NBC Nightly News Anchor Billy Williams (Photo : Reuters)
In a turn of events for the celebrated news anchor Brian Williams, he has willed himself to go off air in the meantime, following an inquiry about his retraction of a news story he made years ago about boarding a helicopter that was struck by a rocket - propelled grenade in Iraq.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Lester Holt quote Williams issuing a memo stating, " In the midst of a career spent covering and consuming news, it has become painfully apparent to me that I am presently too much a part of the news." Williams came clean after admitting he wasn't actually in the helicopter that was struck, but the one following it.
Deborah Turness, NBC News President, said they are making an inquiry about the Iraq issue as well as to a report made by Williams during Hurricane Katrina, in which, he claimed seeing a body floating in front of his hotel. His claims were confronted by locals who knows the place well and that the hotel where Williams stayed during the hurricane was not flooded.
The Iraq encounter came out again when the news anchor mentioned it on his news report in Jan. 30 that stirred inquiries from the crew members of the helicopter. Brian Williams has apologized since then.
Following the Helicopter story, Williams said that as the Managing Editor of NBC, he felt compelled to take some time off, and asked Lester Holt to sit in for him while he deals with the current situation.
According to People, who featured Williams original Helicopter Report, the story was posted on Facebook, in which, one of the crew members, Engineer Lance Reynolds, quoted "Sorry dude, I don't remember you being on my aircraft." Reynolds' message was supported by Sgt. 1st Class Joseph Miller where he said, he's been calling the anchor's attention for a long time now because he was in his aircraft at the time and not Reynolds'.
