Truth in America

The New York Times columnist Frank Rich's new book, The Greatest Story Ever Sold: The Decline and Fall of Truth, takes a controversial look at the Bush administration, challenging the reasons America went to war with Iraq.

Among the topics covered in the book, Rich asks why the White House suggested al-Qaeda and Saddam Hussein were connected and takes the news media to task for not asking the hard questions after September 11.

"I love America. ... My feeling is that America can only function if there's truth and facts at its core," Frank says. "The whole point of a democracy is to make decisions based on real evidence. And if that well is polluted, we're in trouble."

Frank argues that our 24/7 "infotainment" culture has made America stop thinking critically and become a society that rarely questions what it is told. "I think...there's been a rise in "truthiness," as Stephen Colbert says, and a decline in truth and it's not just about war and politics," Frank says.