John Edwards Affair: Exclusive Pix; Fox Helping Edwards' Timeline

NEW EXCLUSIVE DBKP Pix!
Fox News Asking Questions That DBKP Readers Knew the Answers to Weeks Ago
Revisionist Edwards History
An Appeal to DBKP Readers:
Put on your Investigative Thinking Caps



[ABOVE: Rielle Hunter still in the picture, shooting video of John Edwards, Edwards' parents, Wallace and Bobbie Edwards, at Chapel Hill NC on December 30, 2006. Hunter also took pictures of John and Elizabeth Edwards that day, as well as pictures of John and Elizabeth and their three children--DBKP Exclusive photo.]

Roger Friedman at Fox News.com, in his headline asks the question, "How much did Elizabeth Edwards, John Edwards’ wife, know about his affair with Rielle Hunter and when did she know it?"

Friedman begins with a nifty bit of revisionist history:

Edwards has said that he told his wife about the affair “at the end of 2006” and that everything ended after that. Indeed, within days of the end of 2006, Web videos produced by Hunter about Edwards disappeared from his campaign Web site and from YouTube.

We realize that Friedman and Company have only lately come onto the John Edwards story--though sooner than the rest of the Mainstream Media--and might be excused for putting "end of 2006" in quotes.

[Background information: access over 100 DBKP stories on the John Edwards-Rielle Hunter affair, scandal and cover-up: John Edwards Love Child Scandal Library.]

In all fairness to Fox News: it was Fox who was the only broadcast outlet to report on the Edwards affair by confirming that John Edwards had been caught by reporters of the National Enquirer in the Beverly Hilton, after visiting mistress Rielle Hunter.

But to anyone who's followed the Edwards' story closely, Edwards has never said that the "end of 2006" was when his affair ended.



To make sure, we re-examined both Edwards August 8 statement and the transcripts of his ABC Nightline interview.

In his statement to the press, Edwards said, "With my family, I took responsibility for my actions in 2006 and today I take full responsibility publicly. But that misconduct took place for a short period in 2006. It ended then."

Nothing there about the "end of 2006". How about in his Nightline interview?

In 2006 2 years ago, I made a very serious mistake. A mistake that I am responsible for and no one else. In 2006 I told Elizabeth about the mistake, asked her for her forgiveness, asked God for his forgiveness. And we have kept this within our family since that time. All of my family knows about this and just to be absolutely clear, none of them are responsible for it. I am responsible for it. I alone am responsible for it. And it led to this most recent incident at the Beverly Hilton. I was at the Beverly Hilton. I was there for a very simple reason, because I was trying to keep this mistake that I had made from becoming public.

Nothing there, either.

That was all that Edwards said in his Nightline interview on the subject, displaying some fancy footwork in response to a later Bob Woodruff question, "How long did it last and when exactly did it end?"

Well, here's the way I feel about this Bob. I think that my family is entitled to every detail. They've been told every detail. Elizabeth knows absolutely everything. I think beyond the basics, the fact that I made this mistake and I'm responsible for it and no one else. I think that's where it stops in terms of the public because I think everything else is within my family and those privacy boundaries ought to be respected.

As that is the last time that Edwards has spoken on the record about the matter, we're wondering where Friedman got the "end of 2006" info from? Any readers care to help out here?

Did John Edwards ever say that his affair ended at the end of 2006? Or is Roger Friedman a DBKP reader who saw the photo below and is covering up for Edwards?




The DBKP pic is of Edwards, wife Elizabeth and Rielle Hunter at Chapel Hill NC on December 30, 2006. It is the only one that shows the three together that late in the year.

Friedman's piece was in the "Entertainment" section of Fox News--odd in itself--along with references to Mickey Rourke and the Golden Globes' Espresso Machine.

The story does relate that an unnamed source clues Friedman to the fact that Elizabeth Edwards had the videos of Hunter pulled down from the Internet and that they were replaced by "new videos made by a videographer who’d worked for Elizabeth Edwards’ brother, Jay Anania. Peter Cairns had worked for Anania on a project called Commedia and a video called “The Lost Hours.”"

Jay Anania, readers may recall, is the guy who helped Elizabeth Edwards pick out John Edwards' 'favorite' movie, Dr. Strangelove for a Turner Classic Movies' appearance in 2004--a movie John Edwards had never watched.

Friedman's source does reveal an interesting point: Elizabeth Edwards' 2007 addendum to the peperback edition of her memoir:

In a chapter added to the paperback edition of Edwards’ memoir, "Saving Graces," the former senator’s wife observes that in 2007: “My brother Jay had a wonderful young man, Peter Cairns, who worked for him, and Peter had begun videotaping the campaign, the events and behind the scenes. We had tried it before but the process of getting the film from the camera to the internet — where I and the public could watch John took much too long.”

(An e-mail and a phone call to Cairns on Monday were each unreturned.) Of course, that wasn’t the case. When Hunter shot her videos, sources tell me, a dedicated Internet technician was part of the deal, and managed to get all her videos up on Edwards’ campaign site immediately.

