The Mighty Wurlitzer Plays On

Gary Webb

The Word Justice
Jackson Browne & Scott Thurston
. . . . .
And there’s a need to keep some things secret
The names of some countries - the terms of some deals
And above all the sound of the screams of the innocent
Beneath our wheels 

Does the word justice mean anything to you?
Are the features of a lie beginning to come through? 

In the streets of America the children are buried
Caught in an avalanche of weapons and drugs
They live and they die in the bowels of a business
That’s disguised as a war between The Crips and The Bloods
And there’s a need to keep some things a secret
The C.I.A. deals protecting the source
And the government policies directly connecting
The drugs and our wars 

Does the word justice mean anything to you?
. . . . .

Initial Beliefs
The public interest was served by the press

The Story
Dark Alliance (1996)

Suppressed – How?
1.  Silence
This changed with

• Growing popularity of the web site
• Overt public reaction

2.  Misfocus
The major papers misfocused the story
“Never before had the three biggest papers devoted such energy to kicking the hell out of a story by another newspaper.” 

3.  Withdrawal
Mercury News officially backed away from the story and apologized for its “shortcomings”

Suppressed – Why?
The series presented dangerous ideas

Re the press:
1.  Story contrary to what major papers had stated
2.  Mercury News not a member of the agenda setting press
3.  National news organizations had a long history of cooperation with the CIA

Conclusion
There are limits on the freedom of the press
It is free to publish what doesn’t really matter