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Dear Sir or Madam:
You have perpetuated a terrible hoax by attributing the Filipino hate letter you published to Art Bell. As a computer and Internet expert, I have, by examining the original e-mail's header information, ascertained that the message originated from a public access computer terminal at UCSD and has nothing to do with Art Bell. I am not associated with Mr. Bell, but I do appreciate his radio program, know that he is not capable of what is being claimed, and want to have people understand how easy it is for such divisive hoax letters to be placed on the Internet. Do you understand how easy it is for someone to hoax such a letter and return address? I could, were I so inclined (and I am not) place such a hate letter on the Internet signed in exactly the same manner and with any desired e-mail return address that would make it seem like it originated with staff members at your publication. It is, unfortunately, an easy thing to accomplish by those with the necessary Internet knowledge. As you may know, Mr. Bell has his share of enemies due to the information he brings to light for the public good, and some of those would like nothing better than to see him placed in harm's way, and this is likely what has happened. By so targeting a racial and national group, and by writing such a letter, that nefarious cause would be served.
You must appreciate how absurd the attribution of this letter to Mr. Bell is on many levels. Here are three primary reasons why this charge is absurd. First, Mr. Bell's wife is half Filipino, making the charge that much more heartbreaking. Mr. Bell and his wife have a loving relationship which has been open to public scrutiny through many years of public exposure on radio and at public events. Their mutual love and respect is clear, and Mr. Bell speaks lovingly of her on the air from time to time. Secondly, it makes no sense at all for a public figure to place his safety and professional position at risk by writing such a letter and signing it personally. And third, his position over the years on the air with regard to racial and ethnic issues is clear. He consistently upholds the idea that tolerance and understanding are the way to address differences, and to advance the condition of the human race. At no time has he ever spoken unkindly of any race or ethnic group or nationality. To attribute such hatred and racism to him is simply absurd, as he advocates exactly the opposite positions.
It would be in the highest interests of the truth, as well as fairness to Mr. Bell. if you were to print a retraction of your representation that Mr. Bell is the author of that horrible letter. Mr. Bell is in fact a wonderful friend of the Filipino people, and not your enemy. You have perpetrated a terrible hoax and injustice. And further, I would think that you would be completely outraged that you and your publication have been used to perpetuate hatred and falsely indite an innocent man, who ironically, is your friend. The forces of darkness have turned friend against friend to divide them. Do you want to be a party to this? Given that you have endangered Mr. Bell's life as he is now receiving death threats, I would suggest that it will not be sufficient to simply print a retraction. I believe that it will be necessary for you to print a feature article so that the retraction will be seen as widely as possible. One way that you may save face in such an article is to also feature how easy it is for such Internet messages to be falsified, and how even sophisticated publications like yours may be fooled. You can turn a terrible mistake and injustice into a positive educational event. I hope that your publication and staff are sufficiently honorable to take this high road. I know that you are, and that this has been a terrible error.
The Internet is a wonderful tool, and can serve to educate, uplift, and unify people in spirit everywhere, by giving them a chance to understand each other. But like any tool, it can also be used to promulgate hatred through misinformation and disinformation. I urge you to rise above this confusion, and to retract the error as a major feature article that also educates the public about the misuse of the Internet to divide people and create hatred. This is in the highest interests of the goals of your publication to educate, inform, and uplift your readership. You may also wish to include a letter by Mr. Bell explaining the details of this terrible event from his point of view, and his true feelings about the noble Filipino people. The terrible irony in this matter is that in the loving marriage of Mr. Bell and his wife of Filipino origin, he has cherished Filipino culture - the exact opposite sentiment of what your publication has suggested he feels. Please right this terrible injustice, and this terrible threat to Mr. Bell's safety.
Sincerely,
Roger Silber
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