This is a valuable observation in a story where not only the principals have either lied and then clammed up--John Edwards, Rielle Hunter and Andrew Young--but have clammed up since.

It's to be noted that after our picture was published, the timeline on Edwards' affair with Hunter and Elizabeth's knowledge of it have shifted like the sand through an hourglass.

The Fox article also notes some interesting passages in the material Elizabeth Edwards added to the 2007 paperback edition of her memoirs.

Finally, Friedman notes that Elizabeth Edwards' paperback edition of "Saving Greaces" isn't dedicated to her husband, but to her four children.

“For Wade, Cate, Emma Claire, and Jack. This is a small offering, for no mother has ever been more blessed.” John Edwards -- aside from his mentions in the narrative of the book — gets nothing but an aside in the acknowledgments at the end — “my beloved John,” sandwiched in between Elizabeth’s parents and her daughter “precious Cate.”

DBKP has more pictures unpublished. We have been waiting for the Edwards to make further statements on the affair, scandal and cover-up.

But, just as John Edwards was asked no questions from November 29, 2007 until late July 2008 about his affair with Rielle Hunter, the Mainstream press has ditched all investigative interest in the story--outside of ABC News pursuing the Fred Baron Money Trail.

Don't expect them to spend much time on the story: the 11 days the MSM spent on the story from August 8-19 apparently wore out their investigative muscles--although the NY Times is supposedly hot on the trail of a Duke University student with whom Edwards allegedly had another affair.

Disposition of Edwards' campaign money, Fred Baron, hush money payments and further curiosities just don't interest the watchdogs in our adversarial press. But don't think for a moment that the MSM isn't an adversarial press.

Their coverage of John McCain's VP pick, Sarah Palin, over the last 10 days puts the lie to that myth.

[NOTE: Did we make a mistake? Or did Roger Friedman? Is there any references to John Edwards stating that he ended his affair at the "end of 2006" that you can find? Leave a comment or send an email. A footnote to history may await you. Thanks!]


by Mondoreb
images: dbkp

Lori Drew: The Increasing Victimization of Lori Drew

"Quick! Somebody get me the paint ball!"

Another post from another "good" blogger at aol.news, who also writes for the appropriately-named "Babble".

The only saving grace for her is that, Lord knows, she was probably just looking for a "fresh angle" to the now-familiar story of Megan Meier's suicide.

To set the tone and show that she's just as objective as the "tribal" people she's writing about, Ada Calhoun throws in "chilling", "shunning" and the aforementioned "tribal".

Lori Drew gets to be once again portrayed as an innocent victim, the Internet gets to be scary and Ada gets to act detachedly--dare we say it?--outraged.

'Megan' Blog Leads To More Attacks on Drews

Just when things seem to be slowing down with the Megan Meier story, that "Megan Had It Coming" blog shows up and (despite the fact that Lori Drew's lawyer has denied Drew wrote it) the outrage at the Drews escalates again.

Now on AOL News is this chilling report of the family's neighborhood, which has become almost "tribal" in its systematic shunning of the Drews: "It's like they used to do in the 1700s and 1800s. If you wronged a community, you were basically shunned. That's basically what happened to her," said Trevor Buckles, a 40-year-old who lives next door to the Drews.

The neighbors, who in the words of Drew's attorney, Jim Briscoe, are "afraid to approach the Drews out of fear", here are portrayed as Drew's tormentors.

Some of what's been done, according to the report: Last December, after neighbors learned of the Internet hoax, someone threw a brick through a window in the Drew home. A few weeks ago, someone made a prank call to police reporting that there had been a shooting inside the Drew's house, prompting squad cars to arrive with sirens flashing.
Someone recently obtained the password to change the Drew's outgoing cell phone recording, and replaced it with a disturbing message. Police would not detail the content.

Clients have fled from Drew's home-based advertising business, so she had to close it. Neighbors have not seen Drew outside her home in weeks.

Ada has left at least one of her readers wondering: which is it?

Are the neighbors "afraid to approach the Drews", as Jim Briscoe says?

Are the neighbors willingly staying away from the Drews in a shunning spree?

Or are the neighbors willingly approaching the Drews to attack them as Ada's post here relates?

Or, "none of the above", since neighbors haven't seen Lori Drew "in weeks"?

And what's a good Lori Drew victimization piece without a obligatory "Power of the Evil Internet" sighting.

Ms. Calhoun doesn't disappoint.

And that's nothing compared to the invective being hurled via the Internet, according to The Age:
As the story gain more attention, Internet avengers took matters into their own hands. They plastered photos of the Drews and Ashley, their addresses, phone numbers and email details over the internet including on sites like People You'll See in Hell and Rotten Neighbors. Local businesses that advertised in Lori Drew's coupon book business have also been harangued and targetted with boycott threats.

Just think: without a legal system, all such immorality would still be punished in this way, with social control. How lucky we are that we don't need to avenge all wrongs with bricks through windows and can use lawsuits instead. If only there were a law in place that could bring some justice for the Meiers, maybe the neighbors wouldn't feel such a need to take matters into their own hands. Then again, it's such an ugly story, maybe even the involvement of the court system wouldn't satisfy the angry mobs?

