mr. koppel, can you elaborate on that point? >> yeah. >> thank you. >> point i was going to make is that essentially the same thing is happening within the intelligence community as is happening within the television news community and that is there's the perception that technology is an adequate replacement for human intelligence. there is the perception in television news that you can use the satellite, you can use a jet plane, you can get somebody in from anywhere -- i mean, from the united states, you can reach any part of the world in 18 hours or less, right? and by virtue of the satellite, you can report instantaneously. but that doesn't substitute for having a reporter who's been on the ground for years. the same thing is true for the same reasons in that the intelligence community is also suffering budgetary cuts and people are being told, look, we can get the same kind of information with electronic intercepts, with satellite reconnaissance, with technology, in other words, when, in point of fact, having a human agent o

mr. koppel -- besiege mr. koppel?> i have an on-line news site that is usually considered to be dull and boring, and we have these not just to disseminate but to get the information out, and throughout the evening it seems we have been given this choice of charlie sheen reporting and important news presented in a way that is the goal, and we have so many tools at our disposal, why do we need to think of important news us something that cannot be cool and engaging and fun and even profitable? why does it have to be presented as something dull? >> you may be surprised to learn i do not entirely disagree with you. for many years i used to tell the staff there is no story out there we cannot do it in an engaging, interesting way. i think you have made a mistake of interpreting what we have been saying when we refer to important that important means dull. on the contrary, i think those are the things that are most important, and it is our obligation not merely to say, here are the facts, do with them as you will, and we ha

mr. koppel otherwise.on't you define for the vast factor audience your beef with me and fox news. what's your beef? >> i don't have a beef with you. i really don't. let me modify that a little bit. i think there are times when you are what's the phrase a bold. >> fresh. >> bill: piece of humidity. >> -- humanity. >> sometimes a little too bold. too fresh, sometimes a little too intolerant of letting people to complete an answer. bill does that offend you? >> does it offend me? it offends me when you are rude. it offends me when you ride over people, which you have a tendency to do. >> bill: i only do it when they filibuster or when they lie as barney frank did that one time. i don't do it when somebody is sincerely trying to answer my question. it's not like it used to be. >> 15 years ago there was a crying need for a network that focused more on conservative issues. fox has done that. msnbc has now come along and tried to provide not because it you saw the need for ideological balance but because it saw t

mr. koppel otherwise.on't you define for the vast factor audience your beef with me and fox news. what's your beef? >> i don't have a beef with you. i really don't. let me modify that a little bit. i think there are times when you are what's the phrase a bold. >> fresh. >> bill: piece of humidity. >> -- humanity. >> sometimes a little too bold. too fresh, sometimes a little too intolerant of letting people to complete an answer. bill does that offend you? >> does it offend me? it offends me when you are rude. it offends me when you ride over people, which you have a tendency to do. >> bill: i only do it when they filibuster or when they lie as barney frank did that one time. i don't do it when somebody is sincerely trying to answer my question. it's not like it used to be. >> 15 years ago there was a crying need for a network that focused more on conservative issues. fox has done that. msnbc has now come along and tried to provide not because it you saw the need for ideological balance but because it saw t

mr. koppel -- besiege mr. koppel? >> i have an on-line news site that is usually considered to be dull and boring, and we have these not just to disseminate but to get the information out, and throughout the evening it seems we have been given this choice of charlie sheen reporting and important news presented in a way that is the goal, and we have so many tools at our disposal, why do we need to think of important news us something that cannot be cool and engaging and fun and even profitable? why does it have to be presented as something dull? >> you may be surprised to learn i do not entirely disagree with you. for many years i used to tell the staff there is no story out there we cannot do it in an engaging, interesting way. i think you have made a mistake of interpreting what we have been saying when we refer to important that important means dull. on the contrary, i think those are the things that are most important, and it is our obligation not merely to say, here are the facts, do with them as you will, and we

mr. koppel -- besiege mr. koppel? site that is usually considered to be dull and boring, and we have these not just to disseminate but to get the information out, and throughout the evening it seems we have been given this choice of charlie sheen reporting and important news presented in a way that is the goal, and we have so many tools at our disposal, why do we need to think of important news us something that cannot be cool and engaging and fun and even profitable? why does it have to be presented as something dull? >> you may be surprised to learn i do not entirely disagree with you. for many years i used to tell the staff there is no story out there we cannot do it in an engaging, interesting way. i think you have made a mistake of interpreting what we have been saying when we refer to important that important means dull. on the contrary, i think those are the things that are most important, and it is our obligation not merely to say, here are the facts, do with them as you will, and we have to make the movie it

mr. koppel, i was hoping to talk more about what you define as objectivity. is a modern to political science? where does your analysis come in? .. on reporters who would go out and get me one opinion for, one opinion against and one down the middle. it is bill easiest form of journalism there is in the world. to the degree that one side or the other can be ascertained as having the facts on its side they have an obligation to report that. i don't think there's an obligation to say on the one hand they believe and apple will fall from the tree and hit the ground and there is all that says that and simply because there is an idiot out there that claims that apple's flow to. laughter could object devotee doesn't mean taking one of this side and one of that site and presenting both to the audience to select. your job as a journalist is precisely to go out, to do that reporting and then as i said early on, to analyze it, to separate the week to put into a proper context. and if the overwhelming scientific community or if the scientific community overwhelmingly say

mr. koppel. >> and beat the crap out him. [laughter] >> thanks for taking my question. i'm a graduate student in multimedia journalism at the university of maryland and also have an on-line news site cool news talking about water that is considered to be dole and the boarding and it's in a way that is sexy and engaging. it's been against your question please. >> to get the information of and throughout the evening it seems like we've been given this trace of charlie sheen reporting perhaps less soulful and significant and important significant news that affects our lives prevents it in the way that it's built and when we have so many tools at our disposal why do we need to think about important news as things that can't be cool and engaging and fun and even possible? >> you may be surprised to learn i do not entirely disagree with you. for many years of night when i used to tell the staff there is no story out there that we cannot do in an engaging and interesting way. i think you made the mistake of interpreting what marvin and body have been saying when we refer to im