Kill the Messenger

[PaleoMan]

Has anyone gotten around to seeing this? It's a shame what befell Gary Webb for documenting this hornet's nest. It's almost impossible to shoot yourself twice in the head in a suicide attempt but that's what the coroner concluded. ROFL

A little background on the entire Gary Webb saga:

http://www.esquire.com/features/pariah-gary-webb-0998

[johnnya24]

Hasn't been released here yet. What was most interesting for me was the manner in which the mainstream US media coordinated and closed ranks with the establishment to denigrate and smear this story at every opportunity. I'll be interested to read some reviews and articles after I see the movie.

[PaleoMan]

Hasn't been released here yet. What was most interesting for me was the manner in which the mainstream US media coordinated and closed ranks with the establishment to denigrate and smear this story at every opportunity. I'll be interested to read some reviews and articles after I see the movie.

The Church Committee revealed that the CIA had a virtual roster of journalists and major media figures in their back pocket for a relative pittance. And that was what? 1976? It's probably far worse today.

[johnnya24]

Not much need for it these days, the press pretty much self-censor without any prompting.

[Fresno Bob]

The San Jose Mercury News was my local paper when this story broke, and I remember all the attacks on it, and Webb, for this series

[Bob Kohm]

Basically because Webb made wildly unfounded claims that went against every tenet of journalistic ethics. Much easier to just "blame the Man", though...

[Bob Kohm]

Just because you want to believe something doesn't make it true Webb was a largely unsubstantiated sham who took sub-molehill level truths-- sure there were Contras who mixed with narco cartels-- and blew it into one of the most celebrated conspiracy theories out there. His sourcing was laughable, his corroboration largely non-existent, and his "vindication" so thin as to be a joke. Arguing that the CIA isn't the mother of all of the worlds problems with you is pretty much a non-starter as your capacity for rational discourse on the topic is thinner than the truths in the Webb story, so I'll let you rant on at this point Enjoy the movie!

[chancellor]

Well, dang, elD and SharpTalons agree on something...I'm gonna start looking for a white rabbit soon.

[The Feral Slasher]

Just because you want to believe something doesn't make it true Webb was a largely unsubstantiated sham who took sub-molehill level truths-- sure there were Contras who mixed with narco cartels-- and blew it into one of the most celebrated conspiracy theories out there. His sourcing was laughable, his corroboration largely non-existent, and his "vindication" so thin as to be a joke. Arguing that the CIA isn't the mother of all of the worlds problems with you is pretty much a non-starter as your capacity for rational discourse on the topic is thinner than the truths in the Webb story, so I'll let you rant on at this point Enjoy the movie!

So do you have any specifics or maybe a link to something ? Or are you going to just rely on your usual tactics of labeling people as conspiracy theorists.

[Bob Kohm]

He can only resort to ad hominem attacks - just like a stupid, fat bitch.

Oh dear, it does seem I've touched a nerve-- a misogynistic nerve, to boot-- in ElD. I suppose he can only resort to ad hominem attacks, lol.

On the substantive issue that ElD is so dearly wed to-- and who can blame him, it paints an organ of the United States as eeeeeeeeeeevil-- have a read here. http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinio...773_story.html

From the piece...

"You don’t have to believe me or Ceppos, or anybody else from the mainstream media on this one. These are the words of Nick Schou, the OC Weekly editor who wrote the book that serves as the basis, with Webb’s book, for the movie: “ ‘Dark Alliance’ contained major flaws of hyperbole that were both encouraged and ignored by his editors, who saw the story as a chance to win a Pulitzer Prize,” Schou wrote in the Los Angeles Times in 2006. On the crack explosion claim: “The story offered no evidence to support such sweeping conclusions, a fatal error that would ultimately destroy Webb, if not his editors.”"

It seems that, once again, you just can't believe everything you see at the movies. Rant away, ElD and Feral Slasher--nI hear that Major Monogram has Agent P using illegal means to target Dr. Doofenshmerz again! Discuss!

[The Feral Slasher]

Oh dear, it does seem I've touched a nerve-- a misogynistic nerve, to boot-- in ElD. I suppose he can only resort to ad hominem attacks, lol.

On the substantive issue that ElD is so dearly wed to-- and who can blame him, it paints an organ of the United States as eeeeeeeeeeevil-- have a read here. http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinio...773_story.html

From the piece...

