{"article":{"id":8206,"heading":"\u2018Narco News\u2019 Ready for Libel Suit in New York","author":"Village Voice","created":"2001-06-30 16:10:29","modified":"2013-11-10 23:38:21","last_modified":"Mon, 11 Nov 2013 06:38:21","article":"

Week of June 27 - July 3, 2001



Press Clips

by Cynthia Cotts







































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<\/p>\n","contact":"","link":"","address":"","phone":"","parent_id":0,"mime_type":"text\/plain","summary":"According to statements made in 2000 by Al Giordano, publisher of the Mexican-based NarcoNews.com, Hern\u00e1ndez has also been called a money launderer and a drug dealer. Giordano says he has reviewed published photos and testimony suggesting that Hern\u00e1ndez has shared his Yucat\u00e1n beachfront with the boats and planes of the cocaine trade.","numcomment":1,"fileurl":"\/uploads\/2001\/06\/_narco_new.txt","filesize":"4.3 kibibytes","article_url":"\/news\/2001\/06\/8206.php"},"attachments":[],"comments":[{"id":8211,"heading":"NarcoNewsAppeal","article":"-----Original Message-----\r\nFrom: Alberto M. Giordano [mailto:narconews@h...]\r\nSent: Friday, June 29, 2001 10:41 AM\r\nTo: narconews@h...\r\nCc: narconews@yahoogroups.com\r\nSubject: [narconews] Narco News Suspends Publication of New Reports\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nJune 29, 2001\r\nPlease Distribute Widely\r\n\r\nDear Colleagues,\r\n\r\nIt is with great regret that we must make this announcement.\r\n\r\nThe Narco News Bulletin is hereby suspending the publication of new reports\r\non the drug war from Latin America.\r\n\r\nThe suspension is temporary, and based on Court deadlines of July 12th and\r\nJuly 20th.\r\n\r\nAll the archives of previous Narco News stories - hundreds of them - will\r\nremain for your research and reading purposes at http:\/\/www.narconews.com\r\n\r\nWe will continue, through the web site and through our free subscription\r\nlist to alert you of new developments in the legal battle.\r\n\r\nBut we cannot do two things at once - report on the drug war and wage an\r\neffective defense in Court - without failing in both tasks.\r\n\r\nTherefore, for an unknown period of time - and we will strive, with you, to\r\nmake that time as short as humanly possible - the Narco Newsroom will\r\ndedicate itself full-time to the defense of our rights to speech and\r\ncyber-liberties.\r\n\r\nAs you know, The Narco News Bulletin is under a savage attack through a\r\nlawsuit brought by the National Bank of Mexico (\"Banamex\") with a lawsuit\r\nbrought in New York.\r\n\r\nWe face a July 12th deadline to respond to the most recent barrage of false\r\naccusations by Banamex and its attorneys at Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer and\r\nFeld, LLP.\r\n\r\nAnd we have a Court date scheduled on July 20th, at the New York Supreme\r\nCourt in Manhattan, to make oral arguments on our motions to dismiss this\r\ncase.\r\n\r\nNever before in the history of First Amendment law has a plaintiff as\r\nwealthy as Banamex (with a daily flow of One Billion U.S. dollars in foreign\r\ncurrency alone, and recently having signed a deal to be purchased by\r\nCitigroup for $12.5 billion dollars) sued defendants as economically\r\nmarginalized as The Narco News Bulletin, Mexican journalist Mario Menendez,\r\nand me.\r\n\r\nMany of you have contributed to our defense fund, \"Drug War on Trial,\" and\r\nthis has made it possible to have a fighting chance in this case.\r\n\r\nHowever, we have not received sufficient funds to be at all competitive with\r\nthe billionaire assault on us in Court.\r\n\r\nThus, with these deadlines approaching, we cannot continue to do two things\r\nat once: Report on the drug war from Latin America *and* wage an effective\r\ndefense in Court.\r\n\r\nTherefore, starting today, The Narco News Bulletin must, sadly, suspend the\r\ninvestigating and reporting of new stories, and I, as its publisher, must\r\nbecome a full-time defendant.