By Matthew Russell Lee
UNdisclosed Location, March 23 -- After Pamela Falk of CBS took photographs during the non-consensual search of Inner City Press office by the UN on March 18, and photographs were published by BuzzFeed on March 22, Inner City Press posed a question.
Why did Falk, who is also the president of the UN Correspondents Association which has tried to get Inner City Press thrown out of the UN, “take and presumptively give to BuzzFeed photographs from Inner City Press' office?”
Before the BuzzFeed story, which came out Friday afternoon and which noted that Falk declined to comment, Inner City Press had asked in writing and in the March 19 UN noon briefing why the president of UNCA, Falk, was allowed by the UN to be taking photographs of the raid.
Falk never answered that question; nor to the UN, even when it was re-iterated to UN official Stephane Dujarric in writing.
Now now on Saturday afternoon, Pam Falk who is a lawyer has sent not answer but a legal threat:
From: Falk, Pamela @cbsnews.com
Date: Sat, Mar 23, 2013 at 2:28 PM
Subject: Inner City Press
To: Matthew.Lee [at] innercitypress.com
Cc: "Falk, Pamela" @cbsnews.com
Date: Sat, Mar 23, 2013 at 2:28 PM
Subject: Inner City Press
To: Matthew.Lee [at] innercitypress.com
Cc: "Falk, Pamela" @cbsnews.com
Dear Mr. Lee:
On March 22, you published the following statement, referring to me:
“Why did she take, and presumptively give to BuzzFeed, photographs from inside Inner City Press' office?”
I did not give photographs to BuzzFeed or to anyone else, and I did not take the photographs that BuzzFeed published.
Please cease and desist from publishing statements which are either inaccurate or cast my actions in a false light.
Pamela Falk
There. We've run it in full, less than an hour after receipt. But in what light CAN we cast Falk's ghoulish photographing of the raid of Inner City Press' office on March 18?
Falk has had numerous opportunities to clarify or just explain why she took the photographs, but has not. If she appears in a negative light it is largely Falk's fault.
She bears other responsibility -- presumptively, of course. The UN has denied, through Dujarric, giving the photographs to BuzzFeed. They were given by an anonymous “Concerned UN Reporter” who is then quoted defending UNCA.
Falk is the president of UNCA. Just as with her UNCA Executive Committee members defacing flyers of the Free UN Coalition for Access, and setting up anonymous social media accounts to try to undermine FUNCA and Inner City Press, Falk bears some responsibility, that no tin horn cease and desist letter with the term of art “false light” can solve.
Falk, as we've reported, claimed to Inner City Press on February 22 that she was advised by lawyers -- herself? -- that for Inner City Press to contact media organizations including hers to ask their policies "might constitute a crime."
Why has UNCA under Falk gone even further into the gutter, with false social media accounts? Again, why DID Falk take photographs of the UN's raid on Inner City Press' office, and search of its papers, on March 18?
And what steps has Falk as UNCA president taken to identify which UNCA “leader,” if as she says not herself, obtained the photographs taken during the raid and forwarded them, anonymously, to BuzzFeed? We will have more on this. UNCA's in the gutter - but CBS and CBS News are hitting new lows daily. Watch this site.
