Secret Service says "Kill him" allegation unfounded

[MissusDe]

SCRANTON ? The agent in charge of the Secret Service field office in Scranton said allegations that someone yelled ?kill him? when presidential hopeful Barack Obama?s name was mentioned during Tuesday?s Sarah Palin rally are unfounded.

The Scranton Times-Tribune first reported the alleged incident on its Web site Tuesday and then again in its print edition Wednesday. The first story, written by reporter David Singleton, appeared with allegations that while congressional candidate Chris Hackett was addressing the crowd and mentioned Oabama?s name a man in the audience shouted ?kill him."

News organizations including ABC, The Associated Press, The Washington Monthly and MSNBC?s Countdown with Keith Olbermann reported the claim, with most attributing the allegations to the Times-Tribune story.

Agent Bill Slavoski said he was in the audience, along with an undisclosed number of additional secret service agents and other law enforcement officers and not one heard the comment.

?I was baffled,? he said after reading the report in Wednesday?s Times-Tribune.

He said the agency conducted an investigation Wednesday, after seeing the story, and could not find one person to corroborate the allegation other than Singleton.

Slavoski said more than 20 non-security agents were interviewed Wednesday, from news media to ordinary citizens in attendance at the rally for the Republican vice presidential candidate held at the Riverfront Sports Complex. He said Singleton was the only one to say he heard someone yell ?kill him.?

?We have yet to find someone to back up the story,? Slavoski said. ?We had people all over and we have yet to find anyone who said they heard it.?

Hackett said he did not hear the remark.

Slavoski said Singleton was interviewed Wednesday and stood by his story but couldn?t give a description of the man because he didn?t see him he only heard him.

When contacted Wednesday afternoon, Singleton referred questions to Times-Tribune Metro Editor Jeff Sonderman. Sonderman said, ?We stand by the story. The facts reported are true and that?s really all there is.?

Slavoski said the agents take such threats or comments seriously and immediately opened an investigation but after due diligence ?as far as we?re concerned it?s closed unless someone comes forward.? He urged anyone with knowledge of the alleged incident to call him at 346-5781. ?We?ll run at all leads,? he said.

http://www.timesleader.com/news/breakingnews/Secret_Service_says_Kill_him_allegation_unfounded_.html

[Michael Tee]

Boy, that's really scary.   Hundreds, or was it thousands of rabid right-wing Palin fans at the rally and not a single one of them will admit to hearing one of their number shout "Kill him!" at the mere mention of Obama's name.  The Secret Service agents also heard nothing at all, although that's a LITTLE bit more believable because they're probably all listening to the little mics in their ears all the time.

But a trained, professional observer hears clearly what no one in a crowd of hundreds will admit to hearing.  Fasten your seat-belts, America, this ride could get very, very rough.

[Plane]

Why is there a controversy?


Has there been a moritorium on Radio and TV reporters covering Palin Speeches?


If it really happened it sould be redundantly recorded.


If it didn't , why is it being presented as a fact?

[BT]

If it didn't , why is it being presented as a fact?

That's the way the noise machine works.

Headline

Astroturf

Sheeple believe

A day or two of feigned outrage in forums across the nation.

Then we find out it isn't true. Like Palins SAT scores or Rathers proof positive

Rinse repeat

[Plane]

But a trained, professional observer hears clearly what no one in a crowd of hundreds will admit to hearing.  Fasten your seat-belts, America, this ride could get very, very rough.

Who?

[Michael Tee]

<<Has there been a moritorium on Radio and TV reporters covering Palin Speeches?


<<If it really happened it sould be redundantly recorded.>>

Mics today are sophisticated enough that they can be aimed at the candidate and filter out much of the background noise.  A reporter HEARD the threat.

[BT]

A reporter HEARD the threat.

This isn't the first time a reporter "heard"  something that no one else did.

Seems it was the 2004 election.

Perhaps he had ulterior motives for publishing a story that no one else seems to be able to corroborate.

Heck, maybe he has a bookdeal in the works.

What really intriques me is that there has been no categorical denial from the Obama camp that this person was not a dirty trickster plant. Their stonewalling speaks volumes.



 

[Michael Tee]

<<Perhaps he had ulterior motives for publishing a story that no one else seems to be able to corroborate.>>

What ulterior motive?  The guy in all likelihood works on a salary.  He wasn't free-lancing the story.

<<Heck, maybe he has a bookdeal in the works. >>

For what?  The thinnest book ever sold?

[BT]

What ulterior motive?  The guy in all likelihood works on a salary.  He wasn't free-lancing the story.

How do you know that?

Can you provide a list of his stories for that paper under his byline?

[Michael Tee]

<<How do you know that?>>

Same way I know that a house painter gets paid by the hour.  Buttressed by the fact that there's a journalist in the family.

<<Can you provide a list of his stories for that paper under his byline?>>

I was under the impression that he was a radio reporter, but be that as it may, no, I cannot.

[BT]

Same way I know that a house painter gets paid by the hour.  Buttressed by the fact that there's a journalist in the family.

Newspapers don't have contract workers or stringers as they are known in the trade?

[Michael Tee]

That's right, they do.  A big-city daily might pay $250 for a short article like a report on a rally.  Local papers (and this guy was reporting for either a local radio station or a local paper IIRC) pay a lot less.  And there's zero job security for a stringer.  Burn'em once and yer out.  Also, local papers wouldn't normally use stringers for a local event.  They might publish something e-mailed in from Jakarta from a home-town boy or girl.

[BT]

They would pay a stringer more if his story was picked up by AP and astroturfed through the blogosphere. Wonder how many hits and referrals the Scranton Reporter got this week because of that story.

Lot of eyeballs for the ads.

[hnumpah]

What really intriques me is that there has been no categorical denial from the Obama camp that this person was not a dirty trickster plant. Their stonewalling speaks volumes.

Stonewalling? You really are reaching. And why should they issue a denial?

[Xavier_Onassis]

Someone said that they heard someone saying that they were told that you kicked a puppy.


Why are YOU stonewalling?