This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/09/business/media/cbs-correspondent-apologizes-for-report-on-benghazi-attack.html

The article has changed 8 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 2 Version 3
CBS Correspondent Apologizes for Report on Benghazi Attack CBS Correspondent Apologizes for Report on Benghazi Attack
(about 1 hour later)
The correspondent for a disputed “60 Minutes'’ segment about the attack last year on the United States Special Mission in Benghazi, Libya, apologized on the air Friday morning. The reporter, Lara Logan, said it was a “mistake'’ to put on a security officer whose credibility has since been undermined by his diverging accounts of his actions that night.The correspondent for a disputed “60 Minutes'’ segment about the attack last year on the United States Special Mission in Benghazi, Libya, apologized on the air Friday morning. The reporter, Lara Logan, said it was a “mistake'’ to put on a security officer whose credibility has since been undermined by his diverging accounts of his actions that night.
Ms. Logan said on “CBS This Morning'’ that the news division was misled by the officer, adding, “We will apologize to our viewers, and we will correct the record on our broadcast on Sunday night.”Ms. Logan said on “CBS This Morning'’ that the news division was misled by the officer, adding, “We will apologize to our viewers, and we will correct the record on our broadcast on Sunday night.”
The apology followed disclosure by The New York Times Thursday evening that the security contractor, Dylan Davies, had provided the F.B.I. an account that contradicted the version of events he provided “60 Minutes.'’ On the show, and in a recently published book, Mr. Davies presents a vivid, on-scene description of the attack, including his own role as a participant in the action.The apology followed disclosure by The New York Times Thursday evening that the security contractor, Dylan Davies, had provided the F.B.I. an account that contradicted the version of events he provided “60 Minutes.'’ On the show, and in a recently published book, Mr. Davies presents a vivid, on-scene description of the attack, including his own role as a participant in the action.
But Mr. Davies told the F.B.I. that he was not on the scene until the next morning, according to two senior government officials who were briefed on the investigation into the attack. That account, the officials said, is consistent with an incident report produced by the Blue Mountain security business, which had been hired to protect United States interests in Benghazi and which employed Mr. Davies. But Mr. Davies told the F.B.I. that he was not on the scene until the next morning, according to two senior government officials who were briefed on the investigation of the attack. That account, the officials said, is consistent with an incident report produced by the Blue Mountain security business, which had been hired to protect United States interests in Benghazi and which employed Mr. Davies.
Ms. Logan said on Friday that Mr. Davies denied the substance of the incident report, adding “and he said that he told the F.B.I. the same story that he had told us. But what we now know is that he told the F.B.I a different story to what he told us. And, you know, that was the moment for us when we realized that we no longer had confidence in our source. And that we were wrong to put him on air.” Ms. Logan said on Friday that Mr. Davies denied the substance of the incident report, adding “and he said that he told the F.B.I. the same story that he had told us. But what we now know is that he told the F.B.I. a different story to what he told us. And, you know, that was the moment for us when we realized that we no longer had confidence in our source. And that we were wrong to put him on air.”
Ms. Logan said that since learning about the F.B.I. report, CBS has tried to contact Mr. Davies but has not heard back from him. CBS has removed the interview and related material from its “60 Minutes'’ Web site.Ms. Logan said that since learning about the F.B.I. report, CBS has tried to contact Mr. Davies but has not heard back from him. CBS has removed the interview and related material from its “60 Minutes'’ Web site.
The lengthy apology on Friday, unusual for any news organization, was all the more notable because it came from “60 Minutes,” one of the most esteemed newsmagazines on American television.The lengthy apology on Friday, unusual for any news organization, was all the more notable because it came from “60 Minutes,” one of the most esteemed newsmagazines on American television.
“The most important thing to every person at ’60 Minutes’ is the truth, and today the truth is that we made a mistake,” Ms. Logan said.“The most important thing to every person at ’60 Minutes’ is the truth, and today the truth is that we made a mistake,” Ms. Logan said.
It remains to be seen what kind of repercussions the incident has within “60 Minutes” or whether CBS will conduct an independent investigation, the way it did following a discredited 2004 segment in which Dan Rather reported on George W. Bush’s national guard service.It remains to be seen what kind of repercussions the incident has within “60 Minutes” or whether CBS will conduct an independent investigation, the way it did following a discredited 2004 segment in which Dan Rather reported on George W. Bush’s national guard service.
