- Steve Centanni
Steven James Centanni (born
July 18 ,1946 ) is an Americannews reporter forFox News Channel .Journalism career
Centanni joined FNC in 1996. He is currently based in
Washington D.C. as a national correspondent.During
Operation Iraqi Freedom , he served as an embedded journalist with theNavy SEALs and provided numerous first reports for the network, including a report that the U.S. had captured two main offshore oil terminals located convert|22|mi|km offIraq 's southern coast, preventing them from being blown up by Iraqi forces.cite web|title=Fox News Bio Steve Centanni|publisher=Fox News Channel |accessmonthday=August 15 |accessyear=2006|url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,1182,00.html]Previous to Fox, Centanni had worked for
KRON-TV inSan Francisco, California .Education
Centanni attended the University of Colorado and earned a
Bachelor's degree in broadcasting fromSan Francisco State University . Centanni also attended Los Altos High School inLos Altos, California , graduating in 1964.Gaza kidnapping
On
August 14 ,2006 , he was kidnapped by Palestinian gunmen while on assignment inGaza City , along withOlaf Wiig , acameraman fromNew Zealand . A witness saw two vehicles blocking the journalist's transmission truck and a masked man put a gun to their bodyguard's head, forcing him to the ground.cite web|title=2 Fox News journalists kidnapped in Gaza|publisher=AP|accessmonthday=August 14 |accessyear=2006|url=http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060814/ap_en_tv/gaza_journalists_3] cite web|title=Gunmen kidnap Fox News journalists in Gaza: witness|publisher=Reuters|accessmonthday=August 16 |accessyear=2006|url=http://today.reuters.com/news/articlenews.aspx?type=topNews&storyid=2006-08-14T202904Z_01_L14273140_RTRUKOC_0_US-MIDEAST-GAZA-KIDNAPPING.xml&src=rss&rpc=22]An internal message by Fox News Channel Senior Vice President John Moody confirmed the abduction and instructed employees not to comment on it.cite web|title=FNCers Kidnapped In Gaza: "Pray For Their Release. I Will Keep You Posted" --Moody|publisher=Media Bistro|accessmonthday=August 16 |accessyear=2006|url=http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/fnc/fncers_kidnapped_in_gaza_pray_for_their_release_i_will_keep_you_posted_moody_41981.asp]
On
August 19 , Fox News Channel broadcasted a video by Centanni's brother pleading for the reporter's immediate release.On
August 23 , theHoly Jihad Brigades claimed responsibility for the kidnappings of both Centanni and Wiig. They demanded the release of all "Muslim prisoners" by theUnited States within 72 hours. A [http://www.ramattan.com/uploaded/Kidnaped.rar video] was broadcast byAl-Jazeera . No armed men were in the video, and the captives appeared to be in good health.cite web|title=New Group Claims Fox News Kidnappings|publisher=Associated Press |accessmonthday=August 23 |accessyear=2006|url=http://www.breitbart.com/news/2006/08/23/D8JM55701.html] cite web|title=Gaza militants claim Fox kidnap|publisher=BBC |accessmonthday=August 23 |accessyear=2006|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/5278726.stm]On
August 26 , the three-day deadline passed uneventfully at 9:00GMT . Hours earlier,Ismail Haniyeh , a seniorHamas official, said there were promises that the journalists "will not be harmed" and that he expected the situation to resolve in the "coming hours".cite web|title=Palestinians Hopeful on Fox News Crew|publisher=AP|accessmonthday=August 26 |accessyear=2006|url=http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/G/GAZA_JOURNALISTS]Release
On
August 27 , the Palestinian news service Ramattan and FOX News reportedcite web|title=Kidnapped Fox journalists released|publisher=CNN |accessmonthday=August 27 |accessyear=2006|url=http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/08/27/fox.journalists/index.html] that Centanni and Wiig were released unharmed, shortly after a new video was released. In the video, both journalists, wearing beige robes, read statements saying that they had converted toIslam , with Centanni stating "Islam is not just meant for some people; it is the true religion for all people at all times."cite web|title=Kidnapped Fox journalists released|publisher=CNN |accessmonthday=August 27 |accessyear=2006|url=http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/08/27/fox.journalists/index.html] After being freed, Centanni stated "We were forced to convert to Islam at gunpoint, and don't get me wrong here, I have the highest respect for Islam, and learned a lot of very good things about it, but it was something we felt we had to do, because they had the guns, and we didn't know what the hell was going on."cite web|title=Kidnapped Fox journalists released|publisher=CNN |accessmonthday=August 27 |accessyear=2006|url=http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/08/27/fox.journalists/index.html]References
External links
* [http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,1182,00.html Bio on FoxNews.com]
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