We all know how Halliburton has prospered under the reign of Dick Cheney (as VP, not CEO). While this could be just coincidence, it is reasonable for reporters to point out the company's political ties to the Bush administration when discussing its success in landing government contracts. Similarly, it might have been reasonable for AFP to mention that Alberto Aleman Zubieta, the director of the Panama Canal Authority, was the former head of CUSA, a construction company that just won the first major contract in the $5.2 canal expansion project in its article on the topic. Maybe this is coincidence (perhaps CUSA had the best bid), but readers should be given this information. Thanks to my old friend Eric Jackson for this tip. Eric runs the Panama News and currently faces a libel suit for his efforts to expose government corruption.
--Dean Baker