Mr. Davies has disavowed the incident report, saying in an interview last week with the online magazine The Daily Beast that he did not write it, had never even seen it and was not responsible for the account of events it contained. Mr. Davies appeared on the program and wrote the book, "The Embassy House,” under the pseudonym Morgan Jones. Jennifer Robinson, a spokeswoman for the book’s publisher, Threshold Editions, issued a statement on Friday saying that the book would be removed from shelves.
Mr. Davies appeared on the program and wrote the book, "The Embassy House,” under the pseudonym Morgan Jones. “In light of information that has been brought to our attention since the initial publication of ‘The Embassy House,’ we are suspending the publication and sale of this book in all formats, and are recommending that booksellers do the same,” she said.
Threshold Editions, an imprint of Simon & Schuster that specializes in conservative nonfiction, has published books by Glenn Beck, Karl Rove, Mary Cheney and Mark R. Levin.
“The Embassy House” was published Oct. 29. Threshold Editions said there were 38,000 copies of “The Embassy House” in print.
Mr. Davies, who worked for Blue Mountain, has disavowed the incident report, saying in an interview last week with the online magazine The Daily Beast that he did not write it, had never even seen it and was not responsible for the account of events it contained.
The incident report described Mr. Davies as remaining at the villa he occupied in Libya and not getting to the scene on the night of the attack. In the version he wrote in his book and gave to “60 Minutes,” Mr. Davies said he left the villa that night to visit a hospital where he said he saw the body of the deceased ambassador, J. Christopher Stevens, and twice rushed to the scene of the attack.The incident report described Mr. Davies as remaining at the villa he occupied in Libya and not getting to the scene on the night of the attack. In the version he wrote in his book and gave to “60 Minutes,” Mr. Davies said he left the villa that night to visit a hospital where he said he saw the body of the deceased ambassador, J. Christopher Stevens, and twice rushed to the scene of the attack.
At the compound, he said, he had a confrontation with an attacker, whom he dispatched with a blow to the face with a rifle butt.At the compound, he said, he had a confrontation with an attacker, whom he dispatched with a blow to the face with a rifle butt.
Jennifer Robinson, a spokeswoman for the book’s publisher, Threshold Editions, which is part of the Simon and Schuster unit of CBS, said, “Although we have not seen the F.B.I. report, in light of these revelations we will review the book and take appropriate action with regard to its publication status.” Jeff Fager, the chairman of CBS News and executive producer of “60 Minutes,” said on Thursday after being contacted by The New York Times and told of the F.B.I. report, “We’re surprised to hear about this, and if it shows we’ve been misled, we will make a correction.”
Jeff Fager, the chairman of CBS News and executive producer of “60 Minutes,” said Thursday after being contacted by The New York Times and told of the F.B.I. report, “We’re surprised to hear about this, and if it shows we’ve been misled, we will make a correction.”
CBS News had extensively defended Mr. Davies this week, suggesting — as Mr. Davies did in The Daily Beast interview — that he was the object of a campaign by State Department officials to quiet continued questioning about the events in Benghazi. CBS also publicly vouched for the authenticity of Mr. Davies’s account on “60 Minutes.”CBS News had extensively defended Mr. Davies this week, suggesting — as Mr. Davies did in The Daily Beast interview — that he was the object of a campaign by State Department officials to quiet continued questioning about the events in Benghazi. CBS also publicly vouched for the authenticity of Mr. Davies’s account on “60 Minutes.”
Mr. Fager issued a statement this week, saying that the program was “proud of the reporting that went into the story” and expressing confidence that the sources on the program “told accurate versions of what happened that night.”Mr. Fager issued a statement this week, saying that the program was “proud of the reporting that went into the story” and expressing confidence that the sources on the program “told accurate versions of what happened that night.”
Ms. Logan had also expressed confidence that the incident report did not contradict Mr. Davies’s account on “60 Minutes” because he had never signed it and disputed its details. “He never had two stories. He only had one story,” Ms. Logan said in an interview this week.Ms. Logan had also expressed confidence that the incident report did not contradict Mr. Davies’s account on “60 Minutes” because he had never signed it and disputed its details. “He never had two stories. He only had one story,” Ms. Logan said in an interview this week.
But CBS had all along acknowledged that Mr. Davies had also been interviewed by the F.B.I. The network had suggested that the agency’s interview would corroborate Mr. Davies’s account on “60 Minutes.” Instead, the disclosure that the F.B.I. interview matched the incident report leaves CBS facing more questions about the primary source for its investigation.But CBS had all along acknowledged that Mr. Davies had also been interviewed by the F.B.I. The network had suggested that the agency’s interview would corroborate Mr. Davies’s account on “60 Minutes.” Instead, the disclosure that the F.B.I. interview matched the incident report leaves CBS facing more questions about the primary source for its investigation.

Brian Stelter contributed reporting.

Brian Stelter and Julie Bosman contributed reporting.