On Tuesday, American Morning viewers passionately responded to the Texas “Highway Robbery” segment. Many shared stories of corruption in Texas, while others felt the piece was assaulting the reputation of Texas lawmen.
- Richard: I am a lawyer in Central Texas. I testified to the Texas Senate Criminal Justice Committee last spring about asset forfeiture fund abuses. The D.A. in Kimble County, about 100 miles NW of San Antonio, on Interstate 10, gave thousands of dollars to the judge that hears the forfeiture and criminal cases. The judge and his wife also went to Hawaii several times gratis, compliments of the DA. The judge is still there. John Burnett at NPR has been investigating this; he ran a series of stories last year.
- David: The highway patrol in Louisiana and Texas have been doing this for years. They look for minorities as well as people with out of state license plates. The highway patrol finds them to be easy prey. The law that allows the police to do this is ridiculous. The cops are very corrupt and it will only end if Federal authorities step in. Years ago Stone Phillips did an investigation and interviewed quite a number of people. More recently, Howard Witt performed another investigation. I really don't think anything will be done about this until Federal authorities take over.
- James: Shame on Gary Tuchman, and Shame on CNN! While I certainly appreciate the newsworthiness of such a story (law enforcement officers ripping off minority drivers), SHAME on both of you for airing the snippet/preview at 8:50 AM EST on Tuesday 5 May **WITHOUT** identifying the location where this was taking place!! There will be many people who see this report, in which the bad behavior was attributed to Texas, yet the video showed what was obviously a small-town cop and a small-town DA. However, many people will NOT be able to tune into the full report at 10:00 PM on AC 360. Effect? These people have "Texas" in their mind, and you have just smeared the reputations of THOUSANDS of reputable law enforcement officers in a state currently engaged in a front-line border war, a drug war, and under the assault of a wave of illegal immigration. I cannot believe such a "sweeps week" type of stunt would be pulled by a network of CNN's stature. Disappointing, very disappointing.
How do you feel about the story alleging corruption in the Texas highway patrol? How would you like to see this situation investigated? Tell us your thoughts on this heated topic and be sure to tune in tonight on AC360 for the investigation by Gary Tuchman.
The Craigslist crackdown was perceived to be “nothing more than a few moralist bible-thumpers blowing a lot of hot air” and should not be accepted without question.
- Steven: All these calls for Craigslist to crackdown, limit, or better police their 'erotic services" ad category is nothing more than a few moralist bible-thumpers blowing a lot of hot air, and really, I'm disappointed in the media, including CNN, for their unquestioning acceptance of this facade of an issue! Look, there are erotic services advertised in numerous local publications, including the Yellow Pages, not to mention far more as close as a split-second Google search! Where is the call for policing the entire internet? Or other local zines or the phone book? This is so absurd. The sex business, until we legalize & regulate it, is, and always has been, a "buyer beware" enterprise. To pick on Craigslist, as if it's any more responsible or liable for criminal assaults or murders is preposterous. Why do reporters/anchors no longer question anything, but simply swallow whole, whatever outrage or accusation that hits the airwaves? Journalism has surely hit a low point.
Are you a Craigslist user? Do you believe, as this viewer suggests, that the only people pushing for a Craigslist “crackdown” are “moralist bible-thumpers”? Should the Internet be more heavily regulated on sites that offer adult entertainment?