LA Times Leaves Out That Waterboarding Helped Thwart Terror Attack... on Los Angeles

Photo of Ken Shepherd.
By Ken Shepherd (Bio | Archive)
April 27, 2009 - 17:24 ET

Say you're the editor of a major U.S. city's newspaper and that sources in the national security community have informed your reporters that waterboarding was a crucial tactic in making a terrorist detainee spill his guts with information that, when followed up by authorities, thwarted a planned terrorist attack on same major U.S. city.

You would probably run the story on the front page with a banner headline to that effect, but at the very least you'd make sure that fact was reported in your paper's coverage.

That is, of course, unless you're the ideologically leftward, politically correct editors at the Los Angeles Times. Patterico has details in an April 27 post at his blog:

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The L.A. Times had a front page article yesterday titled CIA reportedly declined to closely evaluate harsh interrogations:

The CIA used an arsenal of severe interrogation techniques on imprisoned Al Qaeda suspects for nearly seven years without seeking a rigorous assessment of whether the methods were effective or necessary, according to current and former U.S. officials familiar with the matter.

Not mentioned, anywhere in the article, is the fact that recently declassified memos confirm that waterboarding KSM was key to disrupting a plot to fly airplanes into the tallest skyscraper in Los Angeles.

You might think that would be something that the biggest Los Angeles newspaper would care about.

You’d be wrong. The closest the paper comes to telling readers this fact is to say that in a speech,

Bush said that “alternative” interrogation methods had been crucial to getting Al Qaeda operatives, including Abu Zubaydah and self-professed Sept. 11 mastermind Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, to talk.

Not good enough. What does it mean to say that we got KSM to “talk”? It means that we got him to “disclose details of massive plots against the United States.” According to the intelligence community, waterboarding KSM saved thousands of lives.

How do you make it though an entire article on the effectiveness of harsh interrogation and not even mention that little tidbit?

Ask the geniuses at the Los Angeles Times.

And they wonder why the print newspaper industry is dying.

—Ken Shepherd is Managing Editor of NewsBusters


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Publishing Redacted Material?

April 27, 2009 - 17:49 ET by metaphorsbwithu

Why would you report news that would actually sell newspapers?

metaphorsbwithu

Don't think liberals are self-loathers with a mental disorder?

April 27, 2009 - 18:01 ET by R D Helm

These deranged, enemy-coddling America-haters don't even care if they themselves get blown up in a terrorist attack.

-Dave

This coup has gone on long enough. The time to put it down is NOW.

Better to lose ten thousand Angelenos

April 27, 2009 - 21:58 ET by allanf

.. than subject the man how gleefully beheaded Daniel Perl and planned 9-11 to discomfort.

Where do they come up with these things.

LA Attack

April 27, 2009 - 18:01 ET by JDW

This was also left out of the information Obama released. 

JDW

DAILY WAVE

When people fear their government there is tyranny. When government fears the people there is liberty.

If the Republicans only had cajones

April 27, 2009 - 19:34 ET by pbthinker

If I were the Republicans, I'd get hold of a video of Nick Berg getting his head cut off.  I remember seeing that video and I couldn't watch the whole thing, but I could listen to it and it does show the cruel, heartless people we're fighting. Anyway, I would tell the speaker that they have a video for everyone to see and play it before everyone in the House of Representatives.  Then I would release it to the news media and ask them to play it, but block out the images. 

Now some people might call that cruel, well it is cruel, but I'll bet over half this country never saw this video and it would have a tremendous impact on the general population and put the slime trying to tear down President Bush and Republicans in general,  in a different light.  

In the beginning, what did we know about Islamic radicals, they were willing to fly planes into the World Trade Center, they were willing to cut off the heads of people, such as Daniel Perl.  I, for one assumed that when they beheaded someone, they had a really sharp sword and in one fell swoop it was over. Then came Nick Berg, in what was the most cruel thing I've ever heard. 

Does everyone remember when Nick Berg had his head cut off?  It was right after the last release of the pictures happened.  I hope these morons are ready to accept another such case.  Who will they blame then? 

I probably get so upset about this because of the Nick Berg video, which is why it should be a must see for those questioning our humane tactics of interrogation.  

Election 2008-God's way of showing us that elections count.  

PB, but terrorists didn't waterboard Nick Berg or Danny Pearl

April 27, 2009 - 21:28 ET by jefflebowski

The left is glad that Nick and Danny weren't tortured before they were decapitated.  Does anyone else believe that everything is upside down these days??

Angry White Dude

www.angrywhitedude.c...

Is anyone really

April 27, 2009 - 21:06 ET by Clear thinker

Is anyone really surprised?

Follow-Up To “Mad Yet?”

 

 Making Fun of AGW http://giovanniworld.wordpress.com/  

The left is moving the goalposts again. Recognise it. Stop it.

April 28, 2009 - 00:12 ET by JWF

  First it was the waterboarding is torture & The U.S is in the torture business.

  Now the OLC memos are out and what's this?

Waterboarding is restricted breathing for 20 to 40 seconds. And it has to be saline water in case the guy swallows a little bit. And hold his hand while you do it.

You can push a guy into fake wall but make damn sure he has a neck brace first. And hold his hand while you do it.

You can grab a guy by the collar and get all up in his face so he can smell the tuna you had for lunch. And hold his hand wil you do it.

You can hold a guys face while you tell him your mama jokes. But make sure your fingertips are clean and don't get too close to his eyes. And hold his hand while you do it.

You can slap a guy and explain how funny the Three Stooges were. But it must be open palm, splayed fingers, hitting no lower than the chin and no higher than the earlobe and must be accompanied by Nyuck Nyucks. And hold his hand while you do it.

You can put a guy in a box. But it must be a washing machine box and no stingy insects must be present. Only warm fuzzy ones. And hold his hand while you do it.

You can make a guy stand with his hands resting on a wall. Also jumping jacks but only 5. NO DEEP KNEE BENDS. And hold his hand while you do it.

 

 Whoa. Dude. That ain't torture and the American People are catching on to the fact that it ain't torture.

  So the Left has to move the goalposts now. Well, the interrogation techniques did not work. The info gained was not reliable. We would have got the info out of them anyway even if we did not resort to fuzzy insects and water slides. The info we did gain was of silly plots that had little chance of working. See. Move the goalposts.

***Update**** Told ya. Robert Gibbs was just on TV saying "in some instances you got information, in some instances you got information that turned out to be a lie" 

Sincerely,

a Veteran of a 1000 psychic wars.

The Los Angeles Cringe

April 27, 2009 - 22:14 ET by GeronL

I hope someone is keeping track of all this and are ready to present it at Congressional hearings on subsidizing the press