Rieder: Brian Williams' unmitigated disaster

It's an unmitigated disaster for Brian Williams and NBC News.

The revelation that the NBC anchor had lied on air about being in a helicopter that was forced down after it was hit by enemy fire during the Iraq War is devastating.

It's hard to see how Williams gets past this, and how he survives as the face of NBC News.

An anchor's No. 1 requirement is that he or she has credibility. If we don't believe what an anchor tells us, what's the point?

It's disturbing that Williams has told many different versions of this story over the years. In some he was in a helicopter that was hit by enemy fire. In some he was in one near the chopper that was hit.

This from a man whose word should be gospel to us?

And Williams, who didn't mention the contretemps in his Thursday night broadcast, hardly has helped himself with his tortured explanations about what has gone so terribly wrong.

After veterans writing on Facebook challenged his tale, which he told on air most recently last Friday, Williams responded on the social media site that he had indeed been in the helicopter behind the one that was hit. He continued: "I think the continued viewing of the video showing us inspecting the impact area — and the fog of memory over 12 years — made me conflate the two, and I apologize."

What? He's confused about whether he was in an aircraft that was forced down? I'm pretty sure that's something you would remember, fog of memory or no fog of memory.

On air Wednesday night, Williams said he had "made a mistake in recalling the events of 12 years ago," that the whole incident was simply "a bungled attempt by me to thank one special veteran and by extension our brave military men and women, veterans everywhere, those who have served everywhere while I did not."

So when he told a similar story about being forced down on Letterman in 2013, that was a "bungled attempt" as well?

Williams still doesn't get it. Being called out by the vets on Facebook, and the reporting by Travis Tritten of Stars and Stripes, have changed everything.

When you are nailed like this, you need a forthright mea culpa, not lawyerly parsing of words. But it's doubtful even that would help, particularly now.

I take no joy in any of this. I've always liked and admired Brian Williams. He was a different type of anchor, not the sonorous Voice of God of yore. He seemed a much more approachable type of person, someone you'd like to have a drink with. He wasn't so full of himself. He could kick back on the late-night shows.

Yet I always thought him to be a first-rate journalist with a deep passion for the news.

A couple of decades back, at the height of O.J. frenzy, NBC decided to interview O.J. Simpson. There was a backlash, so the network decided to do a segment putting it all in perspective. At the time I was editor of American Journalism Review, and as part of that segment I was interviewed by one Brian Williams. (The backlash continued unabated, so NBC scrapped the whole thing, and our interview never aired.)

I remember that Williams was fine as an interviewer. But what I remember most vividly was what a mensch he was, how he went out of his way to interact with the staffers, the makeup people and such. He just seemed like a terrific guy.

I kind of wish I could say, "Say it isn't so, Brian."

But it is.