Well, Ada does say it's a "mob", but she shows considerable restraint in not using the hackneyed "vigilante".
Who started "Josh Evans" in the first place? Tell me again.
Here's a question or two for all the "Victimization of Lori Drew"-mongers plying their trade, wherever better journalistic theories are sold.

When is it "mob" actions--with or without the veneer of uber-offended sensibilities--and when is it people venting? Haven't we heard so much about "getting it out"?

Or is that just when they agree with the issue being discussed?

Fourteen months on, after the Megan Meier suicide, let's tote up that angry mob's despicable, dastardly dirty deeds.

In this corner: one brick, one paintball on the side of a house, one crank call, one cell phone jobbed, one set of tire tracks across the yard. The last were by the dead girl's father. Clue me in, Ms. Calhoun, is he part of your mob?

That was unclear.

In fact, no one outside the neighborhood even knew about Megan Meier and her suicide until a month ago. The Meier family told the neighbors to stay calm and "let the system work". It was when neighbors felt the system was jobbing them, the parents and the memory of a little girl and the circumstances surrounding her death, that the reactions got testy.

Try to work that into your story next time, "Weep for the Internet" writers.

In the other corner: one mother who "solely instigated and monitored" an on-going 6-weeks-long harassment of a 13-year-old girl. "Even when the conversations turned sexual, she didn't shut down the account".

Gee Ada, looks like your mob's gonna have trouble handling the Brady Bunch. We better get these people some proper pitchforks and torches, so they can do the job right. Whatcha say?

I'll chip in. I'm a giver.

Historical note for Ada Calhoun: before the courts, in the West, we had vendettas and wergeld: blood money or life for a life. That's what kept down the mobs then, Ada.

As kings expanded their power over the surrounding countryside, various tribes, groups and peoples exchanged their demand for wergeld for the promise that the king's courts would mete out an impartial justice for all.

When the king's courts failed to mete out justice or consider a case, people sought their own justice in those areas, until the courts were able to hold up their end of the bargain again.

America's courts are far more extensive than the king's were. But the concept remains the same: when people feel the courts aren't doing their job, they start making noise.

Before the next drive-by journalist gets all gooey about this being more "Power of the Evil Internet": no one visited any violence on the person of any of the Drew's--either physical, emotional or spiritual. No one, outside the Drew's own neighborhood, did anything except make some phone calls to some advertisers.

Are suggestions that maybe the advertiser's money to Ad Vantage might have been better spent on something other than a fake MySpace account too much?

This increasingly insipid moral equivalency masquerading as meditative journalism is getting to be tiresome and formalistic.

If Ada Calhoun agreed that there was an injustice done to anyone other than Lori Drew--whom Ada seems to have taken under her wing--might she have called any actions on the Internet "activism" and "people getting involved"?

There has been plenty of outrage; disgust, shock and disdain have all made their appearance, too.

Calhoun would have us believe that it's mindless, undirected, primal, "tribal".

It's not.

It's directed at the story of a woman and her attorney scrambling to distance her from her actions. That might be understandable.

If only.

If only once, during these last 14 months, anyone had ever heard the words "I'm sorry" escape the lips of the one person Ada chooses to take under her journalistic protection, that outcry might have been muted.

If only.

There have been stories aplenty accusing Lori Drew of being a "helicopter parent".

I guess Ada's right: the "mob" ought to not expend all of its outrage on "Lori Drew, helicopter parent"

The "mob" might save a drop of that disdain for helicopter journalists.

by Mondoreb
[image:nicholdsoncartoons;dannyhaszard]



Death by 1000 Papercuts Front Page.

Madeline McCann: Case Has Had False Leads and Alarms

Was the news in the Madeline McCann case a hoax, cruel trick or the work of an attention-starved news junkie?

Back in June, a letter was sent to a Dutch newspaper; supposedly it contained news of Madeline's death and the whereabouts of her body.

The letter set off a police investigation of the site mentioned in the letter. Police discovered no body at the location.

It started with the following revelation.

IS Madeleine McCann dead? A letter to a Dutch newspaper. And a map showing where her body can be found. It’s credible:

Police in Portugal are investigating an anonymous letter and a map claiming to show where missing four-year-old Madeleine McCann’s body is buried.

The letter, sent to Dutch paper De Telegraaf, identifies an area 15km (9.3 miles) from where Madeleine vanished.

Authorities naturally had to treat the letter as containing genuine information and dispatched police to the site to follow up.

Portuguese police say they have not found anything in a search of scrubland nine miles from where four-year-old Madeleine McCann went missing.

The search was carried out after a Dutch newspaper published details of an anonymous letter it received alleging Madeleine’s body was under rocks.

Officers said the line of inquiry had now been “discarded”.

Why was the letter considered a lead? The British press had plenty of theories on both the letter, its contents and its author.

It strongly resembles another letter sent to the same newspaper last year, accurately pinpointing where two missing Belgian girls were buried.

