By Judi McLeod
Thursday, September 7, 2006
When Northeast Intelligence Network (NIN) founder and director Doug Hagmann wrote in canadafreepress.com that a new al Qaeda videotape was about to be released, he left the drive-by media behind in the dust.
The very much in demand Hagmann, who runs NIN, a multi-state licensed private investigative agency, can be found on the job at all hours, especially since he began using his investigative skills and training to fight terrorism and increase public awareness through his website www.HomelandSecurityUS.com.
Hagmann, who said the video would feature al Qaeda second-in-command, ayman al-Zawahiri along with adnan Gadahn, also known as azzam the american (or azzam al-amriki), was right on the money.
"Gadahn," he wrote, "made his debut in al Qaeda B-movies in October, 2004."
This time, the veteran private investigator even identified the title of the latest al Qaeda videotape, "an Invitation to Islam".
No one in the supposedly vigilant mainstream media picked Hagmann's scoop up. Ignoring scoops is their right.
Hagmann's scoop was posted as a CFP cover story on Friday, September 1, 2006.
Two days later, on September 3, 2006 the mainstream media `broke' the story about the new videotape. In typical fashion, they bravely broke the story only after the videotape had actually surfaced.
"a new videotape has surfaced featuring Osama bin Laden's second-in-command, ayman al-Zawahiri, and an american member of al Qaeda wanted by the FBI, according to a counterterrorism expert," announced CNN.com. "The tape, called "Invitation to Islam", runs 48 minutes, expert Laura Mansfield said. al-Zawahiri speaks for about 4 minutes on the tape, and the american narrates the rest."
This is not the first time Doug Hagmann has broken stories on terrorism.
Working a network of intelligence sources, that includes law enforcement agencies, he applies the Ronald Reagan ritual "Trust, but verify" and is often first off the mark when it comes to keeping John Q. Public informed.
Hagmann credits "archangel", code name for an intelligence source, for his latest scoop.
"archangel always has Intel two or three days before everyone else. He's very good at what he does," Hagmann told CFP.
While the mainstream media said the tape's message called on Westerners to collectively convert to Islam, Hagmann revealed further details including that intelligence analysts are urging a heightened awareness by citizens of the US and Canada, "especially within the transportation sectors, schools, and in locations beyond those cities commonly named as potential targets of al Qaeda attacks."
Nice for the mainstream media to let us know that al Qaeda has dispatched another message. Even better to know what they could be up to next.
"Broadcast at a time when world tensions are high and falling between the discovery of the plot to bomb US flag-carrying aircraft from the skies originating in the UK, and the five-year anniversary of the attacks on america, many intelligence officials are calling this video message "significantly timed," Hagmann warned.
Hagmann, who has extensive files on most members of the rogue's gallery of terrorists, takes his job to heart.
"Gadahn made his debut in al Qaeda B-movies in October, 2004, when he warned that attacks are forthcoming that will make the streets of america "run red with blood", adding that "the magnitude and ferocity of what is coming your way will make you forget all about September 11th."
The mainstream media will continue to act as if the latest al Qaeda tapes are exclusively theirs. To them, investigative journalism is a dying art. To Doug Hagmann, "It's the only way to fly."
More significantly, to international terrorists hiding out in shadows and caves, savvy investigator Doug Hagmann is precisely what they need: pig's lard.
Canada Free Press founding editor Most recent by Judi McLeod is an award-winning journalist with 30 years experience in the print media. Her work has appeared on Newsmax.com, Drudge Report, Foxnews.com, Glenn Beck. Judi can be reached at: judi@canadafreepress.com
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