RATHER: FAREWELL AND ‘COURAGE’

by Agustin Blazquez with the collaboration of Jaums Sutton


I wish it could have been sooner. But now is better than never for people who have been suffering the biased reporting of this “reporter’s reporter” for way too many years.

Rather’s endless love affair with the tyrant-for-life of Cuba made him infamous among Cubans as he not only nauseated, ulcerated and may have caused high blood pressure, heart burn and heart attacks in Cuban Americans in the U.S. With the false image of Castro that Rather promoted, he caused a lot of pain and suffering for the Cuban’s surviving under Castro’s boots.

How many more people died in the Florida Straits trying to flee Cuba due to Rather’s biased reporting? How many more were incarcerated, tortured and endured forced labor? How many more were executed, were victim of political assassinations and denied of medical attention in jails during the 44-year tenure of Rather on CBS that began in 1962?

Rather’s inaccurate reports from Cuba helped to prolong Castro’s state terrorism upon the Cuban people. Among the people oppressed by Castro, Rather gained an honored place among the collaborators of that regime.

No Cuban can forget Rather melting in front of his idol, his admiring eyes and smiles while interviewing the despicable tyrant of Cuba. And of course, he gave him prime time platforms on CBS and let him lie to the American public without challenging him.

How can any Cuban forget his CBS Special – romantically titled – “The Last Revolutionary,” (see my article about that Special at: http://www.amigospais-guaracabuya.org/oagaq012.php)? In it Rather held Castro’s bloody hand to help him walk on the muddy Sierra Maestra terrain. I have a frozen clip of that in my latest documentary “The Rats Below,” for everybody to see and remember (see: http://www.cubacollectibles.com/cuba_C.mvc?p=108-CC4).

I also did an expose of Rather’s April 2000 interview with Juan Miguel Gonzalez that is included on the Special Edition DVD of my documentary “The Rats Below.” Cubans will not forget.

Probably that is why the liberal U.S. media hates Cuban Americans so much and walks the extra mile to discredit and malign us every chance they get. They hate us because they cannot fool us about Castro as they fool the misinformed American people.

I am sure that other ethnic groups in the U.S. with firsthand knowledge of their country and government also found inaccuracies, misinformation and propaganda in Rather’s reports and those of other liberal reporters like him. But, as they know about their countries, I know about my birth country and my 38 years living in the U.S. being offended and dismayed by such examples of bad reporting. It’s simply embarrassing.

Are Rather and people like him the pillars of the U.S. media? No wonder in a Freudian slip he concocted his motto “courage.” Yes, you needed courage to stomach Dan Rather.

I’m not usually like this. I’m not apologetic for my words. They are an accurate reflection of our feelings and intelligence of being hurt for 44 years of frustration and indignation caused by CBS’s Rather. Our only relief is to know that he left CBS in some sort of discredited way.

Unfortunately, Rather’s act will be followed by another disease-causing reporter, the always perfectly coifed and “unbiased” Katie Kouric. So, paraphrasing Rather, we’ll need more “courage.”


© 2006 ABIP

Agustin Blazquez, Producer/director of the documentaries

COVERING CUBA, premiered at the American Film Institute in 1995, CUBA: The Pearl of the Antilles, COVERING CUBA 2: The Next Generation, premiered in 2001 at the U.S. Capitol in and at the 2001 Miami International Book Fair COVERING CUBA 3: Elian presented at the 2003 Miami Latin Film Festival, the 2004 American Film Renaissance Film Festival in Dallas, Texas and the 2006 Palm Beach International Film Festival, COVERING CUBA 4: The Rats Below, premiered at the Tower Theaters in Miami on January 2006 and the 2006 Palm Beach International Film Festival, Dan Rather "60 Minutes," an inside view and RUMBERAS CUBANAS, Vol. 1 MARIA ANTONIETA PONS

ALL AVAILABLE AT: http://www.cubacollectibles.com/cuba_C.mvc?p=108-CC4

For previews visit: http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=Agustin+Blazquez

Author of more that 300 published articles and author with Carlos Wotzkow of the book COVERING AND DISCOVERING and translator with Jaums Sutton of the book by Luis Grave de Peralta Morell THE MAFIA OF HAVANA: The Cuban Cosa Nostra.

Éste y otros excelentes artículos del mismo AUTOR aparecen en la REVISTA GUARACABUYA con dirección electrónica de:

www.amigospais-guaracabuya.org