Pentagon Ban on Pictures Of Dead Troops Is Broken
Date: 23 April 2004
By Bill Carter
Bill Carter
Pentagon's ban on making images of dead soldiers' homecomings at military bases public is briefly relaxed as hundreds of photographs of flag-draped coffins at Dover Air Force Base are released on Internet by Memory Hole, Web site dedicated to combating government secrecy; site had filed Freedom of Information Act request last year seeking pictures of coffins arriving from Iraq at Dover; Pentagon says decision to grant request was mistake, but news organizations quickly used some of 361 images taken by Defense Dept photographers; release comes day after Tami Silicio, Pentagon contractor who had taken photos of coffins being loaded onto plane in Kuwait, is fired after pictures appeared in Seattle Times; husband David Landry is also fired, and both are charged with violating Defense Dept and company policies; Bush administration says policy was put in place after first war in Iraq to protect sensitivities of military families; new organizations executives say they did not know Defense Dept was taking photos, fact that only came to light after FOIA request was made; Pentagon says photos were taken for historical purposes; photo (M)
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Photos of Soldiers' Coffins Spark a Debate Over Access
Date: 24 April 2004
By Thom Shanker and Bill Carter
Thom Shanker
White House says Pres Bush has seen photographs of coffins of service members killed in Iraq arriving at Dover Air Force Base and agrees with Pentagon that releasing photographs was wrong; collection of over 300 pictures of coffins were made available after Memory Hole Web site filed Freedom of Information Act request; NASA says several news organizations mistakenly broadcast or published images of coffins that actually contained remains of astronauts killed in breakup of Columbia space shuttle (M)
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Two Days That Live In Punditry
Date: 23 April 2004
By Clyde Haberman
Clyde Haberman
Clyde Haberman NYC column discusses National Columnists Day, celebrating work of news columnists arond country; notes day goes unnoticed even by columnists (M)
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Sports of The Times; An Exception In an Age Of Celebrity
Date: 24 April 2004
By Harvey Araton
Harvey Araton
Harvey Araton Sports of The Times column contends that former Arizona Cardinals player Pat Tillman, who died in combat while fighting with Army Rangers in Afghanistan, was rare star athlete who shunned media attention in order to concentrate on what was important to him, which was service, patriotism and honor; Tillman turned down multimillion-dollar contract to join Army Rangers after Sept 11 terrorist attacks and refused to draw attention to himself when media spotlight centered on his story; photo (M)
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World Briefing | Middle East: Saudi Arabia: Journalist Held Without Charges
Date: 24 April 2004
Saudi Institute, pro-democracy organization based in Washington, reports that Saudi journalist Faris Hizam al-Harbi was arrested in Eastern Province and is being held without charges; was barred from work as journalist by Saudi government last month (S)
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Norton Mockridge, 88, Dies; Wide-Ranging Columnist
Date: 24 April 2004
By Christopher Lehmann-Haupt
Christopher Lehmann-Haupt
Norton Mockridge, humorist, columnist and author, dies at age 88 (M)
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Files Show Kerry Earned Medals for Wounds From Shrapnel, Which Is Still in His Leg
Date: 24 April 2004
By Jodi Wilgoren
Jodi Wilgoren
Sen John Kerry's presidential campaign offers brief glimpse at his military medical file, which shows that he requested that his relatives not be notified after he was wounded in action and that he retains piece of shrapnel in his left thigh; file is latest section of Kerry's military record to be released under pressure from Republicans and news media; shows that three Purple Hearts earned by Kerry in Vietnam in 1960's stemmed from shrapnel wounds (M)
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BOLDFACE NAMES
Date: 23 April 2004
By Campbell Robertson
Campbell Robertson
Campbell Robertson Boldface Names column discusses PEN awards celebrating writers and journalists at Pierre Hotel (NYC) (M)
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The Real War
Date: 23 April 2004
Editorial calls for end to Defense Dept policy that prohibits taking of photographs of coffins of members of armed services while they are being transported back to US; argues that Americans should be allowed to bear witness to sacrifice of soldiers
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AON IS SUBPOENAED BY NEW YORK'S ATTORNEY GENERAL
Date: 23 April 2004
By Bloomberg News
Bloomberg News
Aon Corp receives subpoena from Atty Gen Eliot Spitzer of New York as part of investigation into payments between insurance companies and brokers (S)
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