While Barack Obama can look forward to a series of heroic biographies and campaign books, George W. Bush can expect a bleaker bookshelf. In an interview with the Guardian, investigative reporting superstar Seymour Hersh noted: “You cannot believe how many people have told me to call them on 20 January. [They said,] ‘You wanna know about abuses and violations? Call me then.'”
GalleyCat caught up with Russ Baker, author of the upcoming Bush family expose, Family of Secrets, finding out what kind of Bush books we can expect in January.
“Journalists should not wait for leaks. And certainly not wait until after Bush leaves office to begin figuring out what wrongs have been perpetrated,” explained Baker. “They should have been prowling the corridors from day one–and would have found the most extraordinary subversion of government at almost every level. In any case, come January 20, expect a Little Shop of Horrors”
He continued: “In my book research, I took a very broad and long-term view, but also drilled down hard wherever I saw hints of larger agendas at work. And at almost every turn, I hit gushers.”
Baker also had advice for journalists looking to perform this kind of work:
“If it feels like there must be more to the story, there usually is. In the case of Bush, you really cannot understand what he did, and why, without investigating the interests he served … When doing your research, forget the pop psychology and the platitudes of the talking heads, and hit the road. Find the people who really know first-hand what was transpiring, and figure out a way to get them to talk,” he concluded.
Russ Baker is founder of the non-profit reporting outfit, The Real News Project. Baker also co-founded the networking events that helped create MediaBistro. Check out FishbowlNY if you are looking for more post-election book speculation.