Thursday, October 18, 2007

Adding insult to injury, Dallas Fox affiliate KDFW Channel 4's Rebecca Aguilar did a hatchet piece on Dallas businessman James Walton, who I mentioned in the recent post as the Dallas business owner who killed an intruder for the second time in 3 weeks. Ms. Aguilar wedged herself in Mr. Walton's car door, preventing him from closing it in the rain as she harangued him for defending himself. This is what we've come to? Next thing you know, people like Ms. Aguilar will set up a burglar's guild and turn them into another branch of organized labor.

Not only did Mr. Walton have to endure the abject horror of facing down intruders, he was excoriated by this animated piece of offal masquerading as a reporter who asked him "are you a trigger-happy kind of person? Is that what what you wanted to do? Shoot to kill?" THIS is the state of journalism? I mean, jeez, on a national/international level, we know it totally sucks, but you'd rather expect that on a local level, they'd get it right.

Here is the link where the story WAS which no longer has active video. Below is the video that KDFW was sensible enough to pull, but foolish enough to allow to air in the first place:


HERE is where you can click and make your opinion known to KDFW. Aguilar has been suspended, but I think the newsroom editor who allowed this to see the light of day should be held accountable, too. This was poor judgment all around. I have contacted the station through the comment link in this paragraph, and I intend to call and to write via snail mail today. I think KDFW should be in no doubt that the public is furious that they would allow an innocent man to be victimized by their representative.

KDFW's phone number is 214.720.4444

KDFW's address is 400 N Griffin Street, Dallas TX 75202


Thanks to the ever-magnificent Rabbit for bringing the Dallas Observer's blog to my attention which linked this story.

26 comments:

Mauser*Girl said...

Why are you surprised?

I've watched all of our local news channels at one point or another, and half of them are more entertainment than news, the other half more opinions than news.

*rolls eyes*

When I was in school I took a class on journalism. You know what we were taught? To report the story the way it happened, without putting our personal opinions into it or using colorful language to sway the story one way or another.

Opinion and colorful writing has its place ... in journals and magazines. Not in the TV news and the newspaper where reporting is just that - REPORTING the facts. Not coloring the opinions.

I wish European-style newscasting were introduced to the US. A 30 minute block of daily news broken down into international news (first), country news (second), local news (third), and sports and weather at the end. Without commercials and "coming up after the break" in between. And without hyping the main story and showing it at the end of the news. It's not a bloody movie!

phlegmfatale said...

mauser*girl - I don't know why I'm surprised. It's absolute crap. Infotainment, yes, there's very little substance to the news these days. Don't believe the hype, I suppose. Still, I reserve the right to be outraged about it.

Anonymous said...

Eeeeew!!! Brings a whole new meaning to the term "Girly Man!"

Kevin said...

Sent a message. What a sanctimonious beeyotch. Harrassing a law-abiding citizen for execising his rights is something I'd expect to see in CA, not TX.

Bonnie said...

I totally wrote a (polite) note to them. That's complete and utter bullshit.

Anonymous said...

Idiot reporter: What's in the box?

Mr. Walton: New shotgun - hate to have to use it already.

That was great.

And Newsbusters (who you beat on this my dear phlemmy) has a link to this bitch getting the Hispanic Journalist's Award for "giving a voice to those who don't otherwise have a voice" or some such shit. Dumbass ol' me. I thought reporters were supposed to report. Not give a voice. Why didn't she try to give a voice to the burglars? Oh, wait. Mr Walton did a fine job of silencing them.

Texas Castle Doctrine. You gotta love it.

fuzzbert_1999@yahoo.com said...

Damn, what's up with the media...do they just want people to be unarmed and left to the mercy of an evil society? He did nothing wrong...those guys came to him looking for nothing but trouble. They got it!

Anonymous said...

She has the same type of mentality as the Main middle schools which are handing out prescriptions for birth control to eleven year old girls who have been "abandoned" by adults.

Dick said...

KDFW suspended that bitch for that little stunt. Now they need to fire her ass.

Attila the Mom said...

That was just awful. sheesh!

Rabbit said...

Now you know why I get raw newsfeeds and filter them for myself.

Would things have been better if Kevin McCarthy had pushed Aguilar into the pool instead of Clarice Tinsley?

Maybe. He made the mistake of not holding her underwater, though.

Indignant responses were sent last night to all parties involved. I've noticed this has grown some significant legs, too. I have to admit, I'm pleasantly surprised to see the vitriol poured out against Rrrrebecca on the local blogs.

