Sure enough, this morning the mainstream newspapers of St. Louis are running CAIR’s smear press release without a hint of skepticism, with no context for readers on the history of CAIR as a radical Islamic front group, or their status as an unindicted co-conspirator in the Holy Land Hamas funding case: Mosque threatened, Muslim group says.

ST. LOUIS — A national Muslim civil rights organization has asked the FBI to investigate what it considers threats made on the Internet against a Bosnian mosque in St. Louis.

One blog post [These were not “blog posts.” They were comments. – ed.] cited by the group made reference to vandalism and another to the use of dynamite.

Zachary Lowe, a special agent in the St. Louis office of the FBI, said Tuesday that while he could not confirm an investigation, the bureau “takes all threats against people very seriously, especially religious and ethnic groups.”

The comments were made on at least two blogs and related to a posting about a minaret being built at the mosque. The mosque is the Islamic Community Center, or Madina Masjid, at 4666 Lansdowne Avenue. A minaret is a tower from which the Muslim call to prayer is traditionally sounded.

The author of a blog called “Gateway Pundit: Observations of the World from the heart of Jesusland,” posted three photos of the minaret covered with scaffolding. One of the photos included the caption: “Those calls to prayers ought to go over really well with the people of this South St. Louis neighborhood.”

The “Gateway Pundit” author also cited another blog, Republican Riot, saying the Muslim call to prayer “is to be broadcast several times a day.”

But Madina Masjid’s spiritual leader, Imam Muhamed Hasic, said the minaret is symbolic, not practical. There is no sound system or speakers on the minaret, which is scheduled to be completed next week. He said the minaret will not be used to call Muslims to prayer.

Another blog, called “Little Green Footballs,” linked to the “Gateway Pundit” post, and several comments on “Little Green Footballs,” caused the Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations to contact the FBI, said Ibrahim Hooper, the council’s spokesman.

“We ourselves get these kinds of hate messages and threats frequently,” Hooper said. “But you never know who’s just talking and who’s going to carry out some these threats, so you have to check them out.”

CAIR’s propaganda also made it to the local CBS affiliate, KMOV, where they uncritically label LGF an “anti-Muslim site” at CAIR’s bidding: FBI investigating threats made against mosque in St. Louis.

St. Louis, MO (KMOV) - The FBI is just beginning its investigation into threats made against a mosque in south St. Louis.

The mosque has had no problems until threats popped up on the internet just this week.

The American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) Tuesday asked the FBI to investigate the apparent threats that were posted on an anti-Muslim internet site.

The apparent threats come following an arson attack on a Tennessee mosque allegedly by three members of the “Christian Identity” movement and a fire-bomb attack on a Minnesota Muslim business.

The FBI declined to talk to News 4 about this case, but they did say they are taking these threats seriously and are investigating them as a possible hate crime.

My question to both of these media outlets: why the hell don’t you contact me before running this crap? It’s not hard to find Little Green Footballs on the web, and there’s a handy contact form that sends me an email right there on every page.

If either of you had bothered to do your jobs, you would have learned that:

* There are more than 25,000 registered users at LGF.

* There are often more than 5,000 comments posted every single day.

* It is run by *one* person, and comments such as those quoted by CAIR are policed and deleted as soon as possible. But this is an open discussion forum, and comments do not represent the opinion of LGF — as the disclaimer states on every single page of comments.

* The comments quoted by CAIR were posted at LGF for less than two hours before CAIR sent out their press release, and were deleted as soon as the administrator (that would be me) became aware of them. CAIR did not contact me about the comments either—they just went straight to the FBI, and put out a libelous press release.

Bottom line: the mainstream media are disgraceful once again, carrying water for a known radical Islamic organization and failing to do due diligence in covering the story.

More at Gateway Pundit and Cristy Li.

UPDATE at 2/20/08 10:00:20 am:

CAIR’s press release also made it unedited on to the Fox Business site.