Fun Facts On Steven Emerson

Thomas Croom should think twice about citing the works of Steven Emerson. It seems Steven has a plagiarism problem.

As Emerson's fame mounted, so did criticism. Emerson's book, The Fall of Pan Am 103, was chastised by the Columbia Journalism Review, which noted in July 1990 that passages "bear a striking resemblance, in both substance and style" to reports in the Post-Standard of Syracuse, N.Y. Reporters from the Syracuse newspaper told this writer that they cornered Emerson at an Investigative Reporters and Editors conference and forced an apology.

Emerson never produced real FBI documents that he claimed were in his possession.

As a consultant on the series, Emerson presented AP reporters with what were "supposed to be FBI documents" describing mainstream American Muslim groups with alleged terrorist sympathies, according to the project's lead writer, Richard Cole. One of the reporters uncovered an earlier, almost identical document authored by Emerson. The purported FBI dossier "was really his," Cole says. "He had edited out all phrases, taken out anything that made it look like his."

The writer of the Fairness & Accuracy In Reporting articles is former Weekly Planet editor John Sugg. Emerson filed a lawsuit against Sugg and the WP. He claimed Sugg and WP had "maliciously and repeatedly published false and defamatory utterances Emerson later dismissed the lawsuit. As usual, Emerson couldn't prove his claims. My personal favorite Emerson bogus claim is that he had to be put in the Witness Protection Program. John Russell of the Justice Department put that to rest.

Terrorism is a serious threat to America. Steven Emerson is not a serious journalist.