Sen. Graham on Attacks: U.S. Journalists Should Be Concerned

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said Wednesday he thought the terrorist attack on a French satirical magazine was at least inspired by ISIS if not a case of "command and control," and suggested it should put journalists in this country on alert.

"People in your business need to be concerned," he told a CNN reporter. "You are soft targets." Asked if that was based on intelligence—Graham is a member of the Armed Services Committee—he said it was based on "common sense."

Graham suggested the U.S. should raise the terror threat warning level in this country. He argued copycats are likely, saying there are probably people already here who would want to do the same thing.  The gunmen in the French attack were still at large at press time, according to reports, though a “massive manhunt” was underway.

But Graham also used that suggested threat to argue against Obama Administration sequester-related defense budget cuts

John Eggerton

Contributing editor John Eggerton has been an editor and/or writer on media regulation, legislation and policy for over four decades, including covering the FCC, FTC, Congress, the major media trade associations, and the federal courts. In addition to Multichannel News and Broadcasting + Cable, his work has appeared in Radio World, TV Technology, TV Fax, This Week in Consumer Electronics, Variety and the Encyclopedia Britannica.