Wednesday, August 31, 2005

Get John Loftus Off the Air

John Loftus is a name that will hopefully go down in infamy as an example of irresponsible and reckless reporting.

On August 7, 2005, on Fox News' "Inside Scoop with John Loftus" he gave out the home address of an Orange County CA home, claiming it was the residence of a known terrorist.

Predictably, the home has been the target of vandalism, threats and entire web sites sprang up dedicated to photographs of and maps to the home.

Aside from the lynch mob mentality involved in such an operation, there's the simple fact that the residents of the home have no known ties to terrorism.

As a matter of fact, the "suspected" terrorist moved out of the home three years before the broadcast.

As of this writing, FOX news has offered a one line apology in one on line publication, Loftus has posted an apology to his web site, and he's sent an e-mail apologizing for his actions to the family.

FOX news has not published or aired a retraction or apology that even comes to the kind of exposure the original threat received.

Because of his reckless and dangerous behavior, I'm encouraging others to get the word out, and convince the media to stop giving this dangerous and highly unstable man a forum.

Track down any references to John Loftus, contact the publications using him as a source or reporter, and tell them what you think.

An example e-mail would be:

I recently came across an article in which your site used John Loftus as a source. I thought you might like to know that Mr. Loftus' credibility and ethical standing has come under scrutiny.

Specifically, he gave the home address of a Southern California couple, claiming that it was the residence of a terrorist.

The couple, who have no known ties to terrorism, have been harassed and their home vandalized. The local police have stationed a squad car outside their home to protect them 24 /7.

John Loftus has demonstrated a singular disregard for accuracy and public safety. His actions seemed geared towards inciting mob violence and the public lynching of innocent people.

I would avoid him in the future, as his lack of ethical standards and inability to distinguish truth from fiction will mar any article in which he is used as a source. His name will bring your own accuracy and credibility into question.


John's National Radio Broadcast Schedule, according to his web site

Call Sign Frequency City State Time
WABC-AM 770 New York NY M-F (10p-1a)
KIXW-AM 960 Apple Valley (Los Angeles) CA M-F 7P-10P
KSFO-AM 560 San Francisco CA M-F 3a-5a
WGAW-AM 1340 Gardner (Boston) MA M-F (10p-1a)
WRKO-AM 680 Boston MA M-F (10p-1a)
WMAL-AM 630 Washington DC M-F (9p-1a)
WWBA-AM 1040 Tampa FL M-F Mid-3a as of 5/2/2004
WLVU-AM 1470 Tampa FL M-F Mid-3a as of 5/4/2004 (Simulcast of WWBA in overnights)
WXCE-AM 1260 Amery (Minneapolis) WI M-F 9p-midnight
KXL-AM 950 Portland OR M-F (10p-1a)
WKMI-AM 1360 Kalamazoo (Grand Rapids) MI M-F 10p-Midnight Clearing all 3 hour spots
WPEP-AM 1570 Tauton (Providence) MA M-F 10p-1a
WWSC-AM 1450 Glens Falls (Albany) NY M-F 10p-1a
KYOS-AM 1480 Merced (Fresno) CA M-F 7P-10P
WHON-AM 930 Centerville (Dayton) IN M-F (10p-1a)
WPFB-AM 910 Dayton OH M-F (10p-1a) sat 9p-1a
KNSS-AM 1240 Wichita KS M-F (10p-1a)
WINK-AM 1200 Ft. Myers FL M-F (10p-1a)
KXLY-AM 920 Spokane WA M-F (10p-1a)
WBCF-AM 1240 Florence (Huntsville) AL M-F (10p-11p)
WBAC-AM 1340 Chattanooga TN M-F (10p-1a)
WTRC-AM 1340 Elkhart (South Bend) IN M-F 1a-4a
KXIC-AM 800 Iowa City (Cedar Rapids) IA M-F 9p-midnight
WVMC-AM 1360 Mount Carmel (Evansville) IN M-F (10p-1a)
KION-AM 1460 Salinas (Monterrey) CA M-F (8p-10p)
KSLI-AM 1280 Abilene TX M-F (9p-12a)

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