Alleged Terror Tape Gives ABC Pause

[Dickie Flatt]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A3742-2004Oct27.html?nav=rss_politics/elections/2004

It has all the makings of an incendiary story: a chilling pre-election videotape featuring a supposed member of al Qaeda, declaring in English that "blood will run red in the streets of America."

The problem, say ABC News executives, is that they can't determine whether the tape, obtained by a producer, involves a real threat -- or even the identity of the figure on it, a man wearing an ammunition belt and a headdress that obscures his face. The network enlisted the aid of the FBI and CIA but still can't authenticate the 75-minute videotape. ...

Ross and other ABC staffers say they believe that a Bush administration official leaked the story to Internet gossip Matt Drudge as a way of pressuring the network into airing the tape, which would heighten concerns about terrorism in the final week of the president's reelection campaign. They note that whoever gave the information to Drudge had a transcript of the tape.

[Flammable Materials]

1. LIHOP 2 n/t

[JohnnyCougar]

2. Odd...Who would have the transcript of the tape?

Why would there be a transcript of an al-Queda tape. And why would someone leaking it to Drudge have access to the transcript? I sense a RW setup.

I hear the CIA thinks it's phony. If anyone from the Bush administration is involved with this, this will kill Bush for good!!!

[maddezmom]

5. smells like white meat to me................ROVE, perhaps!!

filthy pig, hope he rots in hell!!!!

[Laelth]

3. And there we have it.

Yet another Rove-special dud, masquerading as an October surprise. Good for ABC.

Notice, if you read the essay, that the source is "frustrated" with ABC and is now trying to sell the tape to another news agency. I wonder who that mysterious "source" could be?

Kan you say KKKarl? :puke:

-Laelth


Edit:Laelth--edited for clarity.

[hedda_foil]

4. Impatient "source" has offered tape to another network.

A U.S. intelligence official said it is possible the tape was produced by an al Qaeda unit called Sahab Production Committee because the video bears the committee's recognizable logo and has been edited and spliced. The official called it "classic al Qaeda propaganda" and said the man on the tape even brings up the issue of same-sex marriage in Massachusetts.

The debate may not be over. The officials say a source with access to the tape, apparently impatient with ABC, has offered it to another broadcast news organization, which has called the government for guidance.

Drudge said yesterday that a political motivation behind the leak was "possible," but put the onus on ABC. "They haven't authenticated previous al Qaeda tapes before airing them," he said. "Why are they waiting to authenticate this? It's election week."

[lovuian]

6. This is really freaky stuff!!!

Drudge is involved in this garbage!!!

[ima_sinnic]

7. oh DUH?!! helLO? authenticate? hey, it worked for CBS, why not ABC?

you really think people are that stupid, to "not bother" to authenticate, after the TANG memo setup? you think nobody caught onto your stupid slimeball tricks? you think we still haven't figured it out, about how you creamed Dan Rather?

what a bunch of TOTAL morons--

un-be-LEE-vuh-ble

[progressivebydesign]

13. "..tape even brings up the issue of same-sex marriage in Mass.."

Uh yeah.. Al Quaida is WORRYING about SAME SEX marriages in Massachusets.. Seriously??

[Judi Lynn]

24. We'll probably learn they also mention abortion, and tax breaks,

minimum wage, overtime, and relaxing regulations on bidness, the Ten Commandments monument, flag burning, and the Pledge of Allegiance with "under God" intact, and Dan Rathers.

[gavodotcom]

30. Guidance? You don't fucking show it.

Would NBC, ABC, or CBS radio have aired a Hitler statement saying that he was going to attack the United states if we didn't vote for FDR's opponent?

[Flammable Materials]

8. Proof it's a fake:

Al-Qaeda has already come out in support of George Bush's election.

[MIMIC]

9. BOMBSHELL

I HAVE to get this posted over at you-know-where (if not there already). :)

[shraby]

12. Here's the key to Drudge having the story:

"It's election week"

It was leaked to him for this reason and this reason only..to sway the election.

