About Greg Palast
Greg Palast is the author of the New York Times bestseller, "Armed Madhouse" (Penguin Paperback 2007). When Palast, an
investigator of corporate fraud and racketeering, turned his skills to journalism, he was quickly recognized as, "The most important investigative reporter of our time" [Tribune Magazine] in Britain, where his first reports appeared on BBC television and in the Guardian newspapers.
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Author of another New York Times bestseller, The Best Democracy Money Can Buy- Palast is best known in his native USA as the journalist who, for the Observer (UK), broke the story of how Jeb Bush purged thousands of Black Florida citizens from voter rolls before the 2000 election, thereby handing the White House to his brother George. His reports on the theft of election 2004, the spike of the FBI investigations of the bin Ladens before September 11, the secret State Department documents planning the seizure of Iraq's oil fields have won him a record six "Project Censored" for reporting the news American media doesn't want you to hear. "The top investigative journalist in the United States is persona non grata in his own country's media." [Asia Times.] He returned to America to report for Harper's Magazine.
Palast's Sam Spade style television and print expos'es about elections manipulations, War on Terror and globalization, as seen on BBC 's Newsnight and Amy Goodman's Democracy Now!
Palast, who has led investigations for government on three continents, has an academic side: the author of Democracy and Regulation, a seminal treatise on energy corporations and government control commissioned by the United Nations based on his lectures at Cambridge University and the University of Sao Paulo.
Beginning in the 1970s, having earned his degree in finance studying under Milton Friedman and free-trade luminaries, Palast went on to challenge their vision of a New Global Order, working for the United Steelworkers of America, the Enron workers' coalition in Latin America and consumer and environmental groups worldwide. As an investigator for the Chugach Natives of Alaska, he uncovered the oil company frauds which led to the grounding of the Exxon Valdez. His racketeering probe of a nuclear plant operator led to one of the largest jury judgments in US history
In 1998 Palast went undercover for Britain's Observer, worked his way inside the prime minister's inner circle and busted open Tony Blair's biggest scandal, "Lobbygate," chosen by Palast's press colleagues in the UK as "Story of the Year." As the Chicago Tribune said, became a "fanatic about documents--especially those marked "secret and confidential" from the locked file cabinets of the FBI, the World Bank, the US State Department and other closed-door operations of government and industry--which regularly find their way into Palast's hands. The inside information he obtained on Rev. Pat Robertson won him a nomination as Britain's top business journalist.
Palast, Guerrilla News Network's Guerrilla of the Year, is Patron of the Trinity College Philosophical Society, an honor previously held by Jonathan Swift and Oscar Wilde. His writings have won the Financial Times David Thomas Prize--and inspired the Eminem video, Mosh. "An American hero," said Martin Luther King III. In the BBC documentary, Bush Family Fortunes, Palast exposed George Bush Jr.'s dodging the Vietnam War draft. Greg Palast, says Noam Chomsky, "Upsets all the right people."
Palast won the George Orwell Courage in Journalism Award for his BBC documentary, Bush Family Fortunes.
"Greg Palast is one of my heroes. The last investigative reporter in America. In Armed Madhouse he has the best inside story of the war inside the White House over the war in Iraq, the battle between the neo-cons and Big Oil." -Robert F Kennedy Jr. -Air America Radio"Twisted and maniacal" -Katherine Harris
"We hate that sonuvabitch." -The White House
"Doggedly independent, undaunted by power. His stories bite, they're so relevant they threaten to alter history" -Chicago Tribune
In England, Tribune Magazine calls him, "The most important investigative reporter of our time."
"Greg Palast is investigative journalism at its best. No one has exposed more truth about the Bush Cartel and lived to tell the story." - Baltimore Chronicle
“Armed Madhouse is great fun. Palast, detective style, provides … pieces of the secret puzzle.” - The New Yorker
The Chicago Reader asks about Greg Palast, "Can one reporter change the entire political discourse of the nation?"
In Britain he's called, "The most important investigative reporter of our time." -Tribune
After exposing on BBC TV the contents of a stack of documents from inside The World Bank and the World Trade Organization, the WTO called his report, "Rubbish rubbish rubbish," and CNN reported, "The World Bank hates Greg Palast" for stories the Wall Street Journal's Jude Wanniski called, "Extraordinary reporting on the IMF," and Nobel Laureate Joesph Stiglitz called, "Excellent on the WTO."
