Publisher's Hardcover ©2021 | -- |
The abrupt rise of corporatized spying in geopolitics and business, portrayed as a strange mix of journalistic ambition and Nixon-ian dirty tricks.Meier, a two-time winner of the George Polk Award for International Reporting, assembles a worrying account with dry precision, concluding ominously, "the behavior of corporate intelligence firms has only become more predatory and abusive." The labyrinthine narrative reveals a slick, high-stakes dark side to the proliferation of private intelligence firms via such flashpoints as the "Steele dossier" on Donald Trump and the "sleazy tactics" employed by Israeli firm Black Cube on behalf of Harvey Weinstein. Decrying "the oversized impact" of these private spies, the author circles back to a grim secret: "the big money is made not by exposing the truth but by papering it over or concealing it." In his primary narrative thread, Meier tracks the startling journey of the anti-Trump dossier, starting with former journalist Glenn Simpson, founder of purportedly "ethical" investigative firm Fusion GPS, who contracted former British spy Christopher Steele to conduct the investigation. (Unsurprisingly, neither Simpson nor Steele agreed to speak with the author.) Even four years later, the account of the frantic push to publicize Steele's memos before the 2016 election remains tense and startling. "Absent efforts by Glenn Simpson and Christopher Steele to pull the strings of journalists," writes Meier, "it's possible the public would have never learned about the dossier." Still, the author calls the release of the document "a media clusterfuck of epic proportions, one that was the consequence of the long-metastasizing relationship between private spies and journalists." Its impact and authenticity crumbled during the ensuing lawsuits, and the author concludes that Steele's source was one of many "who had stumbled into the private spying business as a last resort." Throughout, Meier's considerable journalistic chops help him maintain control of numerous subnarratives and a cast of ruthless eccentrics.An adroitly handled, disturbing exposé, clearly relevant to discussions of the tactics of Trump and company.
Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)Journalist Meier (
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Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)
A Pulitzer Prize winning investigative journalist’s journey into a billon-dollar secret industry that is shaping our world – the booming business of private spying, operatives-for-hire retained by companies, political parties and the powerful to dig up dirt on their enemies and, if need be, destroy them.
For decades, private eyes from Allan Pinkerton, who formed the first detective agency in the U.S., to Jules Kroll, who transformed the investigations business by giving it a corporate veneer, private spies were content to stand in the shadows. Now, that is all changing. High-profile stories grabbing recent headlines – the Steele Dossier, Black Cube, the Theranos scandal, Harvey Weinstein’s attacks on his accusers – all share a common thread, the involvement of private spies.
Today, operatives-for-hire are influencing presidential elections, the news media, government policies and the fortunes of companies.. They are also peering into our personal lives as never before, using off-the shelf technology to listen to our phone calls, monitor our emails, and decide what we see on social media. Private spying has never been cheaper and the business has never been more lucrative—just as its power has never been more pervasive.Spooked is a fast-paced, disturbing and, at times, hilarious tour through the shadowlands of private spying and its inhabitants, a grab-bag collection of ex-intelligence operatives, former journalists and lost souls. In this hidden world, information is currency, double-crosses are commonplace, and hacking can be standard procedure. Drawing on his journalistic expertise and unique access to sources, Barry Meier uncovers the secrets private spies want to keep hidden.