As soon as dominant at CBS Information earlier than a bitter departure, Dan Slightly makes his first return in 18 years
NEW YORK — Dan Slightly returned to the CBS Information airwaves for the primary time since his bitter exit 18 years in the past, showing in a reflective interview on “CBS Sunday Morning” days earlier than the debut of a Netflix documentary on the 92-year-old newsman’s life.
After 44 years on the community, 24 as anchor of the “CBS Night Information,” Slightly left beneath a cloud following a botched investigation into then-President George W. Bush’s navy report. Slightly signed off as anchor for the final time on March 9, 2005, and exited the community when his contract ended 15 months later.
With continued enmity between him and since-deposed CBS chief Leslie Moonves, Slightly basically turned a nonperson on the information division he dominated for many years.
“With out apology or clarification, I miss CBS,” Slightly advised correspondent Lee Cowan within the interview that aired Sunday. “I’ve missed it because the day I left.”
Slightly escaped official blame for the report that questioned Bush’s Vietnam Warfare-era Nationwide Guard service however, because the anchor who launched it, was recognized with it. CBS couldn’t vouch for the authenticity of some paperwork upon which the report was based mostly, though many individuals concerned within the story nonetheless imagine it was true.
Within the documentary “Slightly,” debuting Wednesday on Netflix, Slightly stated he thought he would survive the incident, however his spouse, Jean, advised him, “You bought right into a combat with the president of the US throughout his reelection marketing campaign. What did you suppose was going to occur?”
Slightly didn’t retire after leaving CBS, doing investigative journalism and rock star interviews for HDNet, a digital cable and satellite tv for pc tv community. Over the previous few years, he has turn into identified to a brand new era as a tart-talking presence on social media.
This previous week, he posted on X throughout former President Trump’s hush cash trial: “Is it simply me or did in the present day appear sleazy even for Donald Trump?”
“You both get engaged and also you get engaged within the new phrases … otherwise you’re out of the sport,” Slightly stated within the CBS interview, filmed at his residence in Texas. “And I wished to remain within the sport.”
The Netflix documentary traces his profession from protection of President John F. Kennedy’s assassination, the Vietnam Warfare and Watergate, by means of his anchor years and past. It consists of among the then tightly-wound Slightly’s odder incidents, together with an assault in New York Metropolis by somebody saying, “What is the frequency, Kenneth,” then later showing onstage with R.E.M. when the group carried out its music of the identical identify.
In each the documentary and within the CBS interview, Slightly bypasses his profession when discuss turned to his legacy.
“In the long run, no matter stays of 1’s life — household, mates — these are going to be the issues for which you are remembered,” he stated.
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David Bauder writes about media for The Related Press. Comply with him at http://twitter.com/dbauder
