DAN's The Man To Save CNN

(From Newsday -- By Verne Gay)

"This is DAN RATHER reporting -- for CNN."

There's something pleasing about the sound of that, not to mention a certain plausibility. DAN RATHER reporting for CNN from Lebanon...North Korea...Nigeria...Iran. Ah yes, Iran. That would be extraordinary, wouldn't it?

With your forbearance, dear reader, ponder the implications of that opening line just a little more. Imagine a Dan Rather CNN report appearing in, say, the 8 pm hour, and another one at 10. A Dan Rather hour-long special every week, perhaps. Or, Dan Rather, back from the wars, sitting in the studio alongside PAULA ZAHN or AARON BROWN.

So for today's column, we offer a gift to CNN in the form of an idea. This is a beautiful idea, if we say so ourselves, which embraces the added benefits of symbolism, practicality and fundamental human decency. It's called giving one of the great broadcasters in TV history a second chance. It's called giving CNN a fighting chance.

It's called this -- Hire Dan Rather.

Yes, hire Dan. Hire him now. Don't wait, or quibble, or "hold meetings," or throw up all the obvious and frankly irrelevant objections -- age, money, Memogate, 60 MINUTES. Just hire Dan.

This idea isn't just about one man -- It's about a once magnificent, now befuddled news division (CBS'); a once proud cable network desperately seeking firm ground; and a once vital industry that has lost three leaders in just half a year and, along with them, a sense of direction, mission and proportion. And cable news? The current joke is that it has become BLONDES REPORTING ON MISSING BLONDES.

Indeed, there's something desperately wrong in a TV news world where "Runaway Bride" JENNIFER WILBANKS shares top billing with SADDAM HUSSEIN. Rather -- along with a dwindling number of TV compatriots -- actually understands this, even if the infidels who run ABC, CBS and NBC do not.

So where stands Dan on the move to CNN? He was in Texas last week, presumably on vacation, and couldn't be reached. But some friends and colleagues describe someone in a state of near, if not total, despair. Consider -- Here is a man who spent half a century fighting his way to the top of his profession and then lost it all in a day. He was not merely ejected from THE CBS EVENING NEWS, but CBS dumped a pail of pig slop on his head for good measure.

There is some cruel irony in this fate. A quarter of a century ago, an insecure Rather and then-CBS News chief VAN GORDON SAUTER actively conspired to keep WALTER CRONKITE, who had just retired from THE CBS EVENING NEWS, off CBS' air. History has a wicked way of repeating itself.

But -- you reasonably say -- this isn't a case of what goes around comes around. Rather, whose CBS contract reportedly expires in 2006, has a berth on 60 MINUTES, which is hardly banishment. A colleague (who asked not to be named) offers this pragmatic appraisal -- "He's restless and unsure of his footing, which is only natural because he's been one of one...and now he's one of nine (correspondents). But Dan's going to be fine in the fall. He's going to do his share of stories -- some of them will be great -- and he'll get that adrenaline rushing."

Here's one possible problem with this assessment. Rather, according to some observers, doesn't believe it. There is some speculation at CBS that the network wants him to quit and that Rather's presence at 60 MINUTES has actually compounded the problems facing the broadcast. What, pray tell, are those? A high body count, for one. When CBS chief LES MOONVES canceled 60 MINUTES WEDNESDAY, the mother show was forced to absorb some of its staff. There are now nine correspondents where there were five; that's a potential logistical nightmare.

This is all inside baseball. The blunt fact is that Rather is about as welcome at 60 MINUTES as a horned toad on a HOUSTON FREEWAY -- and just as vulnerable.

So best for him to go where he's needed, and possibly even wanted. Sources say Rather and CNN's U.S. boss, JON KLEIN, had a frosty relationship when the latter was at CBS, but necessity has a way of patching old wounds. Besides viewers, CNN's immediate needs are gravitas, credibility and a single star who can instantly confer both. Rather nearly jumped to CNN in 1997, in the wake of the CBS's dunderheaded pairing with CONNIE CHUNG, but he pulled back at the last minute. The groundwork, so to speak, has been laid.

What about age? Dan will be 74 in October, but LARRY KING will be 72. And what dimwitted dork was prepared to write off MIKE WALLACE when he turned 74 (the man just turned 87)? Rather is an obsessive and insanely hardworking reporter, and if there's a story in China, or Uzbekistan, or Ouagadougou, he will be there -- day after day after day. Age for this guy is irrelevant.

Memogate? What's done is done, and Rather has performed his penance. Time to remove the sackcloth and ashes. (It's also worth noting that this winter's panel report absolved him of direct blame.) Money? Dan makes about 5 million bucks a year, but oh, you're right. I almost forgot. TIME WARNER hasn't got any of the green stuff, do they?

Finally, ratings. Business-as-usual CNN has no hope of catching FOX NEWS, but a Rather-energized CNN could make inroads. Rather may be the world's most recognized journalist. In France, where THE CBS EVENING NEWS could once be seen, the French used to call the program ZE DON RAWTHERE SHOW. And where Dan goes, crowds gather. He'll even draw FOX NEWS CHANNEL (FNC) viewers who'll want to see what sort of liberal bias he brings to the day's news. (That'll make FNC boss ROGER AILES go nuts.)

So let's get down to business, people. Make the call. Dan needs a real job. Today.