Via BuzzMachine, the story of a media sting that went very bad (or actually, very good). Two Middle Eastern men tried to charter a helicopter in St. Louis. They acted suspiciously, the FBO operator called the cops, the FBI showed up and cuffed the men – and then
…the FBI verified that the two men were employed by NBC New York and were on assignment to get a story of how easy it is to charter a helicopter for a terrorist attack.
Actually, it appears that it isn’t.
I strongly believe that we – the alert citizens – are the first line of defense (as opposed to offense, which let’s leave to the military, OK?) against terrorist attacks. Points to the alert charter staff, and points to the police and FBI who responded quickly.
Others are less sanguine about our ability to stop attacks. But an alert, informed, and un-panicked citizenry – with responsive police on the other end of the phone – seems to me like the most effective tool we could have. And this story shows how it ought to work.
Be interesting to see if NBC makes a story out of it…
Yes, interesting to see if they run it as a story about anti-Arab bigotry.
“Two harmless NBC employees were denied a charter helecopter, merely because of their skin color…”
_*Call Me Skeptical*_
What research I’ve done on this shows up as a big zilch with the exception of the E-Mail in question. I would think the Drudge Report, NewsMax and many other media outlets would have let this one out of the bag already.
If in fact this was an act committed by the press then:
bq. a) Why did the press use two Arabs? Is the press agreeing with the majority consent that Middle Eastern males are in fact the usual suspects? I mean this is a scenario that plays well into the presses hands regardless of how you look at it. On one hand it’s discrimination and a thwarted attempt. On the other it’s a failure on the attempt and provides more fodder for those to scream we can’t be discriminating.
bq. b) Why didn’t the press play up the fact our security measures are working? The administration is not responsible for thwarting the attack The general public working within administration boundaries is responsible for thwarting the attack. Again another win win situation for the press. On one hand Americans should not be responsible for taking security measures into their own hands or the other (failure) it’s the administrations fault for not thwarting it.
bq. c) Why should the press get a free pass in trying to discredit the current security measures? Supposedly these individuals were caught questioned and released. Does the press deserve special compensation for actions that could be fatal to the public. Suppose these men really intended to carry out a plot to attack the public. Even if it was the presses idea I’m assuming the press really vetted out all other Arabs that would potentially follow through and not stop short of creating another disaster.
bq. d) I would hope the full arm of the law would come down on the two who were caught. Charges of threatened assault would be the least of their worries. This alone would have created enough news to blow the socks off of everyone. Not only would the press be in a pickle for sanctioning the plot we now have an issue concerning freedom of press. Does our press report the news or does our press create the news. Worst case all the way around
I’m waiting on more info before I pass judgement.
Why did the press use two Arabs?
They didn’t–but they could’ve played them on TV:
Think about it from this angle. NBC started with a thesis, a basis for a story: that it is easy to charter a helicopter for a terrorist attack. To test this thesis properly, they set up every possible warning sign that (collectively) were likely to arouse suspicion, and that included the “suspects” being Arab. This, along with everything else the men deliberately did to arouse suspicion, tells me they wanted to give everyone a good-faith chance to catch wise.
Well, they caught wise. Good on them.
Why didn’t the press play up the fact our security measures are working?
They are:
Why should the press get a free pass in trying to discredit the current security measures?
They’re not. The press has a long history of “undercover” assignments to get the inside story on something difficult or impossible to cover without firsthand knowledge. Typically, journalists take their legal lumps–trespassing, or worse–and accept it as part of the job, although the degree to which they’re prosecuted or punished is usually mitigated by the fact that they’re journalists doing their job.
Suppose these men really intended to carry out a plot to attack the public.
Oh, please. Are you seriously arguing that genuine terrorists intent on carrying out a hijacking would go out of their way to call attention to themselves with every imaginable suspicious red flag, including risking the plot being found out or leaked beforehand by working with the /press/? And that NBC would pick some random Middle Eastern men off the street and say, “here’s some cash, go pretend to hijack a helicopter so we can have a story!”
Even if it was the presses idea I’m assuming the press really vetted out all other Arabs that would potentially follow through and not stop short of creating another disaster.
Your biases are showing–as is the fact that you haven’t done any serious reading on the story. NBC spokesman Allison Gullust said that NBC wanted to see how employees at helicopter charter companies would react to “suspicious behavior”. The two men were NBC employees, one of them a producer.
I would hope the full arm of the law would come down on the two who were caught. Charges of threatened assault would be the least of their worries.
You sure do seem to have a lot of bitterness and anger towards the media. I might point out that they made no threats, carried nothing illegal, and were not trespassing. I’m sure a vindictive prosecutor trying to make an example of them could drum up the same kind of charges you’d bring against someone who tried to “test” security by sneaking a knife through airport security (which, I might add, /is/ illegal, something which cannot be said about Edwards and Zito’s actions). But first, you might want to back down from your righteous anger–which has thus far been based on a number of highly erroneous assumptions and what sounds like a questionable degree of pre-existing bias against the press–and ask yourself if this is an example that you really /want/ to be making.
