Cold Type

Muslims Win Another Round vs. Airline Security

Northwest Airlines delayed a group of Muslims entering the US from Saudi Arabia who violated international check-in procedures. The Council on American-Islamic Relations responded with howls of discrimination, and now an apologetic Northwest is doling out compensation. This is absurd, says Annie Jacobsen. The author of Terror in the Skies: Why 9/11 Could Happen Again explains why caving in to false claims of discrimination poses a serious threat to our airline security.

Access article here.

Airport Screeners Trained by Group with Terrorist Ties

The Council on American-Islamic Relations, an organization with ties to terrorists, is training government screeners to be more culturally-sensitive. As thousands of devout Muslims fly home from religious pilgrimmage in Saudi Arabia, the government wants to make sure that no one has his civil rights violated. But airline security is not about upholding civil rights; the agenda is security, and until our government recognizes this fact, there's no reason why 9/11 won't happen again, says Annie Jacobsen, author of Terror in the Skies.

Access USA Today article here.

Sword on Board

Annie Jacobsen recounts the recent debacles in airline security today on National Review Online.

Earlier this year, a passenger at the Dallas-Forth Worth airport got a four-foot sword on an American Airlines airplane. How in the world did a sword that size manage to get through airport security? Who knows, but it did, and there it was for a plane full of Los Angeles-bound passengers to see.

Read the whole piece.

Interview

Annie Jacobsen, author of Terror in the Skies: Why 9/11 Could Happen Again, interviews Saturday night, October 7, at 11pm PT with Mark Isler on KABC Los Angeles. Go here to listen live.

Weekly Standard, FrontPage feature Jacobsen

The fifth anniversary of 9/11 has come and gone, but the threat of terrorism on airlines is still alive and well. Articles published today in FrontPage Magazine and the Weekly Standard featuring Annie Jacobsen remind us of this deadly truth.

Five years after 9/11: Why aren't we safe?

In a speech yesterday President Bush told us America is still not safe five years after 9/11. Why? A lack of communication, says a Washington Examiner editorial today. And the Examiner is absolutely right, says journalist Annie Jacobsen. Whether it's a government agency stonewalling inquiries or agencies refusing to share information about possible terrorist threats, our government's failure to communicate could be the reason 9/11 happens again.

Read the Washington Examiner editorial here.

Jacobsen speaks out

La Shawn Barber links to an interview Annie Jacobsen did with Active Christian Media. Barber says she's ready to read Terror in the Skies.

And what's the real problem with our aviation security? Jacobsen outlines the bottom line in a new article published today.

My last article, Catching Up, did not curry any favors for me with the federal government. Only a few hours after the article was published, I spoke with Nico Melendez, media spokesperson for the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), who was especially angry. He accused the article of "lowering morale among TSA workers." (I wrote about the Federal Air Marshal Service, or FAMS, which is now under the jurisdiction of the TSA.) "We have 55,000 employees doing a terrific job, Annie. Why do you always have to focus on the bad?" he asked me. 

No More Dress Code for Air Marshals

After years of stonewalling and denying the obvious, the Federal Air Marshal Service has overturned its "Men in Black" dress code, which made air marshals stick out like sore thumbs. This decision alone will improve vastly our airline security, says Annie Jacobsen, the journalist who first reported on the dangers of the dress code. But more importantly, this decision is a strong indication that FAMS finally has a leader.

Read the ABC News article here.

Twelve detained in Amsterdam is a good sign

Is airline security improving? The news that Northwest Airlines Flight 42 made an emergency landing in Amsterdam because of the suspicious behavior of twelve men indicates that it is, says Annie Jacobsen. Two years ago there was no protocol for diverting a plane due to suspicious behavior, Jacobsen told the Washington Times today.

What do you do if a passenger looks suspicious?

British passengers last week refused to fly until officials forcefully removed two suspicious-looking Asian men from the plane, reports the Daily Mail. Critics say passengers wrongfully profiled these men. But if passengers don't react when a situation is awry, terrorists will take charge, warns Annie Jacobsen. In Terror in the Skies, Jacobsen illustrates why it's crucial that passengers speak out when they suspect a terrorist threat.

Read the article here.