Bill O'Reilly Has His Own Brian Williams Problem

Help. I can't stop.

A colleague who was with O'Reilly in Buenos Aries speaks out

Eric Jon Engberg's Facebook Post:

Did Fox News bloviater Bill O'Reilly commit Brian Williams type fabrications when he claimed he had been in a "combat situation" while working as a reporter for CBS News during the Falklands War in 1982? Did he pad his resume' as he was laying claim to personal knowledge about what happens in war? The issue has arisen because the "Mother Jones" magazine Washington bureau chief David Corn has written a story, largely based on recollections of CBS News senior staffers, comparing O'Reilly's statements about his war experience to the fabrications which sent NBC anchor Williams into a six-month suspension.

I can provide some eyewitness information on this matter because I was one of the correspondents in Buenos Aires with O'Reilly and the rest of the rather large staff of CBS News people who were there "covering" the war. To begin with "covering" is an overstatement of what we were doing. Corn is correct in pointing out that the Falkland Islands, where the combat between Great Britain and Argentina took place, was a thousand miles away from Buenos Aires. We were in Buenos Aires because that's the only place the Argentine military junta would let journalists go. Our knowledge of the war was restricted to what we could glean from comically deceitful daily briefings given by the Argentine military and watching government-controlled television to try to pick up a useful clue from propaganda broadcasts. We -- meaning the American networks -- were all in the same, modern hotel and we never saw any troops, casualties or weapons. It was not a war zone or even close. It was an "expense account zone."

O'Reilly, freshly hired by CBS, arrived in Buenos Aires a few days before the British expeditionary force defeated the Argentine occupiers. He was, as he is today, full of brio and confidence. I remember him asking me how I liked my assignment. When I said I was tired of living in a hotel and wanted to go home he said, "Call your agent." Back in those days calling your agent to complain about the company's decision-making would have been a career-ender, but he didn't seem to understand matters of the CBS internal secret wooglies, which included the rule that you did as you were told. I should have known he was headed for trouble, but I just thought he was a rookie who would learn. Yeah, right.

Within a couple of days of his arrival the British Army and Marines had completed their land assault on the Falklands capital and forced the Argentines to surrender. The Argentine public, who had been living under a murderous, corrupt military government for years, were driven into the streets of their capital by rage over the loss of a war they had been repeatedly told their army was winning. As night fell after the surrender statement, several thousand people gathered in the streets around the presidential palace to protest. All the members of the CBS reporting staff and all the two-person camera crews we had in Buenos Aires were sent in to the street. I believe there were four or five crews. The reporters, as I remember, were O'Reilly, Chuck Gomez, Charles Krause, Bob Schieffer and myself. Somewhere it has been reported that O'Reilly has claimed he was the only CBS News reporter who had the courage to go into the street because the rest of us were hiding in our hotel. If he said such thing it is an absolute lie. Everyone was working in the street that night, the crews exhibiting their usual courage. O'Reilly was the one person who behaved unprofessionally and without regard for the safety of the camera crew he was leading.

Yeah... and O'Reilly has the gall to criticize Williams.

originally posted by: ~Lucidity
Help. I can't stop.

When will the sleighing end?

a reply to: Blackmarketeer



What will Field Marshall O'Reilly say about this guy, another left wing guttersnipe I imagine.

a reply to: rupertg

a reply to: Blackmarketeer

He had me at bloviater.

Of course, O'Reilly will just say he is jealous of O'Reilly's success.

"I had an M16 pointed at my head."

a reply to: ~Lucidity

Is anyone surprised? Bill O'Reilly is constantly vomiting out dishonest rhetoric like 24/7 and has been for years.

a reply to: ReturnofTheSonOfNothing

A lot of people believe everything he says. Loud, booming authoritative voice, swagger. Doesn't take much to convince people you're real even when you're not.

More CBS people who were there with him in "combat" are speaking out now.

I always wondered about O'Reilly's claim that he was in the Falklands. I was a 13 year old impressionable British private schoolboy at that time, and The Falklands War was really the first big news story I remember watching with any interest at all.

There were ZERO American reporters or troops in the Falklands. There was one reporter who was embedded with the SAS (which I always thought massively impressive) in the worst of the fighting in and around Port Stanley. Reporters from other countries were very conspicuous by their absence.

The American Fifth Fleet were on their way to the Falklands to help out the British, but the British retook the islands before they arrived and American forces were never needed. There have even been claims in the American media that the Americans "helped the British retake the Falklands" which is complete nonsense too, they didn't get there in time.

Williams gets outed so they go after O'Reilly. FoxNews did not uncover Williams lies.

If O'Reilly lied, he deserves whatever happens, but to try and justify one by pointing out the other is very much like what children do when they get caught. Yeah but johnny did that

I have no idea if this is even true yet, but the media is certainly running with it. Now why would they do that? To take focus off Williams because he is one of their peers?

I waited for more information before forming an opinion on Williams and I suppose I'll do the same with this. I'll pass on participating in the witch hunters gleeful delight as they dance around the cauldron poking pins in their voodoo dolls.

Now if the media would just start reporting the same way about the lies the politicians from all sides are telling daily. Perhaps when they get done with this feeding frenzy they might, eh

If the gloves have come off, I'm betting nearly all of the media pundits can be outed for some factual indiscretion. It's time if that is what's happening, but then again - liars going after liars - ROFL

a reply to: Blaine91555

Good. They should go after ALL the liars. This isn't a partisan issue. It's an ethical one. And frankly I don't care why it happens, just that it happens.

I also sensed distinct discomfort in O'Reilly in the few minutes he sort of "defended" Williams. Probably because he knew .

a reply to: ~Lucidity

Exactly

a reply to: Blaine91555

Yep. And I hope it gets even more common.

Like it or not, these people who have the podium, even if they're doing it for money 1.) also have a responsibility and 2.) shouldn't think they're some sort of immune demi-gods and believe their own press.

And the more people see this, the better off we'll all be.



I agree with this guy. It's long overdue.

Bill goes in, Bill goes out... you can't explain that.

a reply to: Blaine91555

Williams gets outed so they go after O'Reilly.
FoxNews did not uncover Williams lies.

What a nonsensical attitude. "They" did not "go after" O'Reilly over Williams. O'Reilly himself chose to "go after" Williams (repeatedly) on his show and is now being exposed as a hypocritical liar. Eight former CBS staffers who were with O'Reilly at the time have called him out on his lies, especially the one O'Reilly told about his cameraman being injured.

It appears that war is so popular in the US that news men are now inventing war stories for them self to keep their popularity up and add some 'cred' to resume.

Any wonder the country is headed in the wrong direction. We can't keep 40 hour a week jobs for average Americans but we can bomb the heck out of anyone in the world at a moments notice.

originally posted by: roadgravel
It appears that war is so popular in the US that news men are now inventing war stories for them self to keep their popularity up and add some 'cred' to resume.

Any wonder the country is headed in the wrong direction. We can't keep 40 hour a week jobs for average Americans but we can bomb the heck out of anyone in the world at a moments notice.

Which process makes rich people richer, faster? As to Bill 'Oh, Really?'...looks like the Teflon isn't working too well, and this is starting to stick. Good.