Tjames madisonthis text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title. The updated paperback edition of dark alliance features revelations in justreleased reports from the department of justice, internal cia investigations, and a new cache of recently declassified secret fbi, dea, and ins filesmuch of which was not known to webb when writing the first edition of this book. The cia, the contras, and the crack cocaine explosion, was the journalist with the san jose mercury news who caused such a fuss two years ago when his series of articles pointed to central intelligence agency cia complicity in the crack cocaine epidemic. The cia, the contras and the crack cocaine explosion from seven stories.
Dark alliance is as necessary and valuable as it is horrifying and grim. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or. The investigation, headed up by webb revealed ties between the cia, nicaraguan contras and the crack. This is why webbs dark alliance series is an essential source, a primary text that every journalism student should study. Approximately 300 people, crowded into the first united methodist church in eugene, oregon, listened with rapt attention as webb detailed his. In his own words 2004, video of interview with gary webb from guerrilla news network inside the dark alliance. After his resignation from the mercury news, webb expanded the dark alliance series into a book that responded to the criticism of the series and described his experiences writing the story and dealing with the controversy. Webbs series, the dark alliance, has been the subject of. Dark alliance author gary webb gave a fascinating talk on the evening of january 16, outlining the findings of his investigation of the cias connection to drug trafficking by the nicaraguan contras. Tribute to dark alliance and journalist gary webb, transcripts of a 1997 webb speech and. Gary webbs dark alliance returns to the internet narco news. The cia, the contras, and the cocaine explosion kindle. Pdf dark alliance download ebook full pdf download get.
Crack in the system premiering on al jazeera america in early 2015. Eventually, the media would mostly turn against webb, attempting to discredit him. Pablo escobars son reveals his dad worked for the cia. Gary webb was an award winning investigative journalist who is best known for his 1996 series of articles in the san jose mercury news, entitled dark alliance. These days, webb is being cast in a more sympathetic light. The cia, the drug dealers, and the tragedy of gary webb. Webb resigned from the paper and later wrote one of the first articles about driving while black for esquire magazine. In august 1996, a regional newspaper, the san jose ca mercury news unveiled the results of its yearlong investigation into links between the spread of crack cocaine in the u. The cia, the contras, and the crack cocaine explosion is a 1998 book by journalist gary webb. The story behind the crack explosion, webbs series reported that in addition to waging a proxy war for the u. The mercury news, who originally stood by webbs reporting, complied with these new denunciations and published an apology for the series in may 1997. Drawing from then newly declassified documents, undercover dea audio and videotapes that had never been publicly released, federal court testimony, and interviews, webb demonstrates how our government knowingly.
Gary webb san jose mercury news aug 1996 permalink. The intercept on december 10, 2004 investigative journalist gary webb died of two. Webb s reporting, focused on a few central players of the l. Two years ago, gary webb wrote a series of articles that said some bad. In response to the public outcry following webbs allegationswhich were ultimately published in book form under the title dark alliancethe cia conducted an internal investigation of its role. Gary webb was american investigative journalist, pulitzer prize winner. Jerry ceppos and the burning memory of gary webb by luis a. Selected writings by the author of dark alliance, by gary webb, is edited by his son, eric webb, and published by. Rule 2 does not apply when replying to this stickied comment rule 2 does apply throughout the rest of this thread what this means. A new movie, an old story, and a discredited corporate press tells the story of the drug connections between the u. Yet webb became unemployable for telling the truth. It was an amazing scoop but one that would ruin his career.
In july 1995, san jose mercurynews reporter gary webb found the big one. Local dealers faced life sentences while the bigtime narcos from washington to managua went free. When they looked it up in the merck manual, they saw cocaine base and thought, well. Gary webb sums up the story in his last major interview just days before his death.
Special reports cocaine, conspiracy theories and the cia. With the release of the film kill the messenger this week, there is bound to be an uptick in media discussions about gary webb, the crusading investigative journalist whose 1996 dark alliance series forms the basis of the movie webbs reporting for the san jose mercury news cast a harsh light on the links between the ciabacked contras in nicaragua and drug trafficking in the united states. In an october 2, 1996, washington post article, gary webb, the reporter who wrote the dark alliance series, asserted that the article had not claimed that the cia knew about blandons drug trafficking. Dark alliance was a series written by californiabased reporter webb and published in the san jose mercury news in 1996. Pdf the publication of a series of articles in the san jose mercury, though they did. Like in the movie, the real gary webb attempted to uncover the connection between l. After the original series of articles ran in the mercurynews in late 1996, both webb. In july 1995, san jose mercurynews reporter gary webb found the big onethe blockbuster story every journalist secretly dreams aboutwithout even looking for it. Prize winning journalist gary webb stunned the world with a series of articles in the. The washington post article quoted webb as saying, weve never pretended otherwise.
