What do you want your readers to come away with after reading 'Back Channel'?
Answer
I hope they come away with a better insight of how government really works and how decisions are made. I also hope they come away with the sense that they gained that knowledge painlessly in the course of reading a very enjoyable book. In addition, as I said previously, there is very little transparency in our government and in most governments around the world.I would like to see a less complacent and more knowledgeable public. I want them to know a lot more about how their government works and how decisions are made. It’s terrifying to me that very few people know how the Vietnam War came about and that it was based entirely on an event that never happened. Sometimes as I recount these events in the lead-up to the Vietnam War, I wonder if I am somehow living in a sort of surreal time-warp. Am I writing about Vietnam or Iraq?
Search result for 'transparency' in Back Channel The Kennedy Years
Chapter 2:
Bertie in the White House
"...that is established to my satisfaction; my understanding is that future communications will go through a “mole” at the Russian Embassy here in Washington. But I would like for all communications between my contacts and I to go through the White House Communications Room; I think openness and transparency are essential if we are to establish a sense of mutual trust.” Bundy stared at me for several moments before responding, “I’m glad you made that decision but once the ‘handshake’ is acceptable to both sides, what’s to prevent the White House from continuing the communication in your ..."