"The information is a hand grenade." - John Pilger, New Statesman
"Up there with Woodward and Bernstein." -Manchester Guardian
"Just read Armed Madhouse - fantastic work." - Comedian Doug Stanhope
"What does a multi-award winning reporting investigator do when he has a huge story to break? If it's Greg Palast, one of America's foremost journalists, he goes to England! Greg Palast has repeatedly scooped the U.S. networks, and newspaper elites, reporting for London's Guardian newspaper, and BBC television's current affairs flagship program, Newsnight. He's reported on the truth behind George W. Bush's theft of the 2000 presidential election, the attempted theft of Venezuelan democracy, the World Bank's willful destruction of Argentina, Enron's looting of California, and the cozy relationship between the Bush and Bin Laden dynasties. The problem is: The men behind the curtain of America's media don't want you to know about these, or any of the other stories he has to tell. Undeterred by the sucking vacuum of America's mainstream media, Greg put together a few of his greatest journalistic hits in the book, "The Best Democracy Money Can Buy: the Truth About Corporate Cons, Globalization, and High-Finance Fraudsters." Ironically, the stories the New York Times didn't find fit to print have become a New York Times best-seller. Now Greg Palast is releasing a DVD, "Bush Family Fortunes," based on "The Best Democracy Money Can Buy," and featuring some of his reports from Britain." - Chris Cook, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
"Armed Madhouse is a work of Genius" -Robert F Kennedy Jr. -Air America Radio
Patron of the Philosophical Society, Trinity College (an award previously given to Oscar Wilde and Jonathan Swift)
The Upton Sinclair Freedom of Expression Award The American Civil Liberties Union
George Orwell Courage in Journalism Award: Freedom Cinema Fest at The Sundance Film Festival
The Financial Times David Thomas Prize
Nominated for Business Journalist of the Year 1998 (UK)
Politics Story of the Year on Salon.com 2001
Guerilla News Network's Reporter of the Year
The Peace and Justice Award -Office of the Americas
Path Breaking Investigative Journalism Award--Long Island Progressive Coalition
National Press Club's Arthur Rowse Award for Press Criticism, Book Category, First Place.
I loved your article on the Exxon Valdez spill were'll taken aback by the decision but not surprised this is after all still the Kingdom of Fear. Clarence Thomas would "concure" is surprising.He must have been told where the brown paper bag was hidden.
Hello, Mr. Palast:
Thanks a million for your honest journalism. I am hoping one day you would report on the militarization of New York City; it reminds me of the Dominican Republic during the Trujillo's regime.
With great respect and admiration,
Milagros Henriquez
hello...your piece on Spitzer sounds plausible...until I notice you are with 'air america'..that despicable, defunct idiots gallery. I know enough to distrust ALL the political class and much of the corporate / banker class..therefore I am open to the 'truth'...sadly aware that the 'truth' may never be known. We live in an age of relative values, so that 'truth' has no meaning. Sadly, you are all sick, lying bastards. A Grandmother, who yearns for truth and decency.
Greg, I finished reading your Best Democracy Money Can Buy Book when I was on holiday and it was a great, very interesting read. I am now Googleing you for other books and just had to click on your website when I finished reading. I am sickened by what the Republicans did in 2000 and 2004 and I am also sickened by the coruption in the Blair Labour governent. I am sure they tried it on the other day but McCain lost by so much I doubt they knew it would be effective.
The Obama election victory landslide is great for us, black people and the Left in general in America. Here is to the next four years. I look forward to reading your next book.
Please tell me more. I would like to see an expose' of Bush's stolen election of both 2000 and 2004. I would like to see Bush tried for war crimes. Why should he get away with all the death and destruction he has done to the U.S and the world?? Please, lets do something!!!!!!!!!!
Dear Greg,
Would you ever consider setting up Greg Palast college courses? As an army of investigative journalists across the world could really change the world for the better
Watch your arse Greg boyo. Pilger, Fisk and you must now be on some doom rooms 'holiday list'...We need you're lot, lad... the flat earth needs a little metalwork.....funny how the truth....effects the mealy mouthed... funny..... queer....indeed....any way do your dammdest... give the rats in the ranks... heaps....D'You happen to run a intern program..?. I'm an old fart in Oz.. who's in to taking down the local bureausaurs...and following the 'paper bag trails' ..... the snouts....are in up to their ears here....Is it any different anywhere.....? we go on inspite of spite.... veritas.....and watch your arse...