"You don’t have to believe me or Ceppos, or anybody else from the mainstream media on this one. These are the words of Nick Schou, the OC Weekly editor who wrote the book that serves as the basis, with Webb’s book, for the movie: “ ‘Dark Alliance’ contained major flaws of hyperbole that were both encouraged and ignored by his editors, who saw the story as a chance to win a Pulitzer Prize,” Schou wrote in the Los Angeles Times in 2006. On the crack explosion claim: “The story offered no evidence to support such sweeping conclusions, a fatal error that would ultimately destroy Webb, if not his editors.”"

It seems that, once again, you just can't believe everything you see at the movies-- or read from the crackpot faction at our little site. Rant away, ElD and Feral Slasher. I hear that Major Monogram has Agent P using illegal means to target Dr. Doofenshmerz again! Discuss!

Damn, major flaws of hyperbole, that sounds really bad. If you read the entire piece by Nick Schou that is about the worst thing he has to say. The Washington Post article is lacking in specifics to say the least.

http://articles.latimes.com/2006/aug/18/opinion/oe-schou18

All three major U.S. dailies, The Times included, debunked a claim that Webb actually never made -- that the CIA deliberately unleashed the crack epidemic on black America. The controversy over this non-assertion obscured Webb's substantive points about the CIA knowingly doing business south of the border with Nicaraguans involved in the drug trade up north.

[Bob Kohm]

Damn, major flaws of hyperbole, that sounds really bad

He made the "good" stuff up. So yeah, "really bad".

[The Feral Slasher]

He made the "good" stuff up. So yeah, "really bad".

So what specifically did he make up ? I dont believe you have said

[The Feral Slasher]

Oh dear, it does seem I've touched a nerve-- a misogynistic nerve, to boot-- in ElD. I suppose he can only resort to ad hominem attacks, lol.

On the substantive issue that ElD is so dearly wed to-- and who can blame him, it paints an organ of the United States as eeeeeeeeeeevil-- have a read here. http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinio...773_story.html

From the piece...

"You don’t have to believe me or Ceppos, or anybody else from the mainstream media on this one. These are the words of Nick Schou, the OC Weekly editor who wrote the book that serves as the basis, with Webb’s book, for the movie: “ ‘Dark Alliance’ contained major flaws of hyperbole that were both encouraged and ignored by his editors, who saw the story as a chance to win a Pulitzer Prize,” Schou wrote in the Los Angeles Times in 2006. On the crack explosion claim: “The story offered no evidence to support such sweeping conclusions, a fatal error that would ultimately destroy Webb, if not his editors.”"

It seems that, once again, you just can't believe everything you see at the movies. Rant away, ElD and Feral Slasher--nI hear that Major Monogram has Agent P using illegal means to target Dr. Doofenshmerz again! Discuss!

Rant away feral slasher ! All I have done is asked you to provide specific evidence for your claims. I think it should be obvious to everyone who is doing the ranting here.

[The Feral Slasher]

have a read here. http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinio...773_story.html

From the piece...

"You don’t have to believe me or Ceppos, or anybody else from the mainstream media on this one. These are the words of Nick Schou, the OC Weekly editor who wrote the book that serves as the basis, with Webb’s book, for the movie: “ ‘Dark Alliance’ contained major flaws of hyperbole that were both encouraged and ignored by his editors, who saw the story as a chance to win a Pulitzer Prize,” Schou wrote in the Los Angeles Times in 2006. On the crack explosion claim: “The story offered no evidence to support such sweeping conclusions, a fatal error that would ultimately destroy Webb, if not his editors.”"

I filtered out your conspiracy theory BS in the quote, I thought you might be interested in a further quote from Schou

http://fair.org/blog/2014/10/21/wash-post-webb/

When Al Giordano and Bill Conroy of NarcoNews (10/20/14) asked Schou about how he was portrayed in the Post's hit piece, he sent them this response:

I'm glad this guy wrote what he did, because it reveals exactly why the movie gets the story so right. The writer of this worthless and whiny op-ed perfectly captures the craven mentality of cowardice of most of Webb's critics at the three major papers. And he totally takes my statement out of context. I do believe that "Dark Alliance" contained major flaws of hyperbole, but they were mostly the story's logo and a few unnecessary phrases that overstated the evidence Webb had at the time. What I've always argued is that had Webb been allowed to keep writing, and had the other papers, including the Post, actually done their job, the true extent of the story would have been revealed. The fact remains that Webb's story nonetheless forced the CIA to admit that the true flaw of Dark Alliance was hardly one of hyperbole but the exact opposite-–the story radically understated the scandal.

So again, since you are so adamant in your statement that Webb made up a bunch of bad stuff, you must be very familiar with what he wrote and ought to be able to very simply state what the falsehoods and inaccuracies are. Or you can go on calling people names and labeling them as conspiracy theorists. Or simply disappear from the thread.