[ This file is: http://rkba.org/letters/nightline.24may00.txt In response to the program broacast then transcribed as: http://www.abcnews.go.com/onair/nightline/transcripts/nl000524_trans.html ] Jeff Chan xxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx webmaster@rkba.org KGO 7 ABC 900 Front St. San Francisco, CA 94111 (415) 954-7777 (phone) (415) 954-6402 (fax) kgotv1@go.com Mass Media Bureau Federal Communications Commission Room 2-C334 445 12th Street, SW. Washington, DC 20554 complaints-enf@fcc.gov ABCNEWS Nightline 1717 DeSales St., N.W. Washington, D.C. 20036 Niteline@abc.com DELIVERED VIA POSTAL MAIL AND EMAIL May 25, 1999 PLEASE INCLUDE IN YOUR PUBLIC FILE The May 24, 2000 ABCNEWS Nightline program "In the Crosshairs" about Federal Firearms License holders included the clear, blatant and obvious lie that most criminals buy guns from dealers: DAVID TURECAMO (VO) [...] Even today, though, the industry and the NRA still contend that most guns used by criminals are stolen from lawful owners. WAIN ROBERTS I don't know whose agenda that was, but I know the NRA, that was their dominant theme was that all crime guns are stolen guns, which was far from the truth. Apparently you are choosing to ignore my letter regarding your August 18, 1999 ad hominem attacks on NRA, wherein I documented U.S. Department of Justice research by James D. Wright proving that more than 93% of criminals in federal prison do not get their guns through legal means. The source is "The Armed Criminal in America" report dated November 1986, funded by the federal Justice Department's National Institute of Justice. This is authoritative, scientifically and statistically valid fact funded by the U.S. Department of Justice which you and Nightline knowingly omit. Turecamo also uses irrelevant trace data in an attempt to somehow prop up the false claim that licensed dealers are a significant source of crime guns. DAVID TURECAMO (VO) Actually, last year, a study of gun dealers found that roughly half of all guns traced by law enforcement were sold by just 1 percent of the dealers. Guns are traced for a number of reasons, some of which include criminal abuse. The mere fact that a gun is traced does not in any way imply that it was used in a crime. Perhaps this type of logical distinction is beyond the capabilities of the news editors or program directors at ABC or KGO to understand. Worse, perhaps they are deliberately misrepresenting information for propagandistic purposes. In either case they demonstrate that they are not qualified to report the news. To support this misrepresentation Turecamo relies on Senator Charles Schumer's claim: SENATOR CHARLES SCHUMER, DEMOCRAT NEW YORK What we're saying is, there are certain dealers, some are big, many are small, who are known in the criminal community for just looking the other way, for not--either not enforcing the laws completely, or enforcing the law in such a careless, sloppy, and reckless way, knowingly reckless, that criminals go to them and buy a lot of guns. If this were true, a dealer selling guns in violation of any of the more than 20,000 federal, state and local restrictions already on the books would be shut down and prosecuted by the ATF and police with great urgency. This type of one-sided presentation, with no opposing viewpoints offered, makes it a propaganda piece supporting a specific anti-Constitutional-rights position. This biased blather is hardly what one would consider legitimate reporting of news. Completely absurd is Turecamo's proposition that licensed selling of guns is "a virtually unregulated industry." The manufacture, sale, and use of firearms are among the most heavily regulated activities in the country. The current onerous infringements on Constitutionally- protected firearms ownership are no more acceptable than government licensing, waiting periods, background checks, tests and training requirements would be for journalists or priests. Broadcasting blatant lies and distortions like these is a grossly irresponsible disservice to real journalism and a gross disservice to the community. Since I previously brought the issue of the largely illegal sources of criminals' guns to KGO's attention in my August 18, 1999 public file letter and since the station chose to broadcast Nightline's May 24, 2000 disinformation contradicting this fact, KGO no longer operates in the public interest and its broadcast license renewal should be denied. Sincerely, Jeff Chan