Dan Rather
Legendary newsman and political commentator Dan Rather says he is
stunned and “almost speechless” after witnessing the current chaos in
Washington, D.C. And yet his advice and imagery are as perfectly
penned. Last week Rather took to Facebook and wrote:
This is a story unlike any I have ever seen. Its contours seem to entangle this administration like a giant squid around a submarine in an old science fiction film, tentacles prying apart what once seemed solid. With a spectacle like this, it’s sometimes important to pause and try to take in as wide a picture as possible. There is so much we do not know, but what we know already is gravely striking. What the president, his lawyer, and others have already copped to would be enough to almost roll credits in a mob film. I apologize for the multiple cinematic allusions, but this story defies the imagination normally required for real life.For most of his life, Rather says it was his job to make sense of events, big and small, and in real-time. “Sort of like a play by play a broadcaster relating to an audience what is transpiring” and ad-libbing as more details unfold.
I find myself wondering what it would be like to be in the midst of this story, either on the ground in Washington or in an anchor chair, tapping the incoming rivers of information from reporters, on Capitol Hill, at the White House, and at other perches necessary for covering this rapidly metastasizing narrative.
What I return to, as I think back at other moments of crisis and uncertainty, is the need as a reporter and as a citizen to remain steady. Now steadiness should not be confused with apathy or detachment. We need to be engaged, with a steely determination to get to the bottom of what seems to be but the tip of a proverbial iceberg. There are many leads to follow, many new angles emerging. We cannot afford to lose grasp of the threads of the much bigger story arc.In his conclusion, Rather reiterates that we are in uncharted waters.
This is unprecedented. This is dangerous. But this is also necessary. We cannot panic in the face of what we confront, or get overwhelmed by details. We must breathe deep, take stock, see all for what it is, methodically and fairly uncover right from wrong, truth from fiction, and ultimately we must persevere, for the sake of our nation.There is something about this man that puts me at ease. It’s not only knowing that he has experienced and reported almost every kind of news imaginable, but it’s also that he has a calmness in his words even when he is outraged. He tells us in one way or another that no matter how bad things get, we’re going to get through it all—as long as we stay engaged, diligent, and calm. Thank you, Dan Rather.
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