by Lee Stratton

Created on: May 04, 2010   Last Updated: May 05, 2010

A recent example of how the media causes crime occurred recently, when a failed car bomb was discovered in New York's Time Square.  The actual events that the news had to report on were few.  The facts are as follows, following the incident:

A green pathfinder pulls up in front of the Viacom building.  A surveillance camera shows a man get out, leaving the car running and walk off. A witness noticed smoke coming out of the vehicle and waved down a cop on horseback patrolling Time Square.  Authorities discovered a dud car bomb fizzling out.  Those are the actual events the news had to report on. 

Here is what the media speculated on;  the man parked in front of Viacom because that is where South Park studios are located.  Recently South Park had to black out a scene in one of their cartoons that for some reason inflamed an Islamic website. 

This was reported before the person of interest had been apprehended or questioned or even identified as being Islam.  Are those in the media trying to create racial and religious strife, labeling and assuming to create more division between Islamic citizens?

Because the news was so uneventful really that they had to report, and because they couldn't report for sure that the perpetrator was Muslim, the news offered a second bought of factual information:

CNN:  "Its well known that when putting together uh that kind of a bomb, that you have to mix it with fuel oil."

"There apparently wasn't any kind of explosive detonator cap".

FOX:   "He did not buy the ammonium nitrate, which could have caused a HUMONGOUS explosion."

MSNBC: "The valves on the propane tanks were not opened, so the gas was not seeping out of the propane tank."

This was brought to late night t.v. viewers attention by Jon Stewart who calls The Daily Show, fake news.  In his comedic report of showing how the media just taught the still at large bomber how to get it right, not to mention any would-be bombers who lacked such ingredients for their bomb recipe, Stewart adds:

"We don't know whats in this health care bill, but if you're looking for maximum kill radius, you want to not use propane but use a densely packed shrapnel bomb.  Remember don't splurge for ball bearings when simple wood screws do equivalent damage".

Jon Stewart presents it so that its funny, but is it really?  What is the real intent by reporting such information?  My response to the blond reporting on CNN was, "Well known?"  Who knows that?  I know she doesn't know that and never did, that was written into her script by writers who want to make sure that they all have enough work in the future to fill the 24 hours of airtime that they really shouldn't have.   It's blatant irresponsibility to fill a boring news story with such information.  

The news creates copycats especially in youth crime, they report on drugs in a way that's glamorous by making them seem so naughty and off limits.  They create racial strife and tension which causes crime.  They reported the Los Angeles riots days before they happened which is probably what set them off. 

People after the Rodney King verdict were angry, and not knowing what to do with that anger, did exactly what the media had told them to do, by suggesting that is what they would do before the verdicts were even read.

The media does create crime, and who can blame them really?  Without it they'd be out of work.

REFERENCE:

The Daily Show clip "Explosive and the City" http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/mon-may-3-2010/exp losive-and-the-city

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