Interview with Ed Bradley (Frontline out takes)

Interview with Edward R. Bradley as an American CBS war correspondent in Indo China. How Neil Davis saved his life during his first combat experience. Leaving Phnom Penh during the Khmer Rouge take over. Neil Davis fears for his Cambodian friends - crying on the helicopter during the evacuation. American coverage of the war was the story was American because most of the fighting done by the Americans. He didn't believe that the South Vietnamese were doing most of the fighting - didn't think that the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) was an efficient fighting force. Compares Viet Cong (VC) with the ARVN - he lived with the VC for one month. The VC were committed to their cause. South Vietnamese could buy there way out. Corruption in the South Vietnamese forces led to demorialization. Part of the reason for the collapse of the ARVN during the North Vietnameses Army's (NVA) offensive. Neil Davis sixth sense for combat. Take 2 The American public switched off after the US pull out - people generally lost interest. Scenes in Saigon on the last few days before the fall of Saigon. North Vietnamese air attack using captured South Vietnamese aircraft. ARVN troops jumpy. Everyone was shooting at anything. ARVN officer shot at journalists - thought time to leave not because of the NVA but because of the ARVN. Why Neil stayed in Vietnam - he thinks because he left Cambodia. Neil was a complicated man - brave even foolhard but also kind and gentle carred about people - especially in Cambodia. He was genuinely concerned about covering the story. Every one respected Neil. CBS offered him a job. [Tape runs out] Take 3 Neil refused the job offer by CBS as he was afraid he would lose his independence. Neil wanted to work alone and choose his own stories which would be impossible if he worked for a US network. Take 4 Leaving Saigon by helicopter during the fall of the city and how helicopters were pushed off US aircraft carriers to make room for others to land.