By John R. Ellement, Mac Daniel, and Andrew Ryan, Globe Staff (Jan 31st, 4:09 ET)

The discovery of suspicious objects on bridges, near a medical center, underneath an interstate, and in other crowded public places has ignited fears across Boston, snarling traffic and sending state and local police scrambling across the city.

None of the suspicious objects have been determined to be bombs. It was not immediately clear if the incidents were connected or part of some elaborate hoax.

A law enforcement source who has been briefed on the investigation said officials have found "commonality" among some, but not all, of the objects recovered by Boston, state and transit police throughout the day.

None of the objects examined by police contained explosives, the source said.

Governor Deval Patrick told the Associated Press: "It's a hoax -- and it's not funny."

Investigators have found that at least two of the packages that were similar -- both were composed of electronic circuit boards with LED lights attached. No one has called to claim responsibility for any of the items, the law enforcement source said.

The source said it appears the object scrutinized by State Police on the Longfellow Bridge may not be connected to the objects that were found with electronic equipment. The item on the Longfellow Bridge may have been left behind some time ago by a bridge maintenance crew.

The Coast Guard has closed the Charles River to all water traffic from the Museum of Science to the locks where the river flows into Boston Harbor because of the reports of bombs on several bridges, according to Chief Petty Officer Scott Carr.

This afternoon, investigators found a device on the BU Bridge today "similar to the Sullivan Square" package that forced the closure this morning of northbound Interstate 93, said Jennifer Mieth, spokeswoman for state fire marshal Stephen Coan, whose office oversees the State police Bomb Squad.

Like the item found at the Sullivan Square station, the BU package was attached to the underpinnings of the bridge.

"It was not an explosive device," she said of the suspicious item found on the BU Bridge.

State police bomb experts examined another suspicious item -- similar in construction to the items found at Sullivan Station and on the BU Bridge -- that was found attached to the Longfellow Bridge, which spans the Charles River from Boston to Cambridge.

Boston police are separately investigating suspicious items at Columbus and Stuart streets and near the New England Medical Center.
Storrow drive was closed at 2 p.m., according to State Police. Thirty minutes later police opened one eastbound lane to traffic.

According to Boston police, traffic from Charles Street is being blocked from entering Storrow Drive while several law enforcement agencies investigate more suspicious objects.

The MBTA suspended service on the Red Line for about 15 minutes between Park and Kendall stations. By 2:35 p.m., the T resumed service on the line.

By Mac Daniel, John Ellement, and Andrew Ryan, Globe Staff (Jan 31st, 5:00pm EST)

Turner Broadcasting acknowledged late this afternoon that the suspicious objects that ignited fears of bombs across Boston today were magnetic lights that were part of an outdoor marketing campaign for an adult cartoon.

Turner was promoting Adult Swim's animated television show "Aqua Teen Hunger Force" in Boston and nine other cities, according to a statement e-mailed by Shirley Powell, a company spokeswoman.

"Parent company Turner Broadcasting is in contact with local and federal law enforcement on the exact locations of the billboards," the e-mail statement said. "We regret that they were mistakenly thought to pose any danger."

Governor Deval Patrick said in a statement that he was "deeply dismayed" by the "stunt."

"I understand that Turner Broadcasting has purported to apologize for this," Patrick said. "I intend nonetheless to consult with the Attorney General and other advisors about what recourse we may have."

Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino also blasted the company.

"I am prepared to take any and all legal action against Turner Broadcasting and its affiliates for any and all expenses incurred during the response to today's incidents," Menino said in a statement. "Boston will look to coordinate our efforts going forward with Cambridge, Somerville and any other affected agencies."

"Aqua Teen Hunger Force" airs late at night and involves animated characters that are depicted as fast food products, including a ball of ground meat, French fries, and a milk shake.

The objects that had been placed on bridges and other infrastructure across the city are patterns of lighted dots in the shape of boxy characters on the cartoon show. The flashing lights are on black rectangles a little larger than laptops.

The boxy characters are named Err and Ignignokt and appear to be raising their middle fingers and giving obscene gestures. Err is described on the "Aqua Teen Hunger Force" website as "rebellious and angry."

Crews are in the process of removing the devices from overpasses and other locations throughout the city. Turner Broadcasting's statement said the objects had been in place for two to three weeks in Boston, New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Atlanta, Seattle, Portland, Austin, San Francisco, and Philadelphia.

Today's chaos began at 8:05 a.m. when an MBTA passenger noticed what was described as an object with wires and tubes stuck on a steel support girder underneath Interstate 93 about 12 to 15 feet above the bus depot at Sullivan Square Station in Charlestown.

Transit police Lieutenant Salvatore Venturelli said this morning that the object had some components consistent with an improvised explosive device such as an electronic circuit board, but he made it clear it was not a bomb.

At about 1 p.m., Boston police received reports of similar devices throughout the metropolitan area at locations that included the Longfellow and BU bridges and New England Medical Center.

Shortly after 4 p.m., as city and state officials held a press conference to try to quell fears, Turner Broadcasting issued a statement taking responsibility for the stunt.

Eight of the electronic devices were mistaken for bombs today in Boston and two other sparked fears in Somerville and Cambridge, according to Boston Police Commissioner Edward F. Davis.

Originally posted by NY Madman:
Until yesterday I've never heard of any of these things.

What the hell is "Adult Swim"? What kind of cartoons are these from and what are they all about?

Originally posted by NY Madman:
Until yesterday I've never heard of any of these things.