Ch Insp Olegario de Sousa said officers were “checking the information”.

Next to a cross and two question marks, the sender writes “vermoedelijke vindplaats Madeleine” - this is the place where Madeleine can probably be found.

A murder investigation. And still only one suspect.

One day on and “BURIED UNDER ROCKS,” says the Mirror’s front –page headline.

The paper notes how the handwriting on the letter is the same as that on the paper giving the whereabouts of Stacey Lemmens and her sister Nathalie Mahy who went missing in Belgium last year.

As the Sun reports, the note says Madeleine is buried “north of the road under branches and rocks, around six to seven metres off the road” in an spot near Odiaxere, close to the Algarve resort from where the girl went missing 42 days ago.

The Mail says the author of this letter and, most likely, the one concerning the Belgian sisters, is unknown to police.

A certain Abdullah Ait-Oud, a convicted paedophile, has been charged with their murders. He denies any involvement. Although police believe he acted with an accomplice who has not been traced.

“MADELEINE IS BURIED HERE,” says the Express on its front page. Portuguese police are searching the area…

That letter proved to be a false alarm in the baffling, and still yet-unfolding, story of the disappearance of the little English girl.

The list of hoaxers and false alarms plagued the case. The letter was neither the first, nor the last.

While the McCanns seemed to be getting their message across, the story also attracted hoaxers and fraudsters. One call was received from a man on an unregistered pay-as-you-go phone in Argentina claiming to know the whereabouts of their daughter, but led to nothing, while an anonymous letter and map sent to an Amsterdam-based newspaper claimed Madeleine was buried in scrubland close to the holiday resort. Some 50 officers and police sniffer dogs were sent to search the area but found nothing.

An Italian man and a Portuguese woman were subsequently held on suspicion of trying to extort money from the McCanns, saying they had information on the whereabouts of their daughter. A man in Eindhoven, Holland, was also arrested for attempting to defraud the McCanns by demanding £1.35m in exchange for information on their daughter.

The first signs of a backlash against the McCanns appeared in mid-June. Chief Inspector Sousa said that the fact that so many people had crowded into the room from which Madeleine was taken was making it difficult for the forensic teams to make sense of DNA samples.

At the same time, thousands of yellow ribbons tied to trees and railings in the McCanns' home village were taken down amid concerns they were attracting "grief tourists". Villagers said that Rothley's main square had become a morbid visitor attraction after it was made the focal point for tributes.

Hopes of finding Maddie were once again raised at the beginning of August when a customer at a restaurant in the Flemish town of Tongeren, not far from the Dutch border, said she was "100% sure" she had seen the youngster. The glass from which the child was drinking was removed for DNA testing. It proved to be a false lead.

The case has had its share of false leads and alarms. One lead that seems to be dead now is the theory that the McCanns were responsible for the girl's abduction.

Still another theory, entertained for awhile, that the body of the little girl, discovered in a cooler on a sandbar, near Galveston, TX and named "Baby Grace" might be that of Madeline's. That theory was shelved after the mother last week confessed to beating and torturing 2-year-old Riley Sawyers.

Riley Sawyers was "Baby Grace", not Madeline McCann.

To be the parents of Madeline, kidnapped from her room while on vacation months ago, every bit of news--true or false--causes pulmonary reactions.

Holding their breath, a sigh of relief, an angry hiss, the sharp intake of breath: all were likely to have been the McCann's reactions to various bits of news over this long stretch of waiting and wondering.

The news of the Dutch letter and the subsequent investigation was a false alarm. Both the police and the parents sort through bits of news.

Both have their own questions. Most of the questions are the same.

Who removed her from their room? Where is Madeline now? Where will all lead?

Police and parents alike are still working on the answers.

At this point, all that can be offered to Madeline's long-suffering parents is speculation.

by Mondoreb

Sources:
Police Probing Madeline Letter
Finding Madeleine McCann’s Body - “Vermoedelijke Vindplaats”
Madeleine McCann: No Breaking News; No Body Found
Madeline: The story six months on
Baby Grace, Riley Sawyers: Mother's Grim Tale of Torture and Abuse



Death by 1000 Papercuts Front Page.

Megan Meier MySpace Suicide: Cruel Hoaxers Outed, Let The Lesser Outrage Begin

We first wrote about Megan last Monday. The reactions to the story were those of disgust, horror, anger, and outrage.

Outrage over the death of 14-yr.-old Megan Meiers, a girl targeted by the perpetrators of a vicious hoax. Outrage that no charges have been filed.

Lastly, outrage at the paper who broke the story, the St. Louis Dispatch Suburban Journal, and their decision to not identify the hoaxers. The names of the "alleged" hoaxers have now been outed by bloggers.

MySpace Cruel Prank Leads To Teen's Suicide

A cruel and unbelievably vicious prank perpetrated upon a young girl has stripped away the "Leave It To Beaver" veneer of a suburban St. Louis neighborhood. A fourteen year old girl is dead by her own hand, her parents shattered, and in disbelief, wondering if there will ever be justice for their daughter.

