Journalists at large.
March 22, 2005 10:06 AM Subscribe
Journalists at large. With the mysterious murders/suicides of Gary Webb and Steve Kangas, have underground reporters signed a death wish with their unconventional tongue? Webb's Dark Alliance is hot material for those protest cheerleaders but who is to blame?
Odinsdream, I saw this tread but I don't think I gave many details or processed info. Sorry if I want to beat a dead horse but I thought the SATP articles should be added.
posted by Viomeda at 10:29 AM on March 22, 2005
posted by Viomeda at 10:29 AM on March 22, 2005
Someone in the older thread expressed doubt that someone could shoot himself _twice_ in the head.
This reference quotes the preliminary public statement by the coroner. A final result should have been filed , as this says, maybe six weeks later after an investigation.
... sacbee.com - The online division of The Sacramento Bee ... former investigative reporter Gary Webb committed suicide with two gunshots to the head. ...
sacbee.com/content/news/story/11772749p-12657577c.html
The final report, I assume, would describe the weapon, ammunition, orientation of the wounds, whether consistent with suicide vs. homicide in many ways such as handedness, distance of weapon, sequence of shots and damage/disability caused by each one -- and no doubt much else. All the routine cross-checks for consistency that one can find in police procedurals.
No doubt everything is as it should be in this best of all possible nations.
posted by hank at 12:24 PM on March 22, 2005
This reference quotes the preliminary public statement by the coroner. A final result should have been filed , as this says, maybe six weeks later after an investigation.
... sacbee.com - The online division of The Sacramento Bee ... former investigative reporter Gary Webb committed suicide with two gunshots to the head. ...
sacbee.com/content/news/story/11772749p-12657577c.html
The final report, I assume, would describe the weapon, ammunition, orientation of the wounds, whether consistent with suicide vs. homicide in many ways such as handedness, distance of weapon, sequence of shots and damage/disability caused by each one -- and no doubt much else. All the routine cross-checks for consistency that one can find in police procedurals.
No doubt everything is as it should be in this best of all possible nations.
posted by hank at 12:24 PM on March 22, 2005
I continued to look for a final report; didn't turn anything up. Perhaps someone else has better search skills.
Did find this interesting summary:
http://www.newsmakingnews.com/vm,garywebb,12,28,04.htm
posted by hank at 12:28 PM on March 22, 2005
Did find this interesting summary:
http://www.newsmakingnews.com/vm,garywebb,12,28,04.htm
posted by hank at 12:28 PM on March 22, 2005
Speaking as a journalist I find this kind of speculation only adds to the culture of fear that makes everyone ask me, "OMG aren't you afraid for your safety?" when I write about political types, which gets really annoying. Not saying we shouldn't find out what happened, but...
If someone wanted to kill Gary Webb, in my opinion, they would have done it years ago. He was a great reporter who got screwed by a cowardly system, and that was plenty of motive. Not saying it couldn't have been murder, but the guy was writing for the Sac News & Review by this point, for goodness sake.
After Hunter S. Thompson died people started speculating that he was about to reveal the secrets of 9/11. Just goofy.
They say that Woodward and Bernstein ran around constantly in fear that they were going to get taken out. In the end it's worth it to reveal the truth, no matter what. IMO.
By the way, a great new book called Killed: Journalism Too Hot To Print has a wonderful Rolling Stone story that never came out about what a bizarre man the author of that Bush bio Fortunate Son was.
If Richard Mellon Scaife wanted to bump off anyone, there were plenty of journalists more threatening to his reputation.
Please pardon my stream of consciousness response.
posted by inksyndicate at 1:22 PM on March 22, 2005
If someone wanted to kill Gary Webb, in my opinion, they would have done it years ago. He was a great reporter who got screwed by a cowardly system, and that was plenty of motive. Not saying it couldn't have been murder, but the guy was writing for the Sac News & Review by this point, for goodness sake.
After Hunter S. Thompson died people started speculating that he was about to reveal the secrets of 9/11. Just goofy.
They say that Woodward and Bernstein ran around constantly in fear that they were going to get taken out. In the end it's worth it to reveal the truth, no matter what. IMO.
By the way, a great new book called Killed: Journalism Too Hot To Print has a wonderful Rolling Stone story that never came out about what a bizarre man the author of that Bush bio Fortunate Son was.
If Richard Mellon Scaife wanted to bump off anyone, there were plenty of journalists more threatening to his reputation.
Please pardon my stream of consciousness response.
posted by inksyndicate at 1:22 PM on March 22, 2005
inksyndicate, are you not skeptical of the CIA. This organization includes a large number of highly active assignation bureaus that may or may not be informatives to the government interlocutors. I am speaking of sub-political agencies that take matters into their own hands. As a journalist, is what you proposing common among them. I am suggesting angry radical personnel
posted by Viomeda at 2:30 PM on March 22, 2005
posted by Viomeda at 2:30 PM on March 22, 2005
See also Into the Buzzsaw: Leading Journalists Expose the Myth of a Free Press anthology.
posted by ao4047 at 9:54 PM on March 22, 2005
posted by ao4047 at 9:54 PM on March 22, 2005
Maybe the gov is watching me too....
Well, whatever. I wouldn't at all be surprised, but people have lived with that sort of oppression before. So what ? What are you - and we - going to do about it ?
Live scared ?
posted by troutfishing at 9:40 PM on March 23, 2005
Well, whatever. I wouldn't at all be surprised, but people have lived with that sort of oppression before. So what ? What are you - and we - going to do about it ?
Live scared ?
posted by troutfishing at 9:40 PM on March 23, 2005
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posted by beelzbubba at 10:23 AM on March 22, 2005