But Jay Tea - she's so PERKY!

She looks like Jack Nicholson's Joker in the first Batman movie.

Interesting that the first two posters comment about Ms Couric's appearance and not the subject of the post. Is this typical of this blog?

As for the substance, I agree that Ms Couric should be accountable for what she posts and what she says. Obviously, TV persona have interns and producers who do research and writing, but the bottom line is one needs to stand behind one's words.

Katie who?

I don't watch See BS news. I doubt Ms. Katie had much creditability to begin with.

Anything that makes Katie Couric look bad is fine with me. She's been getting away with being a volunteeer DNC anchor posing as an impartial journalist for waaaaaay too long.

So Katie's CBS journal was fake but accurate ?

I think that this incident makes it perfectly clear that Couric is nothing more than a talking head; mouthing and vocalizing the words that CBS puts in her mouth. That's true on camera as she reads the news off of the teleprompter - and now we know it's true also when she records her "notebook".

The fact that the words on this particular video were ripped off from someone else is not Couric's fault. She's just doing what she normally does and is paid to do - read the teleprompter.

However, this does underscore clearly that Couric appears on CBS airwaves not as a "journalist" -- she's a paid talking head, and CBS should cease any reference to Couric as a "journalist". That's gross misreprentation.

It's beyond embarassing. Maybe that's what's behind the shoddy news stories today--the premise comes first, the "news" after it has been massaged.

Damn, _Mike_ nailed a line I should have gotten, and Lee is being reasonable. Maybe it's time I retired or took a vacation or something.

J.

"It's the pressure of this chauvinistic environment. If a man did this no one would notice."

- Katie

Actually, if a guy did this, there would be no hesitation to nail his hide to the wall. But because it's 'perky' Katie, she'll be forgiven because of her gender and the 'pressure' she has as a woman in 'journalism'.

"It's beyond embarassing. Maybe that's what's behind the shoddy news stories today--the premise comes first, the "news" after it has been massaged."

Couric's "notebook" is not "news" - it's a fluffy feature that has nothing to do with reporting the facts of a news story. The fact that Couric "reads" the news, and that Couric has now been shown to be willing to read whatever words are placed in front of her (and is even willing to represent them as her own when they aren't) does not mean that the news Couric reads is biased, inaccurate, or "massaged" in any way. There is no link.

"...does not mean that the news Couric reads is biased, inaccurate, or "massaged" in any way."

No, it doesn't mean that, but it is.

Why don't we do what they do in Britain? Instead of annointing these folks with the weighty (heh) title of Anchor, why not simply call them Newsreaders? That's what they are; that's what they do.

She gets paid 15 milion a year, by CBS and doesn't to write a word.. If she was writing anything, she probably would get paid alot less, perhaps in line of what you are making, Jay. We worry about Imus and the integrity of his 3 ill-chosen spur of the moment spontaneous words...Far safer in America to take an enormous paycheck, and any responsibility for whatever you say or write falls on a hapless anonymous producer. To rewrite Kipling 'Power without responsibility: the preogative of the newsanchor ." in this age.

Ah, Lee and Stevie and the rest... experts at excusing bad behavior.

Journalism 101, boys and girls... You, and you alone are responsible for what goes out with your name on it. I've checked, and yes, it's still a mainstay of the Ethics of Journalism.

"Journalism 101, boys and girls... You, and you alone are responsible for what goes out with your name on it. I've checked, and yes, it's still a mainstay of the Ethics of Journalism."

Except when it's certain Wizbang bloggers who post rumors and lies from web sites that rhyme with "sludge" "Pichelle Palkin" and "Not Fair", and then when called on the accuracy of the post, disavow responsibility.

Editor's note: The commenter now calling himself "Netvocates" has been previously posting as "Reality." I am choosing to interpret his adoption of the new name as an admission that his comments here have been for commercial gain, and he's been whoring out his "opinion" for some time now.

And his confusing "plagiarism" with explicitly quoting and citing sources that he does not approve of shows just what they got for their money.

Finally, while tempting, I'm not going to ban his IP just yet. He's destroyed whatever credibility he might have had, with not a bit of assistance from anyone else.

J.

I think the problem is also that CBS has seemingly placed her 'above' needing to comment or take responsibility for the plagiarism. It's ok to have a staff help you. But if you and your staff plagiarize, you take responsibility. Katie is the Managing Editor on the CBS Evening News. She should behave like one and face the music.

Netvocates: regardless of how you want to twist it, that is not plagiarism. Items quoted and referenced with links are not plagiarized. You have a problem with content? Go to the source of whatever it is you disagree with.

Wait ... why am I bothering?

Jay,

Once again you have his the nail on the head.

This is not about plagiarism. It is about Katie Couric giving a patently false, first person feel-good story. Not only was it false, but was done knowingly. While the revelation of plagiarism exposed the story, it is being used to deflect the blame away from the main perpatrator of the untruthful news, Ms. Couric herself.

"I own every word I've ever written here." -- Mr. Tea

No one else can take the blame, huh?