"Fourteen years old, Megan was a victim of a cruel hoax on MySpace. The end result of the hoax, Megan is dead by her own hand, the hoaxer exposed as parents of a former friend of Megan's. The story was published on November 13 by the St. Louis Dispatch Suburban Journal in Missouri. The paper made the decision not to publish the names of the hoaxers. Their excuse, because the hoaxers had a child of their own and the fact that they had not been charged with any crime."

Source - MySpace Cruel Prank Leads To Teen's Suicide

14-yr-old Megan Meier

The original story provided enough clues to the identity of the hoaxers, plus the fact that the parents of Megan had unknowingly stored a foosball table that belonged to the hoaxers in their garage:

"The day after Megan's death, they went down the street to comfort the family of the girl who had once been Megan's friend. They let the girl and her family know that although she and Megan had their ups and down, Megan valued her friendship.
They also attended the girl's birthday party, although Ron had to leave when it came time to sing "Happy Birthday." The Meiers went to the father's 50th birthday celebration. In addition, the Meiers stored a foosball table of the hoaxers in their garage"

The paper went on to describe how, six weeks after Megan's sad death, her parents were informed that their precious daughter was the victim of a cruel hoax through the site, MySpace.com. That the perpetrators were the people, who after Megan's death, had asked Megan's parents if they could store their foosball table in the Meier's garage, as well as the parents of one of Megan's one time "best friends". The paper reported that, upon of learning the gruesome details of what had happened to their daughter and who was behind it, Megan's father destroyed the foosball table.

"Tina used an ax and Ron a sledgehammer. They put the pieces in Ron's pickup and dumped them in their neighbor's driveway. Tina spray painted "Merry Christmas" on the box."

The cruel hoaxers filed a police report over the destruction of their foosball table. They also sent a "condolence" note to Megan's parents:

"In a letter dated Nov. 30, 2006, the family tells Ron and Tina, "We are sorry for the extreme pain you are going through and can only imagine how difficult it must be. We have every compassion for you and your family."

Outraged by the decision of the Suburban Journal to not report the names of the "alleged" hoaxers, bloggers quickly went to work:

"Anyway, then I had a conversation with Steve "Pokin Around" Pokin, the columnist who broke the story of Megan's tragic story after her aunt called him up upon reading his slightly-less-disturbing tale of a teenage Myspace tormentor who eventually got charged with "littering."

Steve didn't really want to go too deeply into things, though he claimed that he was pretty sure not naming Curt and Lori Drew was the right decision, to which I said, "Um, those fuckers will be named SOON ENOUGH." And when I asked him whether the Drews -- he confirmed the names, though I'm not sure he meant to -- seemed ready to take responsibility or atone for their actions in any way, he said, "I don't know. All I know about that is in the story. I'm thinking that's a "not so much."

Source - Jezebel - Are The Parents Who MySpace-Tormented Megan Meier Into Killing Herself Ready To Atone? Um...

There will be those who will be "outraged" over the reporting of the names of the hoaxers. A "lesser" form of outrage than the outrage over the details of what happened to Megan.

The moral of this story?

Instant Karma.

By LBG

Source - Suburban Journals - My Space' hoax ends with suicide of Dardenne Prairie teen

More on Megan:

LATEST:
Supposedly an ex-friend of Megan's replies to our stories in, "Megan Had It Coming"

MySpace Suicide: The Megan Meier Story - Video

Megan Meier MySpace Suicide Cruel Hoax: No Justice for Megan
MySpace Suicide:
Megan Meier's Story May Prevent Others
MySpace Suicide Reaction:
Outrage! Outrage! Outrage!

MySpace Cruel Prank Leads To Teen’s Suicide



DBKP.com - Bigger, Better!.
Death by 1000 Papercuts Front Page.

MySpace Suicide: Megan Meier's Story May Prevent Others

The tragedy of the "MySpace Suicide" of Megan Meiers could prevent others like it from occurring in the future. As news of the tragic story spreads across the nation, perhaps an event calamitous for one family may be an opportunity for others.

Upon reading the story, it's hard to come away feeling anything other than shock, disbelief, outrage or sadness.

13-year-old Megan was the object of mean attacks on the popular Internet site MySpace by, what she thought was, an attractive boy, "Josh", she'd taken a liking to. Others on the site joined in.

The attacks caused the depression-suffering girl to hang herself.

It was later learned that the attacks came not from the boy, who proved to be a fictitious creation, but from adults who lived down the street from Megan.

All this took place eventhough, from all accounts, Megan's mom monitored her Internet use in every way possible. Monitored it much more than most parents, in fact.

How could this story prevent others like it from happening?

TAKE 15 MINUTES

Do you have a teen? Do you watch "Jerry Springer"?

Judge Judy?

Oprah?

Turn off the TV, have them sit down and give them a copy of this story. If they haven't already heard about it, have them read it. They will probably wonder what's up at this point.

Did the news of their adventures in science class somehow reach home?

Chances are, after reading it, most will have similar reactions to adults.

Talk to them. Ask them what they think about the story. What would they do in Megan's case? Do they know any of their friends who've met fake characters online? Do they know how often it happens?