I’m waiting on more info before I pass judgement.
Pardon me, but the hell you are. Your comment is dripping with prejudgement; it sounds to me like you’ve already tried and convicted Zito and Edwards. From beginning to end, it’s a litany of erroneous assumptions and snide, half-baked theories about the incompetence of the media and its assumed intention to trap the unwary employees and administration in a lose/lose scenario.
If that’s your starting point, please be straightforward enough to say so. But please don’t try to cloak your attack behind a transparent pretense of impartiality.
Great post. The media keeps fishing for any negative story they can find. It’s great to hear the system is working.
USMC, it’s a real story. I called the AAAE last night and got a call back from their press office this morning. Then I got on the phone to the proprietor of the charter service where it happened. Since then, I’ve been on and off the phone with the FAA, TSA, and FBI trying to learn as much as I can about this.
I’ve posted some notes as I’ve gone along.
*Catsy*
With the information I had I started out with call me skeptical and followed that with a here’s why.
No I’m not being prejudgmental my comments are based on an E-Mail asking questions about such an E-Mail since I couldn’t find any definitive source concerning it’s validity.
Now lets start with your news article:
_“Thomas called police, who searched the bags and the men and found a butane lighter, box cutter, two knives, duct tape, a powdery substance and a bottle filled with a clear liquid. The men also had maps of New York, Chicago, San Francisco and St. Louis with major landmarks highlighted in yellow. “_
Compared to E-Mail
_”The men had stayed in a local hotel and purchased box cutters, leather-man knives, and other potential weapons at the local Wal-Mart using a credit card. The box cutters had been hidden in the lining at the bottom of the back packs and the other weapons were hidden throughout their baggage.”_
Yes I know the items in the bags are not illegal and anyone can purchase and carry these items where ever they choose. Don’t have an issue with that. These items however are not permissible as carry on items during air travel. I know what a box cutter is but two knives is general enough to mean anything from a pocket knife to something less in size than a machete. A leather-man “knife”:http://www.knifecenter.com/knifecenter/leatherman/index.html on the other hand is something quite different.
On one hand we are talking about a butane lighter, box cutter, two knives, powdery substance, clear liquid and duct tape on the other hand we talking about a box cutters, leather-man knives and other potential weapons.
Then there is this
_“The two men, John Zito, an Italian from New York, and Tyrone Edwards, who police described as an Asian-Indian from Atlanta, were part of a story that NBC planned to air Thursday night about security at small airports that charter helicopters. But after the plan fell through in Sauget, the incident at the airport was reduced to a brief mention at the end of the newscast.”_
compared to the E-Mail
_”Earlier today two Middle Eastern men attempted to penetrate our security.“_
_”They had audiotaped the telephone conversation with Arlene and were going to use it as part of a national news story about how easy it is to get information and directions to the location of the helicopter and then hijack it to commit a terrorist attack.”_
One says they are ME the other says they are Italian and Asian Indian. Then the report says basically no news here so we drop down to a mere mention instead of an expose.
Then there is this
_”We found out they worked for NBC News and were part of a group (of the network’s journalists) throughout the country doing a story to see how easy it would be to infiltrate helicopter hangars.”_
compared to the E-Mail
_”After a little time behind bars, the FBI verified that the two men were employed by NBC New York and were on assignment to get a story of how easy it is to charter a helicopter for a terrorist attack.”_
_”Four hours later, the NBC employees were released without charges but with the wrath of airport director Bob McDaniel.”_
Again my point here about the press or journalists being detectives and planning sting operations goes beyond journalism. Anything to create a story and hide behind the auspices of free press is bias? No story here so one line mention. Let’s keep in mind as far as I know at this point this journalistic operation was not sanctioned by federal / state or municipal authorities on any level. Had I attempted such a thing and said I was doing it for a school paper or personal enlightenment because I intended to fly a week from now not only would I be thrown in jail I’d need a lawyer to save me from further charges that would definitely arise. I stand by my statement in that the press gets a free ride.
Mr. McDaniel has a valid point
_”I’m absolutely outraged that NBC News is out here trying to create news rather than report news,” McDaniel said after meeting with members of the Transportation Security Administration. “This clearly scared the hell out of a lot of folks and wasted a lot of valuable resources, tying up emergency forces, and all of it was entirely unnecessary.”_
Now here’s the kicker and now I’m really passing judgment on the media specifically NBC.
On this I disagree and they should be prosecuted to fullest extent of the law.
_“NBC defended its actions in an e-mail statement to the Post-Dispatch, saying that the employees did nothing wrong in determining the security measures at helicopter charter services.”_
_”Nothing they did or carried was illegal,” said NBC spokesman Allison Gollust. “In Illinois, the system worked and … our reporting will include this part of the story, evidence that civilians like those in Illinois are making attempts to keep the skies safe.”_
What they did was illegal and they knew it. They knew they were not to carry on such items especially in the case of air travel. The fact the items are not illegal has nothing to do with it. They could have been declared and stored properly.
