Why DickThornburgh?
Mr. Rather considers Mr. Thornburgh a confounding choice in part because he served two Republican presidents, Mr. Bush’s father, and Richard M. Nixon, with whom Mr. Rather publicly clashed, the colleagues and associates said.
Mr. Thornburgh also has his own rocky history with CBS. In 1989, as attorney general, he drew the ire of CBS News and other news media organizations when the Justice Department was reportedly considering subpoenas for the telephone records of a CBS News correspondent in an investigation of leaks about an inquiry about a congressman’s office. A spokeswoman for CBS News, Sandra Genelius, described Mr. Thornburgh and Mr. Boccardi as having “uncommon integrity and ability.” But Ms. Genelius declined to elaborate on the reasoning of two CBS officials primarily responsible for naming the panel, Andrew Heyward, president of CBS News, and Leslie Moonves, chairman of CBS Television and co-president of the CBS parent, Viacom.