How would react if someone on line "said things about them"?

No definitive conclusion need be reached in the discussion. The fact that they're sitting down talking with a parent might be old hat. That's good.

But it might be a new experience--for everyone involved. They will certainly notice that you turned off the TV. That might tip them off that this is serious.

Maybe this sad story might cause them to think, if only for a moment. The disastrous story of the death of Megan Meier may stick with them. Maybe they'll file it away for future reference.

In the end, you can turn the TV back on at the end of all this: you won't have missed much. Jerry, Oprah and Judge Judy won't miss the ratings points. Your teen may look at you funny. That comes with territory--or should.

The word most often used to describe the MySpace suicide of Megan Meier is "tragedy". It is apt. Maybe this tragedy can prevent another Megan from occurring.

It's too late for Megan Meier and her grief-stricken family. It may not be too late for others.

by Mondoreb

More on the MySpace suicide of Megan Meier:

MySpace Suicide: The Megan Meier Story - Video
MySpace Cruel Prank Leads to Teen's Suicide
MySpace Suicide Reactions: Outrage!

[UPDATE: 11:40 11-15-07] Prosecutor to Take Another Look at Case

A St. Charles County teen commits suicide after being targeted by an online attack, but those who instigated it face no criminal charges, or could they? The county prosecutor says he never saw the complete case file. He doesn't want to give anyone false hope, but he says it's not yet case closed.

"Me personally, I've never seen anything on this case," says St. Charles County Prosecutor Jack Banas. He says from what he's heard he knows hearts are broken, but he doesn't believe laws were.

More on the Megan Meier MySpace Suicide:

LATEST:
Supposedly an ex-friend of Megan's replies to our stories in
"Megan Had It Coming"

Megan Meier MySpace Suicide Cruel Hoax: No Justice for Megan
Cruel Hoaxer's Outed: Let the Lesser Outrage Begin
Megan Meier MySpace Suicide Reactions: Outrage! Outrage!



Death by 1000 Papercuts Front Page.

MySpace Suicide Reaction: Outrage! Outrage! Outrage!

The "MySpace Suicide" reaction to the Megan Meier story has been outrage. Outrage on a lot of levels.

Outrage at the vicious Internet attack on a 13-year-old girl by parents of the girl's erstwhile friend.

Outrage that the responsible adults have not been held accountable by the law.

Outrage that the only action taken has been a complaint filed by the parents who concocted this cruel hoax against the parents of the girl who committed suicide. They filed a complaint with local police against Megan's parents.

The reason?

After finding out who was responsible for the creation of the fictitious MySpace account that led to their daughters suicide, Megan's parents destroyed a foosball table they had been storing for the heartless adults.

Some of that outrage surfaced at the Orlando Sentinel:
Girl Commits Suicide Over Internet Prank by ADULTS--Who is Responsible?

I heard this on the MJ Morning Show this morning and had to share. This story is so heinous, disgusting...I don't even know where to begin.

Any folks out there who are lawyers, law enforcement officers, or judges--can you shed some light? I'm looking for your input.

Some of it surfaced at the home of the original reporter, Steve Pokin, of the story in suburban St.Louis. Readers Respond in Force to Story on MySpace Suicide

Some of you have asked your children to read the story and have requested/demanded to look at their MySpace pages.Of course, there has been outrage over the fact that Josh Evans - a 16-year-old who never existed - was created not by a teen, but by an adult. That anger is reflected in the comments posted on the Journal's Web sites.

The comments on both pieces were mostly of the "WTF" variety.

BACKGROUND:
Cruel MySpace Prank Leads to Teen's Suicide

DBKP, because we were the first in the blogosphere to pick up on this story, was contacted early yesterday morning by FoxNews from New York. The story is still flying under the radar for most of the nation.

It will get more attention for a variety of reasons. It's tragic that a young girl lost her life. It's tragic that it was adults that were responsible for her misery.
And that tragedy continues that no justice has been found for the bereaved parents of Megan Meiers.

It will draw attention to the mostly unsupervised world that teens inhabit on MySpace. The Internet, in our minds, should remain free.

However, that puts a responsibility on parents to properly supervise their children's actions. It's a responsibility that many parents voice, but far fewer practice.

It will command some space in any article wishing to argue against 'decadent American suburbia'. It will serve as an excuse to discuss some writer's pet peeve, however unrelated to this story it may be.

Additionally, it may focus attention on a culture that focuses on drama 24/7. The betting here is that there are more conversations on the latest drug-induced bumblings of Britney than there are about responsibility in many homes.

Drama sells.

Ask Inside Edition or any of the celeb-pandering shows that proliferate on the tube.

The story of Megan Meier is tragic story.

