That was a problem. You have to keep monkeying with it. Try it with the machine unplugged. Try pushing tape back in repeatedly. Try pushing tape in and down if possible. You just have to keep workign at it.
unplug it, then take the srews off of the back of it which will remove the top cover off of it. then the inside of it will be exposed and you can gain easier acces in retrieving the tape and getting it out