The Culture of Fear_ Why Americans Are Afraid of the Wrong Things - Barry Glassner [166]
26 Graham Boynton, “Plastique Bombs vs. Slack Security,” New York Observer, 29 July 1996, pp. 1, 7; Pam Belluck and John Sullivan, “Despite Warnings, Most Air Cargo Is Unscreened,” New York Times, 26 July 1996, pp. A1, 12. Other quotes from Sam Husseini, ”Media Bomb on TWA Crash,” Extra, January 1997, pp. 20-22; ’Jumping the Gun,” Extra, September 1996, p. 5 (contains Haberman quote). For a correcting piece see Matthew Purdy, “Why One Flight 800 Theory Fit All,” New York Times, 24 November 1996, pp. E1, 4. On reporters jumping prematurely to incorrect conclusions about the causes of crashes, see William Boot, “The Accidental Journalist,” Columbia Journalist Review (January 1990): 17—21.
27 Robert Davey, “A Missile Destroyed TWA Flight 800,” Village Voice, 21 July 1998, pp. 34-38. See also Robert Davey, “Flight 800: The Missing Evidence,” Village Voice, 21 April 1998, pp. 35-39.
28 Mark Hosenball, “New Static on TWA 800,” Newsweek, 23 December 1996, p. 26.
29 See, e.g., Julie Schmit, “Some Drive, But Most Will Keep Flying,” USA Today, 17 November 1994, pp. A1, 2; “Flyers May Rethink”; Andrea Stone, “Crashes Giving Many Fliers the Jitters,” USA Today, 15 December 1994, p. A3; Susan Carry and Jonathan Dahl, “Flying Scared,” WallStreetJournal, 22 July 1996, pp. B1, 8.
30 Farley, “Under a Cloud.”
31 On the power of personalization see Hans-Bernd Brosius and Anke Bathelt, “The Utility of Exemplars in Persuasive Communications,” Communication Research 21 (1994): 48-78; Conrad Smith, Media and Apocalyse(Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1992); Joel Best, Images ofIssues(Hawthorne, NY: Aldine de Gruyter, 1995), esp. chs. 1, 2, 6, and 7. Examples of coverage of the McNitts: Doug Payne, “A Loving Family,” Atlanta Constitution, 13 May 1996, p. A9; Gary Fields, “They Never Made It for Mother’s Day,” USA Today, 13 May 1996, p. A4; “Educator Students Admired Died in Crash,” New York Times, 14 May 1996, p. C20.
32 B. Drummond Ayers, “At the helm, a Pilot Who Lived to Fly,” New York Times, 14 May 1996, p. C20; “Pilot and Husband Discussed Possibility of Dying in Air Crash,” USA Today, 14 May 1996, p. A3.
33 Hedges, “What’s Wrong”; Gareth Cook, “Uncle Sam’s Not-So-Friendly Skies,” Washington Monthly, January 1996, pp. 9-16. See also “Warning: Pilot Error,” a three-part series in USA Today, September 26-28, 1995.
34 See statements to the press by FAA administrator David Hinson on June 17 and 18, 1996; Matthew Wald, “Aviations Agency Plans to Shift Its Mission, Focusing on Safety,” New York Times, 19 June 1996, pp. A1 and C22.
35 “Serious”: see, e.g., Ralph Vartabedian, “34 Violations Found in Probe Before Shutdown,” Los Angeles Times, 20 June 1996, p. D1; Michael Fumento, “Flight from Reality,” 7 October 1996, pp. 20-22. Aviation experts’ views: John Ritter, “Valujet’s Infractions Are Examined,” USA Today, 20 June 1996, p. A3. On the accidents see also comments of Lewis Jordan and Valujet pilots on ABC’s “Nightline,” 21 June 1996.
36 ABC, “Nightline,” 16 May 1996.
37 Asra Nomani, “Valujet Shutdown Exposes Flaws of the FAA,” Wall StreetJournal, 19 June 1996, pp. B1, 8; “The FAA Took Too Long to ‘Get’ the Lesson of the Valujet Crash,” San Francisco Examiner, 20 June 1996, p. A18. Other examples: “FAA Damage Control,” San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 June 1996, p. B12; “Time to Fix the FAA,” St. Louis Post—Dispatch,20 June 1996, p. B6; “FAA Took Too Long to See the Obvious,” Hartford Courant, 19 June 1996, p. A10; ABC, “Nightline,” 17 June 1996. On legal limitations on grounding an airline see also Don Phillips, “Can Safety and Rapid Growth Share the Same Plane?” Washington Post National Edition, 17 June 1996, pp. 20—21.
38 ABC, “Nightline,” 17 June 1996.
39 See Ralph Vartabedian and Jesus Sanchez, “Carrier’s Success Story Was Built on Big Savings,” Los Angeles Times, 20 June 1996, pp. D 1, 10.
40 Bureau of Labor Statistics,