Hopefully, that story will spark some conversation and debate that will prevent other stories like hers from happening.

by Mondoreb

More on the Megan Meier MySpace Suicide:

LATEST:
Supposedly an ex-friend of Megan's replies to our stories in
"Megan Had It Coming"

MySpace Suicide: The Megan Meier Story - Video

Megan Meier MySpace Suicide Cruel Hoax: No Justice for Megan
Cruel Hoaxer's Outed: Let the Lesser Outrage Begin
MySpace Suicide: Megan Meier's Story May Prevent Others Like It
Megan Meier MySpace Suicide: Cruel Hoaxers Outed, Let The Lesser Outrage Begin

Mondoreb @ BNN:
MySpace Suicide Reaction: Outrage!



Death by 1000 Papercuts Front Page.

MySpace Cruel Prank Leads To Teen’s Suicide

A cruel, and unbelievably vicious prank perpetrated upon a young girl has stripped away the Leave It To Beaver veneer of a suburban St. Louis neighborhood. A fourteen year old girl is dead by her own hand, her parents shattered and in disbelief, and the wonder if there will be justice for their daughter.

Will there be justice for Megan Meier?

UPDATE: MySpace Suicide Reaction: Outrage! Outrage! Outrage!

My Space' hoax ends with suicide of Dardenne Prairie teen

By Steve Pokin
Monday, November 12, 2007 5:48 AM CST

His name was Josh Evans. He was 16 years old. And he was hot.

"Mom! Mom! Mom! Look at him!" Tina Meier recalls her daughter saying.

Josh had contacted Megan Meier through her MySpace page and wanted to be added as a friend.Yes, he's cute, Tina Meier told her daughter. "Do you know who he is?"

"No, but look at him! He's hot! Please, please, can I add him?"

Mom said yes. And for six weeks Megan and Josh - under Tina's watchful eye - became acquainted in the virtual world of MySpace.

Josh said he was born in Florida and recently had moved to O'Fallon. He was homeschooled. He played the guitar and drums.

He was from a broken home: "when i was 7 my dad left me and my mom and my older brother and my newborn brother 3 boys god i know poor mom yeah she had such a hard time when we were younger finding work to pay for us after he loeft."

As for 13-year-old Megan, of Dardenne Prairie, this is how she expressed who she was:

M is for Modern

E is for Enthusiastic

G is for Goofy

A is for Alluring

N is for Neglected.

She loved swimming, boating, fishing, dogs, rap music and boys. But her life had not always been easy, her mother says.

She was heavy and for years had tried to lose weight. She had attention deficit disorder and battled depression. Back in third grade she had talked about suicide, Tina says, and ever since had seen a therapist.

But things were going exceptionally well. She had shed 20 pounds, getting down to 175. She was 5 foot 5½ inches tall.

She had just started eighth grade at a new school, Immaculate Conception, in Dardenne Prairie, where she was on the volleyball team. She had attended Fort Zumwalt public schools before that.

Amid all these positives, Tina says, her daughter decided to end a friendship with a girlfriend who lived down the street from them. The girls had spent much of seventh grade alternating between being friends and, the next day, not being friends, Tina says.

Part of the reason for Megan's rosy outlook was Josh, Tina says. After school, Megan would rush to the computer.

"Megan had a lifelong struggle with weight and self-esteem," Tina says. "And now she finally had a boy who she thought really thought she was pretty."

It did seem odd, Tina says, that Josh never asked for Megan's phone number. And when Megan asked for his, she says, Josh said he didn't have a cell and his mother did not yet have a landline.

And then on Sunday, Oct. 15, 2006, Megan received a puzzling and disturbing message from Josh. Tina recalls that it said: "I don't know if I want to be friends with you anymore because I've heard that you are not very nice to your friends."

Frantic, Megan shot back: "What are you talking about?"

SHADOWY CYBERSPACE

Tina Meier was wary of the cyber-world of MySpace and its 70 million users. People are not always who they say they are.

Tina knew firsthand. Megan and the girl down the block, the former friend, once had created a fake MySpace account, using the photo of a good-looking girl as a way to talk to boys online, Tina says. When Tina found out, she ended Megan's access.

MySpace has rules. A lot of them. There are nine pages of terms and conditions. The long list of prohibited content includes sexual material. And users must be at least 14.

"Are you joking?" Tina asks. "There are fifth-grade girls who have MySpace accounts."

As for sexual content, Tina says, most parents have no clue how much there is. And Megan wasn't 14 when she opened her account. To join, you are asked your age but there is no check. The accounts are free.

As Megan's 14th birthday approached, she pleaded for her mom to give her another chance on MySpace, and Tina relented.

She told Megan she would be all over this account, monitoring it. Megan didn't always make good choices because of her ADD, Tina says. And this time, Megan's page would be set to private and only Mom and Dad would have the password.

'GOD-AWFUL FEELING'

Monday, Oct. 16, 2006, was a rainy, bleak day. At school, Megan had handed out invitations to her upcoming birthday party and when she got home she asked her mother to log on to MySpace to see if Josh had responded.

Why did he suddenly think she was mean? Who had he been talking to?

Tina signed on. But she was in a hurry. She had to take her younger daughter, Allison, to the orthodontist.

Before Tina could get out the door it was clear Megan was upset. Josh still was sending troubling messages. And he apparently had shared some of Megan's messages with others.

Tina recalled telling Megan to sign off.

