November 27, 1960-November 8, 1981.
Newsmakers were interviewed by journalists on this public affairs program, ABC's counterpart of CBS's "Face The Nation" and NBC's "Meet The Press." In its earliest weeks, the series was entitled "ABC Press Conference."
Topic: "Branding Vietnam a Bad War."
Moderator: Howard K. Smith with guest Col. David Hackworth.
On June 27, 1971, the ABC network aired an edition of its Issues and Answers news program. Viewers listened with shock and concern as one of the most highly decorated soldiers of the post-World War II era, Col. David Hackworth, in full dress uniform, told them of a long line of mistakes, failures and lies associated with the Vietnam War.
He summed it up this way. “I have seen the American nation spend so much of its wonderful, great young men in this country. I have seen our national wealth being drained away. I see the nation being split apart and almost split asunder because of this war, and I am wondering to what end to is all going to lead to.” The interview had been filmed in South Vietnam two months earlier. Before the interview took place, Col. Hackworth, or “Hack” as he liked to be called, was finishing up his third and final tour in Vietnam and was almost certain to be promoted to brigadier general.
After the interview aired, Hack’s illustrious, decades-long military career in the army was brought to an end.
NOTE: This controversial broadcast may have been destroyed by the Network or the Army. It is not extant on the internet, You Tube or in the archives of The Library of Congress, UCLA Film & TV Archive, Paley Center for Media or Vanderbilt University.
It is written about in Col. David Hackworth's book, "About Face."
