Links for Investigative Journalism
Ian Cobain is a senior reporter for the Guardian. He has made an invaluable contribution to our understanding of the global rendition system through his efforts to uncover the truth about rendition, secret detention and torture in the ‘War on Terror’, particularly Britain’s role.
In 2006, journalist and author Stephen Grey published Ghost Plane: The True Story of the CIA Torture Program (St Martin's Press). The book was one of the pioneering works that exposed the rendition system to the world. The book traces the history of the CIA's rendition programme back to the 1990s, and shows how rendition expanded into a systematic programme of torture in the 'War on Terror'. It is informed by interviews with officials from the US administration and the CIA, as well as the testimonies of the victims of rendition and secret detention. Grey also obtained the CIA flight plans which helped proved the extent of the CIA's rendition programme.
Jane Mayer, a writer for the New Yorker, is one of the investigative journalists that have led the way in uncovering the reach of the global rendition system. Much of her work is informed by insider sources, and has led to a much more comprehensive understanding of the ways the US has outsourced torture. Along with Dana Priest, she broke a number of key stories about the secret CIA flights of detainees to secret prisons around the world.
Richard Norton-Taylor is the Guardian’s security editor. As such he has written many pieces on the global rendition system, and has played an important role in regularly calling the British state to account for its involvement.
Dana Priest is a national security reporter for the Washington Post. Her work focuses on terrorism and counterterrorism, so she has paid close attention to the development of the global rendition system. Along with Jane Mayer, she broke a number of key stories about the secret CIA flights of detainees to secret prisons around the world.
Brian Ross is an investigative journalist for ABC News. He works on issues of state corruption and human rights, and has followed developments in the global rendition system closely.
Andy Worthington is a freelance journalist and author. In 2007, he published The Guantánamo Files (Pluto Press), which explains the genesis of the US detention facility in Guantánamo Bay, and its development in the early years of the 'War on Terror'. It also tells the stories of the individual prisoners detained there. To accompany the publication of the book, Andy launched the Guantánamo Files website, which includes the definitive Guantánamo prison list. On this website, Andy has kept a detailed and up-to-date record of all the Guantánamo detainees and their journeys through the US rendition and detention system for terrorism suspects.
The Guardian Rendition Archive
The Guardian newspaper is the only British newspaper that has persistently and comprehensively investigated and reported on the global rendition system. The archive of its investigative report and editorials is an important resource for anyone interested in this issue. It has worked closely with human rights lawyers representing victims, and has secured access to many secret government documents.
