[em]Times[/em] Feuer Really Covers the Bronx; Martial Arts!

Wed, 04 Apr 2007 17:39:59 -0400

In metro reporting, it's important to get someone's occupation and location of residence right. Today, The Times Alan Feuer goes to great lengths not to let the reader down. The piece begins:

A Bronx martial arts instructor from the Bronx pleaded guilty today to a charge of "conspiring to provide material support or resources" to Al Qaeda, said Michael J. Garcia, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York.

Get it? He's from the Bronx and knows martial arts!

In making his plea before United States Magistrate Gabriel W. Gorenstein, the martial arts instructor, Tarik Shah, admitted that he had agreed to train Qaeda terrorists in martial arts and hand-to-hand combat with weapons.

Again. He's a martial arts instructor and agreed to teach martial arts. Down three paragraphs.

The case began in May 2005, with the arrest of Mr. Shah, a New York jazz musician and martial arts expert, who was accused of swearing an oath of allegiance to Al Qaeda. Mr. Shah, who grew up in the Bronx....

UPDATE: The link above now directs to the newer version, which ran on B1 today. (The earlier, Bronx-centric one is missing).

Observer » [em]Times[/em] Feuer Really Covers the Bronx; Martial Arts!

[em]Times[/em] Feuer Really Covers the Bronx; Martial Arts!