Claims extracted
26
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
4%
1 of 26 hedged
("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
not political
takes no side on a contested political question
Publisher signals
66/100
CBS News's corrections and
hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
1
Politics
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
In Cary, North Carolina, Vanessa Minter was among the first people on the ground to learn about the terror unfolding in the air on
.Minter, an American Airlines reservations agent,
asserted
Minter → learn → air
was on the other end of a phone call with
, who was sitting in the back galley of hijacked American Airlines Flight 11, which had departed Boston for Los Angeles.
asserted
which → sit → Angeles
"She said, 'I think we're being hijacked,'" Minter recalled in an interview with "CBS Mornings."
asserted
Minter → say → Mornings
Minter said she knew the threat was real from the tone of Ong's voice.
asserted
threat → say → voice
"I had to ask myself, could I have done that?
uncertain
I → have → that
She knew what she was doing.
asserted
she → know → what
She knew what information we needed, and she was all business," Minter explained.
asserted
Minter → know → information
Ong relayed critical information during the call that contributed to the FAA's decision to close U.S. airspace.
asserted
that → relay → airspace
She would be the last person Ong spoke with before the plane crashed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center.
asserted
plane → speak → Center
Minter recalled some of Ong's final words during their conversation: "Pray for us.
asserted
Minter → recall → us
"I was the last person that she spoke to, and I couldn't make it better.
asserted
it → speak → that
I couldn't even help," Minter said.
asserted
Minter → help → ?
Three weeks after the Sept. 11 attacks, Minter penned a letter to Ong's family in California.
asserted
Minter → pen → California
She described Ong's bravery and concern for passengers and their safety.
asserted
She → describe → passengers
"I want you to know that she will always be in my heart and my prayers as I go through life," she wrote.
asserted
she → want → life
The letter was given to Ong's older brother Harry, who is now 77 and a grandfather of five.
asserted
who → give → five
Harry said that was the first time the family learned about the midair call.
asserted
family → say → call
"When we listened to it, we were so proud of Betty," Harry said.
asserted
Harry → listen → Betty
Every month, Harry visits a memorial for Ong at Cypress Lawn Memorial Park in Colma, California — just outside of San Francisco — where she has a niche and a grave.
asserted
she → visit → niche
Crews recovered a bone fragment with her DNA two blocks from Ground Zero in 2002.
asserted
Crews → recover → 2002
We envelop almost 3,000 people who have perished that day, and we have to just remember them and to say that they're all heroes, and many, many more," Harry said.
asserted
Harry → envelop → them
For 25 years, Minter never made the journey out west to meet Ong's family — until now.
asserted
Minter → make → family
She recently reunited with Harry at Ong's memorial.
asserted
She → reunite → memorial
Afterward, he invited her to his home, where he shared some of the family's keepsakes, including Ong's ID tags and a letter from President Bush.
asserted
he → invite → Bush
She was also able to meet Ong's mother, Gum, who is 99 years old.
asserted
who → meet → mother
I feel like I'm a member of this family already," Minter told Gum.
asserted
Minter → feel → Gum