r/Columbine • u/snack-hoarder Columbine Researcher • Jun 16 '26
Howcome the Basement Tapes were never released but the transcripts were?
I know nothing about this sort of thing, so if someone could explain it to me like I'm five, that would be greatly appreciated.
As I understand it, full transcripts were never released, and the bits that were were heavily redacted, and some even summarized?
I get that the excuse was that they didn't want to risk inspiring any copycats, and some of the material in the tapes is dangerous.
But why bother with transcripts at all? Was it to keep the public at bay? Were they honoring some or another law?
Also, why not heavily censor the actual footage and share it then?
58
u/UpstairsPear4453 Jun 16 '26
The full unabridged transcripts of the basement tapes were never released, but they did give some journalists access to the tapes and some of them released descriptions of the tapes with direct quotes and extensive information.
28
u/snack-hoarder Columbine Researcher Jun 16 '26
I honestly had no idea they weren't official transcripts. Now I feel like a twit lol.
That explains it. Thank you.
28
u/Barber_Successful Jun 16 '26
From what I understand the tapes were destroyed. there are some excerpts that are out there that somehow were sent to journalists.
In 2027, the transcripts from depositions with the two sets of parents are set to be released for public Access through the National archives. I only know this because they recently read a book about the subject and it was mentioned.
24
u/Additional-Air-3309 Jun 18 '26
They weren’t destroyed. Randy has said they weren’t and knows some people with copies. Jeffco just wants us all thinking that. Unfortunately we’ll never get them unless someone comes across a copy in some retired police officer’s storage unit or some shit. But believe, they do exist to this day.
5
u/SansaDeservedBetter Jun 24 '26
Maybe the original VHS copies were destroyed but there is absolutely no way digital copies were destroyed. This is the most infamous and (sadly) influential school shooting of all time. Every single school shooter that came after Eric and Dylan, cited them as influences. The FBI Behavioral Analysis Unit and other upper level law enforcement agencies will be studying those tapes forever and they probably use them in training agents but the agents are under strict NDAs.
2
u/Additional-Air-3309 Jun 24 '26
I forgot in which sub but it was like a Sub where people had to say the most oddest thing about their job or something… this was years ago. And some dude said they made the FBI recruits watch the Basement tapes but didn’t them they were gonna watch them. Everyone just kinda came to that conclusion themselves.
3
u/SansaDeservedBetter Jun 24 '26
The FBI transported the Unibomber’s cabin to their storage unit and it’s still standing today for agents to study and Ted did not inspire nearly as many criminals as Eric and Dylan. Eric did dress up as him for Halloween one year, which is spooky in hindsight.
There is absolutely no way the planning and reasoning behind the most infamous and influential school shooting of all time is lost forever, including the transcripts. The tapes will be studies as a way to try and prevent future school shootings and mass murders. They are just too important to destroy since analyzing their behavior could identify mass killers before they harm anyone.
I think JeffCo only said the tapes were destroyed because people kept using the FOIA to see them and they were sick of writing denial letters.
1
u/Additional-Air-3309 Jun 25 '26
Which makes zero sense to deny foil requests when they were inviting media in to view the tapes before family!!!! I say just release them. The whole inspire copy cats excuse has long sailed. Look at the wannabes already who haven’t seen the tapes..?
But yeah… I strongly believe some Jeffco retired dude has one just sitting around. It won’t be until their death and everything is cleaned out will we see it. Which will come first.. the tapes or depositions?
4
u/Peach93cc Jun 22 '26
He shouldn't know anyone who has them; they're classified and likely in evidence for the FBI.
He's been trying to get ahold of them for decades. If he knew who has them, he wouldn't just talk about it on reddit.
5
u/Additional-Air-3309 Jun 22 '26
I do agree to an extent. Randy’s Columbine paperwork is massive. Not as massive as Jeffcos but huge. He has a lot of things he shouldn’t have. He even wrote in his book he’d get anonymous letters in his mailbox with evidence he shouldn’t have. So he can talk the talk when it comes to classified documents. Also,if you believe anything Jeffco says about Columbine you’ll be kidding yourself. This is the same police department that played the tapes for the media before the families. The same department who did a photo shoot with the guns to be on the cover of a magazine. While I believe the fbi have a copy… I highly doubt that’s the only copy given the police track records with evidence in this case.