[riverwalker]

10. Rove, Reed &Co. getting cocky

after the CBS memos caper. Cocky and sloppy. No one is playing along anymore, CIA is tired of stepping in their piles of steaming crap .

[moggie]

19. &Co.

The depressing thing is that, if it is indeed fake, it's entirely possible that it's not an official Rove operation. There are plenty of freelancers around who'd like to subvert the election. One can easily imagine a couple of freepers putting this together. Best troll ever, from their POV.

[Carolab]

11. Wolf! Wolf! Wolf!

Too many times crying "wolves", boys???

[Berserker]

15. Oh ya I think of this

"VOICE or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the peacemakers for lack of patriotism ..." - Hermann Goering, Nazi Reichsmarschall

[Peanut Gallery]

14. from the above quote:

"The problem, say ABC News executives, is that they can't determine whether the tape, obtained by a producer, involves a real threat -- "

Of couse they can't. False or indeterminate information has been the essence of nearly every terror warning since 9/11.

[Moderator]

16. Kick

:kick:

[kayell]

17. Kick

[bushwakker]

18. they'll air it

[maddezmom]

20. yahoo link: rate it !Its current average rating is 3.40 with 392 vote

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=578&ncid=578&e=8&u=/nm/20041028/ts_nm/security_abcnews_dc

[KayLaw]

21. This is truly weird

It must be fake, right? If the source is so impatient, it must be because they want it out in order to win votes for Bush. If the tape is real and the impatience due to a desire to warn people, the WH would announce it. The only reason they wouldn't have Tom Ridge announce it is that they've been openly accused of crying wolf to win favor.

Anyone who votes for Bush is a complete ass.

[jab105]

22. So, the tape is real?

CIA, FBI AUTHENTICATE NEW QAEDA TERROR TAPE; ABCNEWS EXECUTIVES CONSIDER POLITICAL IMPLICATIONS OF AIRING

http://drudgereport.com/abct1.htm

*<8o)

[Walt Starr]

23. In Drudge's mind!

It's NOWEHERE ELSE!

[Sinnerman]

25. The Tape is a Fake...... Just Repuke Propaganda

To boost bush's pathetic campaign. The war is a joke and as soon as Kerry's in office within 30 days after he's inaugurated the troops will come home

[fishwax]

26. So how will we respond when it does come out?

I think it's safe to assume that (a) it's fake and (b) it will come out, on ABC or another network without caveats as to whether it's fake. And most of the country won't have heard this preliminary discussion. So if the tape is going to come out on, say, Sunday, how do we get ahead of it? Should we be blasting this to all the news sources, esp countdown, daily show, et al, to get airplay for the legitimate doubts before it even appears before the general public?

[SCRUBDASHRUB]

27. Our office manager, who is a Republican, brought me the story when it

appeared on "Sludge" yesterday and was all freaked out. I said, "Well the timing is certainly interesting." She was all, "I don't want another 9/11." Today, she said, "Oh no! They (I guess meaning "the govt.") authenticated the tape." OK, I haven't seen this on CNN, MSNBC, etc. (unless I'm missing something) as of yet (3:25 PM). I said, "I'm not going to let some 'alleged' tape/threat change my way of living." Of course, I'm at the office, but wanted to say, "or my vote for that matter."

So, what, vote Shrub so he can keep us safe? Give me a flipping break.

[fishwax]

28. That philosophy doesn't make sense to me either

why anybody thinks of shrub for security is beyond me. he has made us less safe with his foolish iraq war and not bothered to take simple steps which might improve security. The truth is that he has isolated us from many of our allies, squandered all the international goodwill we had after 9/11, and united much of the muslim world against us, all of which make us less secure. I can't wait for the dumbass to be ejected from office.

[SCRUBDASHRUB]

29. Re: "I can't wait for the dumbass to be ejected from office."

Amen to that. We're less secure b/c of Iraq. 9/11 happened on *'s watch. What, I do Bush's supporters forget this? They probably blame Clinton.

[peacetalksforall]

31. Interesting...ABC, a loyal right wing broadcast network, breaks both the

stored explosives and the 'blood will run' tape.