Reporter's Sex-Trafficking Questions Silences Craigslist Founder

By: Charles Cooper
Topics: In The News ,; Tech Talk

Craig Newmark, founder of Craig's List

(Credit: AP Photo/Stephen Chernin)

Craig Newmark, the mild-mannered founder of Craigslist, doesn't have the same outgoing reputation as fellow tech mogul Steve Ballmer. Then again, Newmark he's hardly a novice. Over the years, Newmark has been coached by his PR handlers to the point where he's capable of doing interviews and making public presentations as a panel participants without embarrassing himself.

Time for a refresher course?

Newmark was Newmark was stunned into silence during an ambush interview by a CNN reporter who pressed him about Craigslist's failure to eliminate ads for sex trafficking.

Some have estimated that sex ads make up roughly one-third of the site's revenue. So when the reporter, Amber Lyon, first approached him with a question about screening out ads for sex with minors, Newmark told her that the company had explained all that on its corporate blog. He added that Craigslist has done a "pretty good" job" for a community of 50 million people. After a cutaway with a Washington detective, Lyon returned to the attack.

"What are you guys doing to protect these girls?" she asked.

Newmark just looked at her for several seconds in silence and then Lyon pulled out copies of sex ads downloaded from Craigslist, reading from the copy.

"Have you reported this to us?" he asked.

"Why do I have the responsibility to report this to you when it's your website?" she said. "You're the one posting this online."

That didn't go down well. He walked away for a moment and then decided to return. Then Lyon used a line from an earlier interview suggesting that Craigslist was at risk of turning into the "Walmart of sex trafficking."

That did it. Newmark had had enough. He turned, walked a few feet away in silence and stood there for a few moments. A woman who may have been a company PR representative is then seen whispering something into his ear. At that point, Newmark walked away for good.

"Thank you for your time, Craig," Lyon said as he strolled away for good.

In an e-mailed statement to CBSNews.com, a spokeswoman wrote that the reporter "approached Craig under false pretenses for this "ambush" interview. It was a direct violation of the Society of Professional Journalists code of ethics which states that a journalist should "Avoid undercover or other surreptitious methods of gathering information except when traditional open methods will not yield information vital to the public."

Charles Cooper is an executive editor at CNET News. He has covered technology and business for more than 25 years, working at CBSNews.com, the Associated Press, Computer & Software News, Computer Shopper, PC Week, and ZDNet. E-mail Charlie.

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by JeffLewis999 February 17, 2011 11:00 PM EST: The following links will give you more information about sex trafficking especially the Washington post article and the Guardian and BBC links.

Washington post article:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/22/AR2007092201401.html

News night BBC video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PtaEdI3aiwg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6rvA60zdkD8

http://mensnewsdaily.com/glennsacks/2009/10/30/more-on-the-great-sex-trafficking-scam-in-the-u-k/

Guardian newspaper:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/oct/20/government-trafficking-enquiry-fails

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/oct/20/trafficking-numbers-women-exaggerated

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/10/22/gov_proposals/print.html

www.spiked-online.com/index.php/site/article/9843/

Sex Trafficking in Sports Events:
http://www.dallasobserver.com/2011-01-27/news/the-super-bowl-prostitute-myth-100-000-hookers-won-t-be-showing-up-in-dallas/

Human traffic website:
http://traffickingwatch.org/node/18

http://www.justice.gov/oig/reports/OJP/a0826/final.pdf

India newspaper:
http://www.thehoot.org/web/home/story.php?storyid=3622&mod=1&pg=1&sectionId=9&valid=true#

Other sources:

http://sextraffickingtruths.blogspot.com/

http://bebopper76.wordpress.com/2010/11/09/sex-trafficking-lies-myths/

http://mensnewsdaily.com/glennsacks/2009/10/30/more-on-the-great-sex-trafficking-scam-in-the-u-k/

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1227418/SPECIAL-INVESTIGATION-The-myth-Britains-foreign-sex-slaves.html

http://www.bayswan.org/traffick/Weitzer_Criminologist.pdf

http://www.spiked-online.com/index.php?/site/article/2850/

http://www.spiked-online.com/index.php?/site/reviewofbooks_article/5027/

http://www.misandryreview.com/heretical-sex/2010/04/04/more-sex-trafficking-lies/

http://edition.cnn.com/2010/SPORT/football/07/09/prostitute.gallery/index.html?iref=allsearch&fbid=0Ox1WH9NNpl; Reply to this comment


by JeffLewis999 February 17, 2011 10:59 PM EST: Sex trafficking is illegal and the pentities are very severe. It is very difficult to force someone to be a sex slave, they would have to have 24 hour guards posted and be watched 365 days a year, 24 hours per day. Have the threat of violence if they refused, and have no one notice and complain to the authorities or police. They would need to hide from the general public yet still manage to see customers from the general public. They would need to provide them with medical care, food, shelter, and have all their basic needs met. They would need to have the sex slaves put on a fake front that they enjoyed what they were doing, act flirtatious and do their job well. They would have to deal with the authorities looking for the missing women, and hide any money they may make, since it comes from illegal activity. They must do all of this while constantly trying to prevent the sex slaves from escaping and reporting them to the police. This is extremely difficult to do, which makes this activity rare. These criminals would be breaking dozens of major laws not just one. Kidnapping itself is a serious crime. There are many laws against sex trafficking, sex slavery, kidnapping, sex abuse, rape, sexual harassment etc. If someone is behind it, they will be breaking many serious laws, be in big trouble, and will go to jail for many long years.
While there are some women who may be true victims. And it is possible for this to happen in rare situations. This is a small rare group of people and that the numbers and scale of this crime is exaggerated. The very nature of someone pulling off a kidnapping and forced sex for profit appears to be very difficult. Since it would be difficult this makes this crime rare. Not impossible, but extremely rare.; Reply to this comment


