Frontline Season 6 Episode 18 Guns, Drugs, and the CIA

In the Frontline season 6 episode 18 titled "Guns, Drugs, and the CIA," the show explores the complex and controversial role that the CIA played in facilitating the flow of drugs and guns into the United States during the 1980s. Through interviews with former CIA agents, drug traffickers, and investigative journalists, the episode examines the "dark alliance" between the agency and Colombian drug cartels that helped fuel the crack epidemic in inner-city communities across America.

The episode begins by tracing the origins of this relationship, which can be traced back to the Reagan administration's efforts to combat left-wing insurgencies throughout Latin America. In order to fund these conflicts, the CIA helped smuggle tons of cocaine into the US, which was then sold by various criminal organizations, including the notorious Medellin cartel. As the drug trade exploded, so did violent crime rates in cities like Los Angeles, where crack cocaine became a cheap and addictive alternative to other drugs.

The show depicts how CIA operatives were allegedly working with drug dealers to buy guns to fund Nicaraguan contras to counter leftist Sandinista government oppositions. Nicaraguan Contra rebels were fighting against the democratically elected socialist government despite being abusive to civilians. The CIA provided weapons and institutional support to the Contras, and while they were supposed to be fighting against the Sandinistas, according to the allegations in the show, they were also involved in drug trafficking.

The episode traces the work of investigative journalist Gary Webb, whose 1996 investigative series in the San Jose Mercury News brought national attention to the CIA's involvement in the drug trade. Webb uncovered evidence suggesting that the CIA was actively involved in protecting drug traffickers and allowing them to operate freely in exchange for information and intelligence. This drew a backlash from Washington, which pushed back against Webb, accusing him of exaggerating the allegations. Though he was eventually vindicated, the controversy colored his career, and he died by suicide in 2004.

Furthermore, the show follows the case of Ricky Ross, the most famous Black drug dealer of his time, who was arrested for buying and selling drugs while serving a life sentence. The defense team argued that Ricky was a pawn for the CIA drug operation as he was not given any other option to survive. The episode intertwines interviews of Ross and even shows an interview with the CIA Inspector General Frederick Hitz, who talks about his investigation into these allegations.

The show presents a disturbing picture of a government agency that was more concerned with national security than the wellbeing of its own citizens. While the CIA's role in the drug trade is contested, and while the agency itself denied the allegations, there are many compelling pieces of evidence that suggest that they played an active role in facilitating the flow of drugs into the country.

" Guns, Drugs, and the CIA" is a gripping and provocative episode that offers a rare glimpse into the seedy underbelly of American foreign policy. It raises many ethical questions about the morality of government institutions and their role in creating the social issues we face today. The episode is both informative and deeply unsettling, and should be required viewing for anyone interested in the history of American politics.