One of the types of stories the Credentialed Media loves is when a military member is involved in some sort of crime, that way they can push the meme that they are all psycho’s and malcomtents. So, to see this headline on the front page of CNN – saw it on CNN mobile as the lead story first, and it is their lead on the website, too – is no surprise: Former Marine pleads not guilty to raping, killing college student
A former Marine and suspected serial rapist pleaded not guilty this week to raping and murdering 19-year-old college student Brianna Denison.
James Biela, 27, is charged with first-degree murder, kidnapping and sexual assault in the disappearance of Denison, who was last seen alive on her friend’s sofa in Reno, Nevada, January 20, 2008.
Now, Biela is a pretty sick puppy, if reports of his conduct and what he did are accurate and true. And if he did what he is accused of, hey, I’m all for applying the death penalty. But, was it necessary to include that he was a former Marine? What bearing does that have on the story? Other then to attempt to smear the Marines, there is no relevance or link. And
As of Monday, Dec. 1, officials in the United States Marine Corps confirmed Biela served in the Marines as an ammunitions technician. His service dates were Oct. 18, 1999 to Jan. 26, 2001. He was awarded the “Good Conduct” award in 2000. He was discharged from the Second Support Battalion based out of Camp LeJeune, NC. The Marine Corps cannot confirm reports that Biela was dishonorably discharged. A Marine Corps official said only Biela could discuss discharges. He enlisted in Spokane, they said.
So, he has been out of the Marines for almost 8 years. CNN didn’t tell us that tidbit, eh? There are probably a bunch of people thinking he got out recently.
I don’t think this is an attempt to smear the military. It’s only an item of interest. Of all the military branches, the Marines are considered the toughest, unwavering, etc., and it is an interesting aside that this murderer was a Marine. CNN wants us to click on the story and they probably generated a lot more clicks by put ‘Marine’ in the headline. No biggee. I am former military Army, and I don’t feel that the Marines have been smeared. I am still extremely proud of the Marines and all of our Armed Forces. I just thought, “Wow – and this creep was a Marine, too? Tsk, tsk.” and I shook my head. On we go…
I am a NoLOAD (No Longer On Active Duty) Marine. CNN would’ve gotten just as many “clicks” on this topic if the subject started out with “Suspected Serial Rapist”. There is no reason to publish this as “Former Marine”. Most know that CNN is a quite liberal news site and this isn’t only a jab at the Marines, but the US Military as a whole. This guy being former Marine has nothing to do with the acts he commited. You never see a headline like “Former Peace Activist pleads not guilty in merder charge”.
:/flag Semper Fi :/flag
merder??…..whoops, missed my spell check! I was too intrigued by the Flag tags 😉
The fact that he was a Marine is pertinent how??? Did he start raping while he was in the Marines and they failed to do anything about it? I am guessing no, so why does it matter whether he was a Marine or not? CNN is particularily bad about doing this! Former Marine, Former Air Force, Former Soldier, Former Navy Sailor, it just doesn’t matter. I am all about including it if it matters, which it clearly doesn’t in this case!
“Former peace activist” wouldn’t generate clicks. My my this seems to be a touchy subject. I have seen thousands of rape/murder headlines since internet news began but I personally found it interesting that this particular creep was a former Marine and I’m sure I wasn’t the only one. I agree that “there is no reason to publish this as ‘Former Marine'” but, in the big picture there is no reason to publish ANYTHING. We are bombarded by sensational news and money is generated by mouse clicks and if CNN got my attention by saying ‘former Marine’ who cares? A true Marine knows that most Americans won’t think any less of the Marine Corps. On the other hand, perhaps we shouldn’t keep the Marines on such a lofty superhuman pedestal. Knowing that this murderer was a former Marine shows that we’re all just simple humans.
You people are stupid…you are bitching about him being a Marine but not about the crime he committed. This website and the other dead beat losers out there that support sites like this is what’s wrong with this country. Instead of bitching about the angle CNN took on the story…how about taking into account the friends and family of the victim…oh I mean VICTIMS…who were raped and killed by this EX-MARINE. You people are a pathetic bunch of losers. Oh, and before you give me your “I don’t know a Marine or any military personnel” bullshit…I know plenty…and they are just as outraged/insulted that he was a Marine to begin with. Losers.
I understand the points your are making, CHeechat, but, consider that this is CNN, which has always had problems with the military, and that the guy has been out for years, all they are doing is using the story to tear down the military. Consider: had the guy been an ex-Democrat lawmaker, would that have been mentioned in the headline? Or even in the story? Probably not. 99% not. Granted, CNN wants to sensationalize the story, but, there was no reason to title the story that way when his past service has no bearing on the story at all.
Michelle, I did complain about the crime, and said he should get the death penalty if convicted. Personally, I am all for punishment such as the gallows or the chair. Someone who does something like that should suffer at least a little bit.
And, yeah, I ran across some posts from back in November when he was originally arrested, and they were outraged. Of course, most of the stories that mentioned his service did not mention that he left the Marines in 2001. I had to dig for about 20 minutes to find that info out.