From the very beginning of this now national story I have retained the same gut feeling. Initially the media rush to judgement reminded me of their 1996 attacks against Richard Jewell. Jewell was targeted by the media as a result of an FBI leak to the Atlanta Journal Constitution ambiguously claiming he was a “person of interest” in the Olympic Park bombing.
Jewell, a security guard, discovered the bomb and evacuated the park saving countless lives, but the media took Jewell from hero to villain in days. He fit their “profile”. NBC, CNN, CBS and the Atlanta Journal Constitution along with the New York Times and New York Post were ridiculous in their advancement of the guilty narrative. NBC anchor Tom Brokaw said on live TV:
“The speculation is that the FBI is close to making the case. They probably have enough to arrest him right now, probably enough to prosecute him, but you always want to have enough to convict him as well. There are still some holes in this case”.
Jewell had nothing to do with the bombing, nothing. Eric Rudolph was eventually arrested, charged, and pled guilty. However, by that time the damage was done. Even though Jewell had nothing to do with the bombing his life was destroyed. (more…)