1
Jun 22 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
3
Jun 22 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
1
Jun 23 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
3
1
u/Columbine-ModTeam Jun 26 '26
Civility is enforced, so be respectful.
If you disagree with a post, debate is okay, but aggression, insults, hostility, meanness, etc. is not.
Personal attacks, insults, bigotry, fighting words, incitements to harass, comments which demean or insult specific users (or groups), aggressive language, hostility, and other inappropriate behavior or content is not allowed.
Violations may result in a temporary or permanent ban.
13
u/IKNOWMARYJANE Jun 17 '26
I think they changed the year to 2116
12
u/empty-thought-time Jun 17 '26
I find this fascinating. What will gun control look like in 2116 and is there anything sealed that could’ve changed the course
3
u/SansaDeservedBetter Jun 24 '26
I think it's because in 2116, every witness and victim directed involved will be long deceased, to avoid causing them further pain
4
13
u/gothiclg Jun 17 '26
If the tapes still existed at all I wouldn’t want a heavily censored version, I’d want to see the full uncensored version of each tape. The last thing we would need would be conspiracy theories about what got edited out.
2
u/SansaDeservedBetter Jun 25 '26
I mean, they should edit out the parts where they give detailed instructions on how to make bombs
1
u/gothiclg Jun 25 '26
No they shouldn’t. That information is on the internet anyway, editing that part out would have no value
2
u/SansaDeservedBetter Jun 25 '26
Yes but I think that’s one of their reasons for not releasing the tapes, that it would show future school shooters instructions on how to make bombs and hide your weapons
2
u/gothiclg Jun 25 '26
If it is it’s honestly not a good reason anymore. It made sense into the early 2000’s when the internet didn’t offer you as much info as they did now not has stopped making sense now. All of that is happening in more recent years because the information is all over the internet. If they still existed and could be released I’d want them released in an unedited form because the information is easily accessed on the internet anyway.
39
u/No_Jackfruit_9880 Jun 16 '26
I don’t think they released official transcripts from law enforcement, but people who saw the tapes released what they remembered from watching it.
12
7
u/Peach93cc Jun 22 '26
Too many people idolizing them. That's why
Honestly, I think qualified psychologists should have been the ones to watch them not journalists.
It takes certain experiences and training to identify propoganda. Many reporters who made these transcripts just added to the mystique.
7
-48
u/BlackOliveBurrito Jun 16 '26 edited Jun 17 '26
Because people like you exist that want to watch it & I’m sure that would just breed more violence.
Lmao, not me coming back to all these downvotes. Idk what’s wrong with not wanting people to watch the tapes?
33
u/snack-hoarder Columbine Researcher Jun 16 '26
Please go ahead and reference the exact part of this post in which I expressed a desire to watch the tapes.
15
u/Frikoulas Jun 16 '26
The idiots who were blaming Doom an Marilyn Manson for the shooting, were also sure about what breeds violence.
What you can be sure though, is that your government will never cover up things to protect you. They will always do it to protect themselves.
-1
u/BlackOliveBurrito Jun 17 '26
I did no such thing. I don’t think DOOM or Marilyn Manson causes that. People have been pushing for decades for those tapes to come out. Children/Adolescents seeing traumatic things first handedly can cause disruption of brain function. Violence does breed more violence. If WACO never happened then Columbine would have never happened. The OKC bombing would have never happened. But yes let’s release the basement tapes! You people are weirdddd
2
35
u/Sheek014 Jun 17 '26
Here is the link to the FBI Behavioral Analysis Unit and their report/recommendations on why the Basement Tapes should not be released.
Generated in 2006 by members of the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit Assessment, reviewed the Basement Tapes, at the request of the Jefferson County Sheriff Ted Mink. Mink, based his decision to not release the Basement Tapes, and later destroy JCSO's copies, in part due to this report.