Now for the big question is NBC going to air the story or not.
These items however are not permissible as carry on items during air travel.
They are prohibited on commercial aviation only. They are not prohibited on general aviation flights, such as charter flights.
(The horse’s mouth: Amy Von Walter at the TSA press office. I talked to her a few hours ago.)
Let’s keep in mind as far as I know at this point this journalistic operation was not sanctioned by federal / state or municipal authorities on any level.
Yes, that’s correct.
(Horse’s mouth: a source at the FBI.)
Had I attempted such a thing and said I was doing it for a school paper or personal enlightenment because I intended to fly a week from now not only would I be thrown in jail I’d need a lawyer to save me from further charges that would definitely arise.
No, that’s not correct, because nothing these men did was illegal. I thought it was, too, until I made some phone calls and learned about TSA policy toward general aviation. Check my site for much, much more detail.
(Horse’s mouth: Amy Von Walter, TSA.)
On this I disagree and they should be prosecuted to fullest extent of the law.
They were. 😉 The two men were questioned by local authorities and by the FBI, but they didn’t do anything illegal. They were never even taken into custody. That’s the fullest extent of the law in this case.
Now, does this mean what they did was right? Absolutely not. But it wasn’t illegal.
What they did was illegal and they knew it. They knew they were not to carry on such items especially in the case of air travel.
Not so. The rules for commercial aviation and general aviation are different. (TSA again.)
Now for the big question is NBC going to air the story or not.
They did, last night. You missed it. 😉
I, for one, think it is great that the press is doing this sort of thing. For that matter, our government should be doing this sort of thing. The only way to test security measures is to … test security measures. That means “red-teaming,” where people do what terrorists would do to penetrate security, thus giving us an idea of how good our security actually is.
This is a classic role for the press’s “watchdog” role — telling us how well the government is doing its job. If only the press would do this more often, and do less stupid political scorecarding.
*Jeff*
Thanks for the update and I stand corrected in lieu of your evidence. I personally did not make the calls but I’ll take you at your word that you did coupled with my knowledge based on charter flight. I know Kerry doesn’t get the same kind of scrutiny from TSA that general aviation does. But then Kerry stands more to lose than the general public which is why he has his own security. However; this does not make the basic delineation of being a public service versus a private service.
I do agree with you on this fact:
_”Now, does this mean what they did was right? Absolutely not. But it wasn’t illegal.”_
My question to NBC then is who / whom were they going to point a finger at in the event of failure? The public or the administration? Since this did not occur I guess we will never know. _*Catsy,*_ I can certainly make an assumption on that one and you can draw your own conclusions as well.
To muddy the waters I can also ask the question why TSA wasn’t involved at this level concerning airport security. IE personal baggage, check in, etc. for charter and private air travel in *ALL* airport facilities.
_”Thomas and her husband, Clarke, run Fostaire Helicopters from St. Louis Downtown Airport in Cahokia.”_
bq. *OR*
_”The following is a description of an incident that occurred today at the St. Louis Downtown Airport, a *large* GA facility.”_ (Emphasis mine)
The “airport”:http://www.stlouisdowntownairport.com/ in question versus the major “airport”:http://www.lambert-stlouis.com/ in St Louis.
So now we are down to the issues of *_ALL_* airports in the US regardless of size. Yes I realize that the personal touch is required of all US citizens. So now my question is how safe do you feel with your fellow citizens in charge? In my opinion this is the question that should be evoked by NBC. Call me jaded, call me biased, call me contemptible of the news media if you like. Personally I fail to believe NBC or any major news media would see it in that light.
No kidding! How else do you suppose bush pilots get their backpacking/rafting/fishing/hunting customers into the backcountry with their white gas/propane stoves/big knives/rifles and ammo?
But an alert, informed, and un-panicked citizenry
Lucky for these guys that the airport staff and security were unpanicked. It’s easy to imagine one of these guys taking a knife out of his bag and ending up face down on the tarmac, injured or dead. Their boss is a jerk.
That’s nothing.
http://www.kirotv.com/news/3252275/detail.html
Everyone has their own little turf war when someone points out a flaw. Homeland Security said ‘great, thanks’. Port of Seattle said ‘Congrats, we added your names to the terrorist watch list, have a nice day.’
“The media keeps fishing for any negative story they can find.”
Of course they are. That’s their job, and more power to them that can alert us to that which we need be alerted to.
“Again my point here about the press or journalists being detectives and planning sting operations goes beyond journalism.”
Of course it doesn’t. That’s classic investigative journalism, and it’s precisely what journalists should be doing, rather than acting as stenographers for “he said, she said” “stories.”
Are you familiar with Ida Tarbell? Nellie Bly, Jacob Riis? Upton Sinclair? The historic service of “muckrakers“?