Regards,
Rabbit.

Rabbit said...

I see now it's made Breitbart.com via Drudge.

Happy day.

Regards,
Rabbit.

FHB said...

Typical media crap. Ambush journalism. That guy is a hero. You'd have to be crazy to see things any other way. I think there is a segment of the population that just won't ever get it. They'd have to rethink all their notions of humanity. It's easier to condemn the old white folks. How dare they fight back.

Anonymous said...

Umm, sorry about my earlier (totally unrelated) comment, actually meant to leave it on the Matt Lauer blog!

My Bad!

Rabbit said...

It was inevitable...

From D mag's Frontburner...


Kevin McCarthy sent a note to Fox 4 today. I asked him if I could share it:

Dear Sir/Madam:

Twenty years ago, your station fired me for throwing Clarice Tinsley into a swimming pool.

Are you going to fire Rebecca Aguilar, her producer, and assignment editor for throwing a 70-year-old man under a bus?

Kevin McCarthy

-----
Regards,
Rabbit.

phlegmfatale said...

deepwater - I knew you meant the Matt Lauer thingie. It was funny this way, though

kevin - Nicest way I know to say it is that she's a colossal piece of shit. I'd chip in to help sponsor her transfer to either coast, actually.

squeaky wheel - I was more polite than I wanted to be, but thanks for piping in.


myron - apparently by "giving a voice" to people, they mean sticking it to the man, and Mr. Walton committed the unforgiveable sin of being a white male - how dare he try to defend himself!

mushy - damn skippy!

leazwell -yep - it's totally wrong-headed.

dick - yup, if there's any justice in the world, they will fire her, the arrogant jerk.

attila - unconscionable

rabbit - thanks again for the updates - you totally rock. Yup, Rrrrrrebecca needs her clock cleaned in the worst possible way. I'm waiting for a formal and public apology to Mr. Walton from KDFW - the people who vet their clips before they are aired failed in this one, too - it should never have seen the light of day

fhb - exactly - as if that man should sit back and enjoy it while dirtbags come and pick his life's work clean. How dare anyone look down on him and say his possessions weren't worth defending just because they were in a less esteemed zip code. For shame.

deepwater - Yup - knew what you meant!

LawDog said...

"This video is no longer available due to a copyright claim by KDFW FOX 4 TV"

The news channel got the video pulled off of YouTube

phlegmfatale said...

lawdog - That must've just happened, because I had to watch it again a short while ago to convince myself I had not imagined it all. At least they have the sense to be embarrassed about it. I'm loving that it's getting national attention. I'm willing to bet that a lot of people saved that file, too, and that this is going to pop up and haunt Aguilar the rest of her career, as it should do.

phlegmfatale said...

You know, it's great that the still frame from dead center of the video shows her blocking him from closing his car door. If a male reporter did that to a woman, it would be considered practically assault. The intimidation factor here is absolutely off-the-charts.

HollyB said...

Even though the video has been pulled I sent an outraged email anyway. I never let a lack of first-hand knowledge stop my protests against attacks against the exercise of the Human Right to defend one's self and one's property.

Lin said...

We saw so much of this blatant racist thuggery up in that most detested state we last endured that this didn't surprise me ... even in Texas. I'm sure glad that you guys put up a justified protest at least. Good on all of you, way ta go!

Rabbit said...

Look quickly; it may not be there long.

http://www.breitbart.tv/?p=6905

http://www.riehlworldview.com/carnivorous_conservative/2007/10/fox-news-doesnt.html

Zelda said...

That poor man. But if it's any consolation to him, he came off best in that little exchange, not that it was hard. That woman is a foul moron. Don't they think before they open their idiot mouths? Like when they ask the relatives of murder victims how they feel.

DBA Dude said...

What a despicable example of a "journalist"/"human being"/Nazi - words fail me but “dren” is a pretty useful description.

Put her name into YouTube and saw that the original had been pulled but this guy’s take on it is spot on and he has a brief clip of the original within.

Zdogk9 said...

It's well and good to write to her employers expressing your outrage. My thoughts would be to go to the people who pay for the program, explain that since they pay for it, the program must express their views, this being the case you as a thinking and moral human being can no longer, support them by buying their goods or services.

Unknown said...

Everytime I get accused of being a complainer or a bitcher, I have to remind them that if no one ever says anything, then nothing will ever be done. this is a perfect example. I can't believe that a reporter would approach someone like that, and even more so, in Texas.