] She cites another example. In September 2002, The Onion ] ran a piece called, "Al-Qaida Allegedly Engaging in ] Telemarketing." The piece told of the terrorist ] organization's nefarious plan to raise funds through ] various phone scams. It also showed screenshots of a ] videotape the CIA had uncovered in which al-Qaida's ] second in command, Ayman Al-Zawahiri, is seen with a ] headset, presumably tricking an unsuspecting victim. ] ] Thus, upon seeing the story, the Branch County sheriff's ] department in Coldwater, Michigan, which had been ] investigating telemarketing scams targeting the elderly, ] issued an urgent press release. ] ] "In the course of this investigation, it was learned that ] this is going on throughout the United States, and some ] of these telemarketing programs are believed to be ] operated by al-Qaida," the release stated. "The CIA has ] announced that they acquired a videotape showing al-Qaida ] members making phone solicitations for vacation home ] rentals, long-distance telephone service, magazine ] subscriptions and other products." [ Wow, man. I mean, journalism? Hello? -k] Wired News: Onion Taken Seriously, Film at 11 |