Heyward. With respect to the few
remaining claims, relevant to his contract, there are no facts to support
them and we expect them to be dismissed when the discovery process is
complete."
— CBS, in an April 2008 statement
"I want to go the distance. Like any good reporter, I want to get as many
facts as possible; I want to get to the bottom of the story."
— Dan Rather, on his lawsuit against CBS, in a November 17, 2008, interview with the New York Times