"I will Mom," Megan said. "Let me finish up."

Tina was pressed for time. She had to go. But once at the orthodontist's office she called Megan: Did you sign off?

"No, Mom. They are all being so mean to me."

"You are not listening to me, Megan! Sign off, now!"

Fifteen minutes later, Megan called her mother. By now Megan was in tears.

"They are posting bulletins about me." A bulletin is like a survey. "Megan Meier is a slut. Megan Meier is fat."

Megan was sobbing hysterically. Tina was furious that she had not signed off.

Once Tina returned home she rushed into the basement where the computer was. Tina was shocked at the vulgar language her daughter was firing back at people.

"I am so aggravated at you for doing this!" she told Megan.

Megan ran from the computer and left, but not without first telling Tina, "You're supposed to be my mom! You're supposed to be on my side!"

On the stairway leading to her second-story bedroom, Megan ran into her father, Ron.

"I grabbed her as she tried to go by," Ron says. "She told me that some kids were saying horrible stuff about her and she didn't understand why. I told her it's OK. I told her that they obviously don't know her. And that it would be fine."

Megan went to her room and Ron went downstairs to the kitchen, where he and Tina talked about what had happened, the MySpace account, and made dinner.

Twenty minutes later, Tina suddenly froze in mid-sentence.

"I had this God-awful feeling and I ran up into her room and she had hung herself in the closet."

Megan Taylor Meier died the next day, three weeks before her 14th birthday.

Later that day, Ron opened his daughter's MySpace account and viewed what he believes to be the final message Megan saw - one the FBI would be unable to retrieve from the hard drive.

It was from Josh and, according to Ron's best recollection, it said, "Everybody in O'Fallon knows how you are. You are a bad person and everybody hates you. Have a shitty rest of your life. The world would be a better place without you."

BEYOND GRIEF INTO FURY

Tina and Ron saw a grief counselor. Tina went to a couple of Parents After Loss of Suicide meetings, as well.

They tried to message Josh Evans, to let him know the deadly power of mean words. But his MySpace account had been deleted.

The day after Megan's death, they went down the street to comfort the family of the girl who had once been Megan's friend. They let the girl and her family know that although she and Megan had their ups and down, Megan valued her friendship.

They also attended the girl's birthday party, although Ron had to leave when it came time to sing "Happy Birthday." The Meiers went to the father's 50th birthday celebration. In addition, the Meiers stored a foosball table, a Christmas gift, for that family.

Six weeks after Megan died, on a Saturday morning, a neighbor down the street, a different neighbor, one they didn't know well, called and insisted that they meet that morning at a counselor's office in northern O'Fallon.

The woman would not provide details. Ron and Tina went. Their grief counselor was there. As well as a counselor from Fort Zumwalt West Middle School.

The neighbor from down the street, a single mom with a daughter the same age as Megan, informed the Meiers that Josh Evans never existed.

She told the Meiers that Josh Evans was created by adults, a family on their block. These adults, she told the Meiers, were the parents of Megan's former girlfriend, the one with whom she had a falling out. These were the people who'd asked the Meiers to store their foosball table.

The single mother, for this story, requested that her name not be used. She said her daughter, who had carpooled with the family that was involved in creating the phony MySpace account, had the password to the Josh Evans account and had sent one message - the one Megan received (and later retrieved off the hard drive) the night before she took her life.

"She had been encouraged to join in the joke," the single mother said.

The single mother said her daughter feels the guilt of not saying something sooner and for writing that message. Her daughter didn't speak out sooner because she'd known the other family for years and thought that what they were doing must be OK because, after all, they were trusted adults.

On the night the ambulance came for Megan, the single mother said, before it left the Meiers' house her daughter received a call. It was the woman behind the creation of the Josh Evans account. She had called to tell the girl that something had happened to Megan and advised the girl not to mention the MySpace account.
Source: Suburban Journals - 'My Space' hoax ends with suicide of Dardenne Prairie teen

The story continues to a sad end for Megan's family. There were no winners in this story; there's not much that even the most optimistic could glean from this tale. Just a cruel prank by some vicious, thoughtless people who should have known better.

It's hard to see how after arranging such a cruel hoax with such tragic consequences, the adults involved could instruct their children on any moral or ethical issues that the children might have to deal with later.

It's just a sad story.

Our hearts go out to the parents and family of Megan.

By LBG
[photo:chatinthehat]
notes: Mondoreb

More Megan Meier MySpace Suicide Stories:

All stories listed on ticker in upper left-hand corner of page.

LATEST:
Megan Meier MySpace Suicide: Reactions to the Reactions to the Reactions

Supposedly an ex-friend of Megan's replies to our stories in
"Megan Had It Coming"

MySpace Suicide: The Megan Meier Story - Video
Megan Meier MySpace Suicide Cruel Hoax: No Justice for Megan"
Cruel Hoaxer's Outed: Let the Lesser Outrage Begin
Megan Meier MySpace Suicide Reactions: Outrage! Outrage!
MySpace Suicide: Megan Meier's Story May Prevent Others Like It



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