What the hell is "Adult Swim"? What kind of cartoons are these from and what are they all about?

Originally posted by silverkat:
Why was Boston the only town that panicked? Did anyone here in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Atlanta, Seattle, Portland, Austin, San Francisco, or Philadelphia notice this?

[img]http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/ap/20070...3iiqnkDBE3CIA--[/img]

Originally posted by NY Madman:
What the hell is "Adult Swim"? What kind of cartoons are these from and what are they all about?

Originally posted by GrayHam:

"Aqua Teen Hunger Force" is a well-known subversive platform for all sorts of degenerate suggestions.

-gay marriage (Master Shake and Meatwad)
-beastiality (Carl and, well, whatever he can catch)
-communism (ATHF all live under one roof, sucking collectively at the Welfare tit)

It's really a dangerous cartoon.

Originally posted by NY Madman:
Doesn't this say a lot about the responsibility and maturity levels of the people in charge of this company?

Originally posted by what:

Quote:

Originally posted by NY Madman:
[b]Doesn't this say a lot about the responsibility and maturity levels of the people in charge of this company?

If you watch an episode specificly "Hand Banana" you will understand.[/b]

Originally posted by NY Madman:
Speaking about stoners.......

The two guys arrested for placing these hoax device/advertisements appear before the media... they act like stoners and only talk about their hair and hairstyles at a press event.

I think they would have been better off not saying anything at all to the media. Regardless of their motives for this behavior.

(Click image for video)

Originally posted by NY Madman:
Couldn't these people have just bought space on billboards to advertise their show?

What was going through the minds of these people at that network? No one bothered to pick up a phone to the legal department to see if it is even legal to just place advertisements around town at random locations.

Let's even forget for a second that these advertisements were mistaken for bombs with lights, batteries, and electrical tape. A corporation just can't place advertisements where they want.

Doesn't this say a lot about the responsibility and maturity levels of the people in charge of this company?

Originally posted by PDXterra:

Looks like they were successful.

Originally posted by xterrapin:

Quote:

Originally posted by silverkat:
[b]Why was Boston the only town that panicked? Did anyone here in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Atlanta, Seattle, Portland, Austin, San Francisco, or Philadelphia notice this?

[img]http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/ap/20070...3iiqnkDBE3CIA--[/img]

I havent seen any here. Didn't even know they had em up in SF until I read about the deal in Boston yesterday.
Sucks too, cause I love ATHF![/b]

Originally posted by NY Madman:
I wouldn't go so far as to claim they are successful.

Originally posted by PDXterra:

Quote:

Originally posted by NY Madman:
[b]I wouldn't go so far as to claim they are successful.

Prior to this event you'd never heard of "Aqua Teen Hunger Force"....now it's the subject of a thread on a random message board I'd say that's somewhat successful.[/b]

Originally posted by NY Madman:

Quote:

Originally posted by PDXterra:

[b]Looks like they were successful.

I wouldn't go so far as to claim they are successful. The authorities up in Boston seem pretty pissed about the whole thing and seem determined to make someone pay.[/b]

Originally posted by PDXterra:

Quote:

Originally posted by NY Madman:
[b]I wouldn't go so far as to claim they are successful.

Prior to this event you'd never heard of "Aqua Teen Hunger Force"....now it's the subject of a thread on a random message board I'd say that's somewhat successful.[/b]

Originally posted by Imaginative Username:
HandBanana just made me LOL.

Although the dog kinda gave me the creeps!

Originally posted by silverkat:
Why was Boston the only town that panicked? Did anyone here in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Atlanta, Seattle, Portland, Austin, San Francisco, or Philadelphia notice this?

Originally posted by Weasel:
[QB]
What I wish they would just say:

"We regret that the general public are so incredibly stupid."

Originally posted by 56kz2slow:
The idiot that thought it was a bomb should pay. Talk about being paranoid. That person must freak out anytime a car is parked in a weird location for too long. What if someone throws away a microware or a coffee maker in a parking lot, will he call the cops again thinking there is a bomb.

Any object that is large enough to hold an watch and a stick of dynamite can be considered as a bomb. What about piss jugs along the highway, is that chemical warfare? Where does it end?

Edit to add:
Some cities have bylaws regarding where advertising can be put, if they broke a law, sure charge them for whatever the penalty is for putting advertisement without the proper permits.

Originally posted by Rockaholic:
[QUOTE]

in the post 9/11 era, what sort of response would you expect?

Originally posted by RiNkY:
Views: 524,672
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Comments: 1961
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Favorited: 2142 times

The popularity of the Video on YouTube says it all. These guys are marketing geniuses. Love it, by persuing this the Press and the Powers that be in Boston are making themselves look like a bunch of dumbasses.

Originally posted by Rockaholic:

Quote:

Originally posted by RiNkY:
[b]Views: 524,672
|
Comments: 1961
|
Favorited: 2142 times

The popularity of the Video on YouTube says it all. These guys are marketing geniuses. Love it, by persuing this the Press and the Powers that be in Boston are making themselves look like a bunch of dumbasses.

Yeah, until Turner has to pay back the city and State for the costs incurred- Currently topping 1 million dollars[/b]

Originally posted by Auditor_Kevin:
From the Onion's "People On The Street":

"Boston reacted correctly – authorities there are obviously aware of the new terrorist trend of bringing as much attention as possible to hidden explosive devices."

Couldn't have said it any better myself!

Originally posted by 56kz2slow:
Yeah, but those contraptions were not hidden, they were in plain site attracting attention.