Tama, "The New York Times" , 2008
While Webb's findings were met with substantial public support, influential media outlets, such as The New York Times, harshly criticized "Dark Alliance". These critics faulted Webb's oversimplification of the crack epidemic, the exaggerated role of Contra traffickers, and crucially, the implication that the CIA was actively involved in Contra smuggling.
Major newspaper, The Washington Post attempted to debunk Webb's claims regarding Blandon's role in drug trafficking.
“The Mercury News characterized Blandón as 'the Johnny Appleseed of crack in California' and suggested that the drug spread throughout the country as a result of his efforts. But Blandón's own accounts and law enforcement estimates say Blandón handled a total of only about five tons of cocaine during a decade-long career. That is enough to have damaged many lives, but it is a fraction of the nationwide cocaine trade during the 1980s, when more than 250 tons of the drug were distributed every year, according to official and academic estimates”
- Suro, Pincus
Right-wing media further disputed “Dark Alliance”'s allegations, exemplified by Reason magazine writer Glenn Garvin's article “Hooked on Fantasies”. In this article, Garvin attacks Webb's integrity and character alongside his claims.
“Every page of 'Dark Alliance' is … festooned with false information ranging from Clintonian half-truths to loony-tune delusions. No subject is too great, too small, or too far afield for Webb to distort or falsify. The misrepresentations run the gamut from trivial acts of self-aggrandizement, like Webb's claim that he won a Pulitzer Prize that was really awarded to the entire staff of the Mercury News, to calculated character assassinations that would be grounds for horsewhipping if they were not so obviously mendacious.”
- Glenn Garvin, "Hooked on Fantasies"Shortcomings in Webb's methods don't necessarily disprove alleged government negligence; rather, they demonstrate how his presentation of details blurred the lines between causation and correlation.
Faced with overwhelming media pressure, San Jose Mercury News editor Jerry Ceppos retracted the
paper's stance on "Dark Alliance". Webb was demoted, and resigned in 1997,
re-publishing "Dark Alliance" as a book.
Webb, unable to find significant journalistic work after resigning, committed suicide on December
10, 2004.
