Fake news is everywhere, and veteran CBS newsman Bob Schieffer doesn’t like it
Retirement hasn’t hampered Bob Schieffer’s ability to work a room.
Nor has it dimmed his passion for championing the news business — and speaking out against fake news.
The veteran CBS newsman, who retired in 2015, didn’t utter the phrase “fake news” himself. But, during a speech Wednesday at a Meals on Wheels Inc. of Tarrant County fundraising event, Schieffer spoke of the importance of Americans becoming more critical of what they see and hear on television, in print and especially online.
“We have more access to information than any people who have ever lived on Earth, and yet there is so much information, I don’t know if we’re wiser, or if we just can’t process all of the information,” Schieffer said during the luncheon, which was held at the Fort Worth Club downtown. “I think we’re overwhelmed.”
Then he urged the roughly 150 people in attendance, “To get the true news, you really have to know your information. You really have to know your sources.”
The annual Legends Luncheon is held by Meals on Wheels to recognize a Texan who has demonstrated outstanding character through community involvement. Meals on Wheels delivers about 3,700 meals per day in the Fort Worth area, CBS 11 News anchor Doug Dunbar, who emceed the event, told the crowd.
Schieffer spoke for about 20 minutes, in a question and answer session hosted by moderator Mary Ralph-Lowe.
Other highlights of the conversation:
▪ How Washington has changed: Democrats and Republicans no longer want to be in the same room with each other, much less exchange ideas and opinions. “It’s no longer a conversation with people you know,” Schieffer said. “It’s a conversation with strangers.”
▪ His favorite president was Gerald Ford. “He was the single nicest and best guy I’ve ever been around.”
▪ Best politician: Lyndon Johnson. “He had this innate ability to count votes, to know what people were thinking.”
This story was originally published April 4, 2019 at 4:44 PM with the headline "Fake news is everywhere, and veteran CBS newsman Bob Schieffer doesn’t like it."
