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A review by biblioneer
Rather Outspoken: My Life in the News by Dan Rather
5.0
I came across this memoir while going through biographical audiobooks at my library. While I never watched CBS evening news, I did enjoy (and still do) reading some of Rather's social media posts. This memoir begins by telling the events and circumstances that led up to Rather's departure from CBS (which I knew very little about) before diving into the traditional biographical overview (childhood, early career, etc).
Rather shares some of the most important stories he has covered over the course of his career and insights he has gained along the way. The chapters on the civil rights movement and Watergate scandal are, in my opinion, the most interesting. That the rights of minorities and skepticism of political institutions have been recently spotlighted may also be what makes these chapters so relevant and relatable.
Littered throughout the book and culminated in the epilogue are reflections on journalism, ones that encapsulate the field at the time and others that seem to foretell where it is going. Rather's insights come at a time when the role of media and journalists have never been more important. Among these are:
- his observation that those in power often work to suppress information they do not want made public knowledge despite it being what people need to know.
- his noting that a free press is a cornerstone of democracy but that it and the informed electorate it serves is "in peril."
- his belief that journalism helps to balance the power of government, on both large and small scales, preventing the concentration of power characteristic of regimes and monarchies.
- his argument that unbiased reporting is needed now more than ever and that "dark corners" should be illuminated.
More than just a recollection of his life and times in the field, Rather Outspoken is a reminder of what journalism is meant to do and can accomplish.
Rather shares some of the most important stories he has covered over the course of his career and insights he has gained along the way. The chapters on the civil rights movement and Watergate scandal are, in my opinion, the most interesting. That the rights of minorities and skepticism of political institutions have been recently spotlighted may also be what makes these chapters so relevant and relatable.
Littered throughout the book and culminated in the epilogue are reflections on journalism, ones that encapsulate the field at the time and others that seem to foretell where it is going. Rather's insights come at a time when the role of media and journalists have never been more important. Among these are:
- his observation that those in power often work to suppress information they do not want made public knowledge despite it being what people need to know.
- his noting that a free press is a cornerstone of democracy but that it and the informed electorate it serves is "in peril."
- his belief that journalism helps to balance the power of government, on both large and small scales, preventing the concentration of power characteristic of regimes and monarchies.
- his argument that unbiased reporting is needed now more than ever and that "dark corners" should be illuminated.
More than just a recollection of his life and times in the field, Rather Outspoken is a reminder of what journalism is meant to do and can accomplish.