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Democracy in the Dark: The Seduction of Government Secrecy Hardcover – April 7, 2015

by Frederick A.O. Schwarz Jr. (Author)

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From Dick Cheney's man-sized safe to the National Security Agency's massive intelligence gathering, secrecy has too often captured the American government's modus operandi better than the ideals of the Constitution. In this important new book, Frederick A.O. Schwarz Jr., who was chief counsel to the U.S. Church Committee on Intelligence—which uncovered the FBI's effort to push Martin Luther King to commit suicide; the CIA's enlistment of the Mafia to try to kill Fidel Castro; and the NSA's thirty-year program to get copies of all telegrams leaving the United States—uses examples ranging from the dropping of the first atomic bomb and the Cuban Missile Crisis to Iran Contra and 9/11 to illuminate this central question: how much secrecy does good governance require? Schwarz argues that while some control of information is necessary, governments tend to fall prey to a culture of secrecy that is ultimately not just hazardous to democracy but antithetical to it. This history provides the essential context to recent cases from Chelsea Manning to Edward Snowden.

Democracy in the Dark is a natural companion to Schwarz's Unchecked and Unbalanced, co-written with Aziz Huq, which plumbed the power of the executive branch—a power that often depends on and derives from the use of secrecy.

Democracy in the Dark: The Seduction of Government Secrecy

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Editorial Reviews

Review

Praise for Frederick A.O Schwarz Jr.:
"Schwarz is among the many quiet patriots who are spreading the word that the very meaning of the United States, the whole point of this fragile experiment in representative democracy, will be lost if the nation's ironclad commitment to the rule of law is allowed to unravel."
—Bob Herbert, The New York Times

Praise for Democracy in the Dark:
"A timely and provocative book exploring the origins of the national security state and the urgent challenge of reining it in.”
—Katrina vanden Heuvel, Washington Post

"Thorough and even-handed… In Democracy in the Dark, Frederick Schwarz, Jr., has produced a thoughtful, authoritative account…[of] the troubling consequences of excessive secrecy….his work is a must-read."
—Foreign Affairs

“[An] important new book…carefully researched, engagingly written stories of government secrecy gone amiss.”
—The American Prospect

“Timely and powerfully argued, this account by an exceptionally well-positioned observer and participant in the contentious history of government secrecy will prove a necessary addition to ongoing policy debates.”
—Publishers Weekly

"Filled with powerful and colorful stories and new analyses, this book will be great reading for citizens and government officials alike."
—Former Vice President Walter Mondale

"No one writes about the hazards of secrecy as clearly and convincingly as does Frederick A.O. Schwarz in this important book. It should be required reading for every citizen who seeks to bring sunlight into the darkened corridors of government that endanger America's democracy."
—Loch Johnson, editor of Intelligence and National Security

"A thoughtful, highly informed, and carefully researched analysis of one of the most fundamental challenges facing our nation today. He highlights secrecy’s dangers to democracy but also acknowledges that secrecy is sometimes essential to national security. His effort to help us strike the right balance between democracy and secrecy is his greatest—and truly insightful—contribution."
—Geoffrey R. Stone, member of President Obama’s Review Group on Intelligence and Communications Technologies and author of Top Secret: When Government Keeps Us in the Dark

About the Author

Frederick A.O. Schwarz Jr. is senior counsel at the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law and a partner at Cravath, Swaine & Moore. The winner of the 2014 Ridenhour Prize for Courage, he was chief counsel to the Church Committee, New York City corporation counsel, as well as the head of the Law Department of the City of New York. He was co-author of "Unchecked and Unbalanced" (The New Press) and lives in New York.

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Product Details

Hardcover: 368 pages
Publisher: The New Press (April 7, 2015)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1620970511
ISBN-13: 978-1620970515
Product Dimensions: 6.4 x 1.3 x 9.3 inches
Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #720,548 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #1132 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Politics & Government > Specific Topics > Intelligence & Espionage
- #1193 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Politics & Government > United States > Executive Branch
- #1264 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Politics & Government > United States > National

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Top Customer Reviews

Accounts of Secrecy Clearly Presented

By Star Reviewer on May 30, 2015

Format: Hardcover

While, not breaking new ground, Schwarz does yeoman-like work in aggregating stories of America's tilt towards pervasive secrecy. A more narrative approach might have been more engaging, but his exposition is clear and to the point, though a bit arid. I suspect this work is geared somewhat more to new-comers to the field of secrecy, as many, if not most, of the accounts recited are familiar to those who have followed the subject. For those who wish to pursue the topic in more detail, I recommend the government secrecy project to be found on the Federation of American Scientists website or any of the works by Washington Post reporter Dana Priest.

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A must-read

By Joyce Talmadge on April 26, 2015

Format: Hardcover Verified Purchase

This well-researched and detailed - yet approachable - history provides a much needed and thorough context for today's critical debate on government secrecy and surveillance. The accounts of the use of secrecy through our history greatly expanded my knowledge of important events. A must-read.

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Timely information.

By TruthSeeker on December 20, 2015

Format: Hardcover Verified Purchase

If you think you know about government secrecy, you do not until you read this book.
The facts are here for all to see.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

Four Stars

Interesting reading...

Published 15 months ago by Phil L.

alison's review

The book is informative, discursive, and thought-provoking, and the author's passion for the subject is clear.

Published 18 months ago by Stella Westfall

Five Stars

Fascinating story of the history of transparency in our country since its founding.

Published 20 months ago by Amazon Customer

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