You are fascinating. You're wit, succinct humor, and you're from my hood.........So. CA. I live in San Diego and have felt so open to life for all of my 50+ years. You speak to my nature.....as an energy therapist and yoga teacher always looking for methodology that's current to blend with ancient philosophy.........Thank you......you make incredible statements for Truth.
I just read your article "Obama is a two-faced liar, etc" which is posted on http://www.truthout.org which I subscribe to, then post the "best articles" on the 3 largest internet political sites. Buttttt, in your case, i.e. article, forget it. Your article was filled with just More immature crap by a guy "who thinks he is funny and clever". You have discredited your own, so called mission of getting the truth out. When will you over 40 year old boys get it...if we wanted to read the babblings of 13 year olds, we could read the wide-spread crap they post all over the public toilet rooms. Grow up and act your age, not your shoe size.
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Sent on a phone using T9space.com
Thanks for great recent post on Truthout. I'd like to know where and when you were born, "degrees," and any familial details you'd share. If those omissions are intentional, that's what it is too. All Best, and Carry On!
Well, what can you say about a fellow falafel eater... but keep up the good work and if the stimulus package bumps up my food aid maybe I will send you some couscous to go with it....
Dear Palast,
I and millions of others can't thank you enough for your courage and service to humanity. I'm wishing that you, John Perkins, Wayne Madsen, Prof Chossudovsky,Veterans Intelligence Professionals for Sanity,etc can testify together in Congress, soon, with a stipulation that the US corporate media air it live worldwide. Please ask Conyers if this can be arranged, along with body guards for all of you payed for by the US for the rest of your lives. If we can create a humanistic democracy in the US then there's a chance the "corporatocracy" will dissolve and stop harming people worldwide. The people of America and the world have a right to know there's no "global network of terrorism", at least not the one they've been sold.
Dear Palast,
I and I'm sure millions of others in America and worldwide can't thank you enough for your courage and service to humanity. I hope that you, John Perkins, Wayne Madsen, Prof Chossudovsky,Veterans Intelligence Professionals for Sanity,etc can testify together in Congress, soon, with a stipulation that the US media air it live worldwide. Please ask Conyers if this can be arranged, (along with body guards for all of you payed for by the US for the rest of your lives). If we can create a humanistic democracy in the US then there's a chance the "corporatocracy" will dissolve and finally stop harming people in the US and worldwide. The people of America and the world have a right to know there's no "global network of terrorism", at least not the one they've been sold.
Palast you are a left winged jerk who is trying to bring this country to its knees, you will never do this, and for all you left winged libs out their, when the conservative revolution starts to take this country back you better be ready, because we are, how many guns do you own? not many I bet, God Bless America!!!!!
Psm2. Why do the Heathen rage ? and The People imagine a Vain Thing ?
(Nominal research serves well here).
I've only wanted to ask one thing. Will there be more articles on Obamas administration and what is happening with the government right now concerning, the patriot act (what is it 3 now?), the cybersecurity act, the DHS MEMO, dhs dyslexicon, and that whole circle of strangeness?
I rarely trust journalists but Ive become an incredible fan, I just wonder why you haven't said anything yet (article wise) about what is happening to us (the public of america). Some are frightened, some are angry, and most don't even know about any of this. Please.. say something for us.
Thank you for all you've done.
Dawn
"Oh yeah? Well Greg Palast is still alive."
This oughtta be a bumper sticker or a rallying cry, it's something that those other cowardly dickless so called "journalists" needs to hear again and again. We used to say: "Don't kill the messenger" but it's now become: "The messenger is killing us." What the psychopathic billionaires want to do to our planet has become far worse than anything they can threaten to do to any individual to get their way. It's become an all out war: Earth Vs. the Psychos From Inner Space. Greg is an example of courage in the face of insanely greedy evil, an inspiration to anyone who values truth over docility.
Idiot that needs education before we give him credit for being a news reporter!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!