JONATHAN LAST CALLS THE CBS RATHERGATE REPORT A WHITEWASH:

And Mary Mapes understands it, too. “Indeed, in the end, all that the panel did conclude was that there were many red flags that counseled against going to air quickly . . .” she says now. “I am heartened to see that the panel found no political bias on my part, as indeed I have none.”

Well, if the documents weren’t forged and Mary Mapes acted with no political bias, then her firing would have been unjust and she really would be a scapegoat. But since there is abundant evidence that the documents were forgeries and that political attitudes were important in driving the story, the better conclusion is that the CBS Report is a whitewash.

Read the whole thing.