LATimes’ Dan Rather-Like Forged Documents in Rapper Attack Story

March 27, 2008 | Filed Under Crime, Democrats/Leftists, Entertainment, Media Bias, News, Publius Contributor, Society/Culture, Warner Todd Huston |

-By Warner Todd Huston

It looks like the L.A.Times has had to apologize for a false story they published last week that implicated rapper Sean”Diddy” Combs in a 1994 assault on Tupac Shakur during a so-called rapper’s war hit. The L.A. Times had to do an internal investigation when the website The Smoking Gun published an account detailing that the documents the L.A.Times used to base their story upon were forged and that the person who forged them was a well known con man on the rap music scene who pulled one over on the LAT — big time!

Yeah, the L.A.Times has an awful lot of egg on its face with this mess. The AP reports that TSG’s proof makes the LAT look like a bunch of bumbling idiots.

The Smoking Gun said the documents seemed phony because they appeared to be written on a typewriter instead of a computer, included blacked-out sections not typically found in such documents, and other reasons. The Smoking Gun story claims the documents were created by a convicted con man and music fan with a history of exaggerating his place in the rap music world.

Originally the LAT claimed their story was based on FBI records, interviews with people who were there at the time, and some FBI informants. Curiously enough, none of the sources were named in the LAT story, the whole thing being based on the ever famous, journalist’s best source, the “unnamed sources.” Naturally Sean “Diddy” Combs denied he had any part in the attacks on Shakur and it’s no wonder he’d say that because the LAT piece was full of puff, Daddy. Yeeh. Uh.

Now, let’s admit that Publius’ Forum isn’t the Rapper’s paradise it could be. If only we’d wear our pants a little lower and get some more gold plating on our teeth we’d be sure to be right in with the best rap fans across the country. I’d have to also admit that it might be a bit tough for the bulk of us to lower our IQs low enough to be for real fans, but we all could try a little harder, couldn’t we, G?

Still, seeing as how we Publius’ Forum “ain’t all dat,” you might wonder why this story is appearing on our site? Well, dawg, that’d be a good question… so I won’t be frontin’ ya, an all.

The main point of this story is that the LAT really dropped the ball here. TSG had a very extensive report revealing how badly the Times did on this one and it forced the LAT to admit their “mistake” (read shoddy journalism there). It certainly leads one to wonder how many other stories they’ve published in the past are as badly researched and sourced as this one?

Now, while we here on Publius’ Forum lament the loss of stature that this story might cause the LAT in particular and the MSM in general, we can’t help harkening back to a little story about president Bush’s Nat’l Guard service that Dan Rather tried to foist on the American public that also turned out to be based on forged documents.

That CBS report was widely discredited by just about everyone, too. I have to say, though, that I don’t quite recall Dan Rather’s big apology on that one. So, apparently the L.A.Times is all prepared to apologize to some thug rappers for a story based on forged documents, but the president gets bupkis from a forged document story that defamed him.

I’m juss sayin’. Ya know what I’m sayin’, dawg?

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Warner Todd Huston is a Chicago based freelance writer, has been writing opinion editorials and social criticism since early 2001 and is featured on many websites such as newsbusters.org, townhall.com, New Media Journal, Men’s News Daily and the New Media Alliance among many, many others. Additionally, he has been a frequent guest on talk-radio programs to discuss his opinion editorials and current events. He has also written for several history magazines and appears in the new book “Americans on Politics, Policy and Pop Culture” which can be purchased on amazon.com. He is also the owner and operator of publiusforum.com. Feel free to contact him with any comments or questions : EMAIL Warner Todd Huston