Koppel: ‘Americans Need to Be Reminded of the War’ — 04/30/2004
“In an interview ABC’s “Good Morning America” Friday, Koppel said he expected the show to be controversial – “but not this controversial.”
He denied complaints that the show is “anti-war.”
“It is a way of saying…let me explain it this way, Charlie [Gibson]. I was born and grew up in England. I was a small child in London during the Second World War. We used to spend our nights during bombing raids in an air-raid shelter in the back. There was rationing. There were blackouts. There was an awareness of the war, which I think is somehow a little bit lacking in the United States at this time.”
If this were Peter Jennings or Dan Rather, I’d be a little more inclined to believe it was political or a ratings ploy. I’ve found Ted Koppel to be pretty fairminded and objective. I couldn’t honestly say what his political leanings are; he asks tough questions of everybody, which is what a good journalist should do. The timing is odd and I wouldn’t doubt that there are people at ABC thinking it will help ratings and others who see it as an antiwar thing. I think Ted Koppel is looking at it as a tribute and a reminder of the sacrifice these soldiers have made for us.
Frankly, after going through several weeks being reminded, much more graphically, of another sacrifice, I’d expect better of conservatives. My question to Christian conservatives, “Did being reminded of Christ’s sacrifice make you turn against your religion or did it make you more mindful of the importance of the importance of it? ” Likewise, I think that a reminder pf the sacrifice of our soldiers will serve to make us all more mindful of their cause.
I think for most Americans there is a realization that bailing out now would mean these people died in vain and I don’t envision most Americans seeing a roll call of the dead and wanting that to happen. If anyone at ABC is thinking that this will generate some grassroots antiwar movement, I think they are sadly mistaken and I’d bet Ted Koppel is smart enough to know that.