by JeffLewis999 February 17, 2011 10:59 PM EST: Many women in the sex business are independent workers. They don't have a pimp.
They work for themselves, advertise themselves, and keep all the money for themselves. No one forces them, because there isn't anyone to force them. They go out and find their own customers, set their own prices, and arrange everything by themselves. Sometimes they may employ others to help them, but these are not pimps. If for example, she hires an internet web design company to make a website for her, does that make the web design company a pimp? If she pays a phone company for a phone to do business, does this make the phone company a pimp? If she puts an ad in the paper, does this make the editor a pimp? If she puts the money she makes into a bank account does this make the bank a pimp?

A lot of anti prostitution groups would say yes. Everyone and everybody is a pimp.
These groups make up lies, and false statistics that no one bothers to check. A big reason they do this is because it provides high paying jobs for them. They get big donations, and grants from the government, charity, churches, etc. to have these groups, and pay these workers.

The Sex Trafficking/Slavery idea is used to outlaw all prostitution around the world by saying that all women are victims even if they do it willing. This hurts any real victims because it labels all sex workers as victims. Everything I heard about this problem was Americans complaining about it, but I never heard from the so-called victims themselves complaining about it. Why is that? Many of the self appointed experts complaining about this have never even met or seen a real forced against their will victim.; Reply to this comment


by greenfountain August 25, 2010 11:04 PM EDT: That is so rich, the guy who is raking in millions from porn ads, which have lead to murders and rapes specifically encouraged by the anonymity of Craigslist
- Right.. Craigslist encourages murder and rape. By the way, you can't be murdered or raped over the internet. If you show up to somebody's house that you don't know? Sure, you can. Just like if you go to a bar and go home with some guy or gal you don't know they could do something bad. The "Walmart of sex-trafficking" is so over-the-top ridiculous- as are these comments.

Even top flight PR spin can't the get the egg off his face from that disaster of an interview. (Amongst the best I've ever seen, hello 60 Minutes, looking for fresh blood?)
--- The interview was tabloid journalism.

Aside from major issues like murder and pedophilia, it is rife with fraud and scammers.
--- Again, noone has ever been murdered or molested over an internet connection. One should use common sense dealing with anyone in real life.; Reply to this comment


by LostNMissing August 19, 2010 12:11 PM EDT: As the President and Founder of the Non-Profit organization that is working with the family of Megan Waterman, I have no choice but to make the following comments.

In Mr. Buckmaster's own words he stated "we will continue to work tirelessly, in tandem with law enforcement and key nonprofits, to ensure that any victims receive the assistance they desperately need and deserve, and that those responsible are imprisoned.", So I ask... why has Mr. Buckmaster not responded to any of our requests to offer a reward for the safe return of Ms. Waterman?

If Craigslist is striving to keep a "clean site" and they've been scrutinizing the ads...tell me how Megan Waterman's escort "services" slipped past Mr. Buckmaster's radar?

Explain, Mr. Buckmaster, how a young single mother of 22 years of age, who worked two jobs to raise her toddler daughter, was able to become accessible from the State of Maine to "johns" in the State of NY had it not been taught to her and encouraged by her "boyfriend" , of only 11 months, via Craigslist?

On June 06, 2010 at 1:30 am Megan left the hotel in Hauppauge, NY alone and has met a terrible fate... whether it be she was abducted and trafficked or murdered by those who utilize Craigslist to catch their prey. Were not these horrid crimes learned enough from the actions of Phillip Markoff?

How can Craigslist completely ignore the fact that the family has asked repeatedly for them to step up and HALT all Craigslist personal services and to take responsibility in their share of the missing status of Megan Waterman by offering a reward for her safe return? If they REALLY cared...they would.

If a personal service was legitimate, those who run their services would have websites, advertisements and other means of marketing as any other reputable business. Perhaps the IRS needs to become involved in researching those who are posting on Craigslist? All I can say is...if Ebay can keep those from selling personal services, there is no reason that Craigslist cannot do the same. I am in agreement that it does come down to the loss of money. Hence, that means that Craigslist IS indeed contributing to sex for profit by enabling a venue to exist that contributes and enables illegal prostitution.; Reply to this comment


by unblinkingeye21 August 18, 2010 1:39 PM EDT: That is so rich, the guy who is raking in millions from porn ads, which have lead to murders and rapes specifically encouraged by the anonymity of Craigslist, is doling out moral advice to the CNN journo about professional ethics. Pot meet kettle. Even top flight PR spin can't the get the egg off his face from that disaster of an interview. (Amongst the best I've ever seen, hello 60 Minutes, looking for fresh blood?) Craig gave voice, err was speechless, about what is obvious to all of us: Friends don't let friends use Craigslist. Aside from major issues like murder and pedophilia, it is rife with fraud and scammers. Kudos to CNN's Amber Lyon for getting at the ugly truth Craigslist has so far been willing to correct.; Reply to this comment


by longtree-2009 August 4, 2010 6:33 PM EDT: wives, husbands, girlfriends, boyfriends should check craiglist ads when your significant other has time on their hands or is left alone for a while. ads are posted for sex of all kinds by those already in a relationship, or marriage.; Reply to this comment


by Wake Havasu August 4, 2010 4:40 PM EDT: Sex ads are wide open on Craig s List.

Everything else is heavily monitored.

A NAMBLA member could place 100 ads a day on one PVA for years.; Reply to this comment