Background

Rather and CBS Evening News executive producer Jim Murphy were driven around Baghdad for 45 minutes and switched cars on two separate occasions to keep Saddam's position secret. The interview was held at the Republican Palace. Neither Rather nor Murphy were allowed to bring their own tape recorders. Saddam supplied his own translator, and CBS approved the translation of the recording. Rather and Murphy were treated well in the course of the interview, with Saddam offering Rather coffee at one point.

American interview

In the 1980s, Rather had an on-air confrontation with then-president George H. W. Bush over the Iran-Contra Affair. His son, George W. Bush, responded similarly, and declined to give Rather an interview during his presidency. After the Saddam interview, the White House was interested in a rebuttal interview. CBS News would accept President Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney or Secretary of State Colin Powell for the interview, but the White House only offered other officials for the interview, such as Ari Fleischer and Dan Bartlett. The CBS network deemed these individuals inappropriate for the broadcast, and an American interview was never doneNotes: Joseph H. Hazelton (1855- 1936), was a prominent stage and screen actor who in 1865 was a program boy at the Ford's Theater. The recording was made for Transco. 16 inch shellac disk; the matrix number is A1087, etched in the wax. The author's name is spelled "Hazleton." A copy on CD is available. All inquiries regarding this recording should be directed to the Norris Foundation Curator of American Historical Manuscripts.

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