Raising the Bar
A Marriage of Publishing and the Internet that Constitutes
a Completely New Approach to Information Dissemination
You are experiencing something that has been rarely done previously, if at all: a synergistic, revolutionary approach to conventional book publishing and web-based information combined to produce a sum greater than their separate parts.
A book, however valuable, is obviously static once it is printed. Yet this companion website to my book Inside Gitmo: The True Story Behind the Myths of Guantanamo Bay -- provides a dynamic platform that is easily updated and added to, not restricted by length, and automatically incorporates access to the latest Gitmo news for all to see. No hardcopy book can do all of that. In the future one would expect that the authors of other books will routinely establish interactive companion websites of their own. The internet has raised the bar in what authors can -- and should -- provide for their readers. I strongly believe that authors of books addressing complex subjects should be obligated to present access to their source documents as a matter of course.
In this regard, the Chapters section of this website reprints the Inside Gitmo's endnotes in their entirety, along with links to the source documents referred to therein. Note that because most of the articles, reports and other source materials are copyrighted, it is not legally permissible to redistribute complete copies from this website. However, the URLs (internet addresses) of where the originals were found can be pointed out. Caveat: files and webpages maintained by the hundreds of outside sources referenced in the book are frequently moved or deleted. While we have no control over this, every effort will be made to update URL locations that have been changed and to also note which dead links have been removed.
A driving factor in this effort is to provide context for readers. In many cases authors are said to have taken quotes or facts out of context and used them to reinforce a point that the author wishes to make. As a method of avoiding that situation, presentation of the original documents allows the reader to determine the context of material used in the book.
Finally, a preponderance of the material for the book Inside Gitmo was obtained through the interview process. I made six visits to the Guantanamo facility over the course of three years and interviewed hundreds of soldiers, sailors, airmen, marines, and civilians at the facility - officers, noncommissioned officers, and enlisted - as well as employees from Defense Department and other U.S. government agencies. Interviews in the Pentagon with serving officials and sought out former officials to discuss the issues with them were also conducted. These interviews form the backbone of the book and combined are an extraordinary compilation of primary source material that has never been done previously in regard to Guantanamo. While it is not possible at this time to post complete transcripts of all interviews on the site at this time, one of our goals is to have some key interviews transcribed and available soon.
A new age has come to the world of book publishing. We hope this Inside Gitmo companion website offers an exciting supplement to the book: a place of discovery, discussion, and debate. To the best of my knowledge it has never been done before. We hope that this effort will encourage more authors and writers to take this unique, exciting approach to their writing.
— Gordon Cucullu
November 20, 2008
|
|
Click on the yellow bars below |
Now in Bookstores Nationwide
Chapter Summaries & Source Documents
Join the Inside Gitmo discussion group
The Inside Gitmo email-based discussion group on Guantanamo's detention facility is intended to encourage rational, civil discussion of the myriad issues and problems associated with the facility, the detainees, and the staff.
Note that in the coming months I will be participating in dozens of radio shows across the country, and asked to speak on Guantanamo topics in a variety of different venues.
Rather than operating in a vacuum, the questions, comments, thoughts and exchanges from a wide variety of different people will enrich my perspectives and understanding of what others think and believe about Guantanamo.
Journalists, lawmakers, analysts, students, law enforcement professionals, and foreign affairs experts are encouraged to join.
If you would like to participate -- or just listen in -- then click here to join us. |
 "I've also been 'inside GITMO,' and Cucullu's riveting account shows why we've been safer with it — and why we may soon regret being without it."— Monica Crowley, host of the Monica Crowley Show and author of Nixon in Winter
 "Our new president should read it — twice — and take its truth-telling to heart." — Ralph Peters, columnist and author of Looking For Trouble
 "Every relevant military and civilian official should give Cucullu's analysis a fair hearing." — Victor Davis Hanson, senior fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University, and the author of An Autumn of War
 "An explosive expos of what's really been happening - 'inside the wire' at Guantanamo. Gordon Cucullu - with his Special Forces background, thorough research and extensive visits to Gitmo - knows more about the now-infamous detention facility than any 'outsider.' This book is a must-read for all who care about how we protect ourselves from those who are dying to kill us." — Oliver North, LtCol USMC (Ret.), host of War Stories on FOX News Channel & NYT bestselling author of American Heroes in the Fight Against Radical Islam
 "Inside Gitmo is a book of incalculable importance. It lays bare the myths and the stakes involved in the campaign to shut down a facility that any objective reader must conclude is vital to our national security. Every policy-maker in Washington and every citizen across America should study this books brilliant first-hand reporting and its alarming findings." — Frank Gaffney, Jr, President, Center for Security Policy and author of War Footing
 "Gordon Cucullu has written a lively work of history that fulfills its promise to explode 'the myths of Guantanamo Bay.' Anyone who wants to speak authoritatively about the Bush administration's detainee policies has to read this book." — Douglas J. Feith, senior fellow, Hudson Institute, former Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, and author of War and Decision: Inside the Pentagon at the Dawn of the War on Terrorism
The "Living Book" Concept
The "Living Book" Concept
This companion web site to Inside Gitmo was conceived and executed by Avery Johnson in collaboration with Chuck Martin. As a highly skilled, experienced researcher, Avery imposes strict demands on her work and that of author's with whom she works. Every stated fact must be backed by hard documentation. Hence readers find 524 citations in Inside Gitmo from a multiplicity of sources. Avery took that as "a good start."
Her concept - that you can interact with on these pages - is that with an issue as dynamic and multi-faceted as Guantanamo is too large to be captured only in a work of print. In order to complement and supplement the final work so that readers may continue to be apprised of developments on this critical subject and dig deeper into subjects that interest them, it is necessary and valuable to take advantage of technology.
Illustrative of this concept is that this site functions as a repository for all original documents used in the book as well as providing additional sources for continued research into the subject. For readers seeking context for specific passages referenced in the book, the site provides access to the original report, news article, book, or other source quoted. By so doing we are able to circumvent necessary space limitations in print by augmenting the book with electronic back-up.
Additionally, the site goes where print cannot: it provides an email based discussion group, videos, updated news articles, a blog, podcasts, and other resources. It highlights new developments, steers readers to newly published works, and offers visitors the opportunity to purchase relevant works from the site.
I think that this concept - a continually updated, vibrant companion website for a published book with complete references included - ought to be the new gold standard in publishing and strongly urge new and proven writers and authors to advantage themselves of these services.
Avery Johnson and her team can be contacted at avery.j@comcast.net.
I'm a retired Green Beret lieutenant colonel, Vietnam War veteran and career officer, and now a writer. After serving more than thirteen years in East Asia I was sent on assignments in El Salvador, Honduras, Panama, and eventually worked Korea and East Asian affairs at both the Pentagon and Department of State.
My many adventures since then have included raising llamas and alpacas in upstate New York, serving as the Executive Director of the Korea Society in Manhattan, working as an international marketing VP for General Electric in Asia, and traveling within corners of the world that few have had the privilege of experiencing.
In April-May 2008 I spent a month embedded with Military Police units in Iraq. Stories from my trip are posted at supportamericansoldiers.com — a book about what I saw and learned is also in the making.
My first book Separated at Birth: How North Korea became the Evil Twin was published in September 2004. |
Feedback Options
 Subscribe to
the Inside Gitmo
email-based
discussion group
Email-based discussion group for reporters, lawmakers,
analysts, students, and anyone else interested in discussing
Guantanamo issues. Click here to join...
You can also view, sign or leave a message on our
message board.
Or simply send me an email at
gordon@colonelgordon.com |
|