\r\n\r\nBanamex and its lawyers are trying to delay the day upon which the Court\r\nreviews the underlying facts of this case. Whereas we are working around the\r\nclock to prepare our case in a manner in which the true facts about the drug\r\nwar on our Am\u00e9rica come to light.\r\n\r\nThis is not a permanent suspension. It is temporary. And we may still post\r\nnew stories to Narco News between now and the July 20th hearing if time\r\npermits or if the subject matter is so urgent that it must be reported.\r\n\r\nHowever, we must also be realistic. If we do not mount our best defense NOW,\r\nat this crucial stage of the proceedings, we jeopardize the Narco News\r\nproject in citizen-journalism on the drug war for years to come.\r\n\r\nIf we had more resources available to our defense, this step would not have\r\nbeen necessary. However, we do not. We're not going to complain. We are\r\ngoing to stand and fight in the face of these unfair financial odds.\r\n\r\nThe pages of Narco News, in the coming weeks, will be updated to share with\r\nyou each new development in the Drug War on Trial case.\r\n\r\nAnd subscribers will hear from us, although less frequently than usual,\r\nbecause we are so buried in our defense.\r\n\r\nYou can and do make the crucial difference in the degree and length of this\r\nsuspension. If we had, today, $20,000 for our defense fund, this suspension\r\nwould not be necessary.\r\n\r\nWe make do with what we can. But our economic situation places us in a very\r\nvulnerable position right now.\r\n\r\nYou can make the difference. Please make a contribution today to our defense\r\nfund by making a check out to \"Drug War on Trial\" and by sending it to:\r\n\r\nDrug War on Trial\r\nc\/o Attorney Tom Lesser\r\nLesser, Newman, Souweine & Nasser\r\n39 Main Street\r\nNorthampton, MA 01060 U.S.A.\r\n\r\nOr click this link to make an immediate credit card contribution directly to\r\nthe Drug War on Trial account:\r\n\r\nhttps:\/\/www.paypal.com\/xclick\/business=narconews%40hotmail.com\r\n\r\nMexican journalists and supporters of our defense are also in the process of\r\nsetting up a bank account in Mexico to accomodate those of you in that\r\ncountry who have expressed a desire to make a contribution in pesos. We will\r\nalert you as soon as that account is available. You will be able to do that\r\nfrom any city in Mexico. Every little bit helps.\r\n\r\nBut, as of today, I am forced to suspend the work I love, reporting on the\r\ndrug war from Latin America, because wealthy interests seek to abuse the New\r\nYork Courts in order to attempt to silence us.\r\n\r\nThey will not succeed.\r\n\r\nThis is a temporary interruption, and we will continue to report precisely\r\non stories relevant to this case. But we cannot continue to churn out 20 new\r\narticles on the drug war per month, as we have done since being sued, and\r\ncertainly not the more than 30 articles per month we were able to publish\r\nbefore this lawsuit began to absorb our time and energy.\r\n\r\nThe money is not there. But we will triumph regardless of the odds. Because\r\nthe truth on our side, the facts are on our side, and justice will prevail.\r\n\r\nBut only if we fight the battle with our all.\r\n\r\nI ask you to join us in this fight.\r\n\r\nCome to New York on July 20th for the hearing.\r\n\r\nMake a contribution today so that we can fight effectively in Court.\r\n\r\nAnd know that, with your help, we will soon return to our regularly\r\nscheduled programming: reporting on the drug war from Latin America.\r\n\r\nAnd if you know of any available miracles, please do be in touch.\r\n\r\nfrom somewhere in a country called Am\u00e9rica,\r\n\r\nI am,\r\n\r\nyour servant in authentic journalism,\r\n\r\nAl Giordano\r\nPublisher\r\nThe Narco News Bulletin\r\nhttp:\/\/www.narconews.com\/\r\nnarconews@h...\r\n\r\nDrug War on Trial\r\nc\/o Attorney Tom Lesser\r\nLesser, Newman, Souweine & Nasser\r\n39 Main Street\r\nNorthampton, MA 01060 U.S.A.\r\n\r\nCredit Card Contributions:\r\n\r\nhttps:\/\/www.paypal.com\/xclick\/business=narconews%40hotmail.com","author":"Authentico","parent_id":8206,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2001-06-30 17:11:56","modified":"2013-11-10 23:38:22","fileurl":""}]}