Terrorists Aided by New Media

Listening to CNN today as they ranted and conjectured about the failed incendiary bomb attempt, I realized that they are complicit in the plot. The 24 hour news cycle delights in these kinds of events. This one, in particular must have been disappointing to them, but they are making the best of it.

Disappointing in these respects. First it was a failure. They guy tried to light something chemically and it fizzled or just burned and ended up setting his leg on fire. Secondly, there was little panic in the air or on the ground. Passengers and the crew, from all reports and the crew acted quickly to put the fire out and restrain the guy. The passengers in the rear of the plane didn't really know what happened and from first interviews were not very upset. A few thought it was firecrackers and in fact some news reports called it fireworks.

CNN was not content with this and kept on pushing in heir interviews asking eyewitnesses over and over if they were terrified. They weren't. They asked if the plane was in a state of panic, it wasn't, but that didn't stop them from trying to put words in the passengers mouths.

Finally they found one susceptible woman who used the word terrified and that is the quote that is used over and over in the press today.

The news media aids and abets terrorists when they try to milk these events for ratings and sensationalism and it's time someone said so. Terrorists mission is to what? Terrorize! Without CNN and Fox and others marching a parade of alleged experts past their cameras giving conjecture about what if and maybe...well they create the very fear the terrorists want.

This was a failed attempt and a pretty bad one at that. There will be more of these and undoubtedly some may be successful, but if the news media continues to blow everything even remotely resembling terrorism into a major story we will continue to be a country paralyzed by fear.

The truth is terrorists will continue to attack us. The genie is out of the bottle and they know how easy it is for a determined individual or small group to wreak havoc, and with the help of the voracious appetite of the new media they will undoubtedly succeed beyond anything they could have expected.