The story behind the crack explosion was the first investigative report to achieve national prominence primarily via. Saint gary webb by charlie hardy, february 10, 2005. And documents newly released by the cia provide fresh context to the dark alliance saga information that paints. Dark alliance built upon more than a decade of evidence amassed by journalists, congressional investigators and agents of the drug enforcement administration who found numerous connections between the contras and drug. His book serves as both a complex memoir of the time of the contras and an indictment of the current state of americas press. A cspan segment in which gary webb elaborates on his investigative work on the dark alliance of cia agents, contra rebels, and california drug dealers. Facing increasing public scrutiny from the fallout after webbs dark alliance series, the cia conducted its own internal investigations.
The cia, the contras, and the crack cocaine explosion. Backers of cialed nicaraguan rebels brought cocaine to poor l. Gary webb pushed his investigation even further in his book, dark alliance. Hes portrayed heroically in a major motion picture set to premiere nationwide next month. Their alleged role in the drug trade was exposed in 1996 in an explosive investigative series dark alliance by gary webb for the san jose mercury news. He also published the book dark alliance seven stories press, 1999.
For me, the tragic story of gary webb began in 1996 when he was working on his dark alliance series for the san jose mercury news. It is one of the most bizarre alliances in modern history. A decade after the dark alliance newspaper series sent shockwaves around the world with its investigation into crack cocaineciacontra connections, a tribute is presented to dark alliance and its investigatorauthor, journalist gary webband to the true spirit of. Within the this audiobook version of dark alliance, webb produces a. Webb profiled the relationship in his 1996 threepart article dark alliance, where he showed that the nicaraguans had cia connections. In july 1995, san jose mercurynews reporter gary webb found the big. The book is based on dark alliance, webbs threepart investigative series. Please keep any meta discussion directed at specific users, mods, or rconspiracy in general in this comment chain only i am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Politicians cited the article in both sacramento and washington. The opening about this series teaser made it clear that the times pieces would explicitly address, and deny, the validity of all the main assertions in dark alliance. In 1998, cia inspector general frederick hitz substantiated webbs charges in two reports. This collection of texts, images, and audio files is a copy of the online library that accompanied the publication of gary webbs dark alliance series and his followup reporting for the san jose mercury news from 199697 about the cias role in the crack cocaine epidemic in the 1980s. An august, 1996, series in the san jose mercury news by reporter gary webb linked the origins of crack cocaine in california to the contras, a guerrilla force backed by the reagan administration that attacked nicaraguas sandinista government during the 1980s. An excellent article written by brian covert on gary webbs investigative reporting published by project censored titled the ghost of dark alliance.
Major motion picture based on dark alliance and starring jeremy renner, kill the messenger, to be be released in fall 2014 in august 1996, pulitzer prizewinning journalist gary webb stunned the world with a series of articles in the san jose mercury news reporting the results of his yearlong investigation into the roots of the crack cocaine epidemic in america. Department of justice has been trying to explain why nearly everyone convicted in californias federal courts of crack cocaine trafficking is black. Key figures in ciacrack cocaine scandal begin to come forward. The intercept on december 10 2004, investigative journalist gary webb died of two. This doesnt prove the cia targeted black communities. It is a story now told in the hollywood film, kill the messenger, based on the book of the same name by nick schou and webbs dark alliance. The dark alliance gary webb s incendiary 1996 sj mercury news expose aug 22, 1996 cocaine pipeline financed rebels evidence points to cia knowing of highvolume drug network by gary webb san jose mercury news for the better part of a decade, a san francisco bay area drug ring sold tons of cocaine to the crips and. With jeremy renner, robert patrick, jena sims, robert pralgo. Dark alliance a threepart investigation into links between the cocaine trade, nicaraguas ciabacked contra rebels, and californias crack epidemic in the 1980s. The life and times of gary webb by george sanchez, january 25, 2005. A revised version was published in 1999 that incorporated webbs response.
Gary webb on the cia, the contras, and the crack cocaine explosion, audio interviews 19971998 with gary webb from democracy now. How the fake news killed gary webb the impious digest. A simple phone call concerning an unexceptional pending drug trial turned into a massive conspiracy involving the nicaraguan contra rebels, l. How the cia watched over the destruction of gary webb.