Months before the 2004 US presidential election, Mary Mapes, a producer for 60 Minutes Wednesday, spearheads a small, tightly wound team—Mike Smith, Lucy Scott, and Colonel Roger Charles—in a steadfast quest to verify claims about George W. Bush’s military record. They pursue leads that challenge the idea of a flawless service, chasing down indications that Bush may have received preferential treatment and that crucial records could have been lost or altered. In their search, they turn to Bill Burkett, who asserts that a set of memos and letters suggests Bush enjoyed special treatment and that he went AWOL for a year in 1972. The investigation also takes them to former Texan Lieutenant Governor Ben Barnes, who concedes that he pulled strings to help Bush join the National Guard. Mapes then brings these findings to life on air, with Dan Rather presenting the report on 60 Minutes.
Once the segment airs, questions about its accuracy begin to swirl. The controversy is fueled by radio hosts and bloggers and amplified by mainstream outlets, including The Washington Post and CBS itself. A closer look at the memos reveals stylistic clues, such as font and letter spacing, that point to computer production with Microsoft Word rather than typing from the 1970s. Burkett admits that he lied about where he obtained the documents, casting further doubt on the reporting.
The story’s investigation is complicated by the absence of the primary source: Jerry Killian, Bush’s commanding officer in 1972, had already passed away by the time the CBS piece aired. Robert “Bobby” Hodges, Killian’s supervising officer, retracts an earlier statement that the Killian documents were authentic, though he refuses to dwell on whether there is any “truth” in the documents themselves. Dan Rather issues an apology for presenting the material as fact, and Mapes, Rather, and the entire team face internal scrutiny aimed at uncovering political bias rather than the substance of the claims. The internal review centers on the authenticity of the Killian documents and what that means for the reporting.
As the panel proceedings unfold, Smith, Scott, and Charles are ultimately barred from their work and fired, with Smith erupting in a loud office tirade as he is escorted out. Rather decides to retire from broadcasting after the hearings, while Mapes delivers a pointed response to her opponents during the proceedings. In the end, Mapes is fired, and Rather presents his final sign-off, underscoring the courage of those who stuck with the story through the most difficult moments. The closing titles reveal that Mapes was terminated and four CBS executives were asked to resign, while also noting that CBS later won a Peabody Award for Mapes’ earlier documentary exposing atrocities at Abu Ghraib.
