CBS correspondent Lara Logan and her producer, Max McClellan, will take an immediate leave of absence following last month’s discredited Benghazi report on “60 Minutes,” CBS News Chairman Jeff Fager informed staff in a memo Tuesday.
Miss Logan was supposed to host the Committee to Protect Journalists’ Press Freedom Awards on Tuesday tonight but was replaced by colleague Scott Pelley, Mediaite.com reported.
“When faced with a such an error, we must use it as an opportunity to make our broadcast even stronger,” Mr. Fager said in a memo. “We are making adjustments at 60 Minutes to reduce the chances of it happening again.”
An internal “journalistic review” at CBS determined that the “60 Minutes” report on Oct. 27 about the 2012 terror attack in Benghazi was not properly vetted and that most of it was based on an incredible witness, The Huffington Post reported.
The story was retracted after it was discovered that many of the events that supposedly were witnessed by security officer Dylan Davies were untrue.
“As Executive Producer, I am responsible for what gets on the air. I pride myself in catching almost everything, but this deception got through and it shouldn’t have,” Mr. Fager said in the memo.
“There is a lot of pride at CBS News,” he continued. “Every broadcast is working hard to live up to the high standard set at CBS News for excellence in reporting. This was a regrettable mistake. But there are many fine professionals at 60 Minutes who produce some of the very best of broadcast journalism, covering the important and interesting stories of our times, and they will continue to do so each and every Sunday.”
No details were given on the possible duration for Miss Logan’s leave.
• Jessica Chasmar can be reached at jchasmar@washingtontimes.com.
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