WASHINGTON -- The U.S. government allowed police in Ferguson, Missouri, to restrict more than 37 square miles of airspace for nearly two weeks in August for safety reasons, but audio recordings show that local authorities instead wanted to keep news helicopters away during violent street protests. On Aug. 12, amid demonstrations following the
Federal Government Approved Ferguson No-Fly Area To Keep Press From Covering Police Crackdown Of Protestors
“They finally admitted it really was to keep the media out,” said one FAA manager about the St. Louis County Police Department in a series of recorded telephone conversations obtained by The Associated Press. “But they were a little concerned of, obviously, anything else that could be going on.”