I prepared for my first viewing of “American Hustle” by reading Bob Greene’s classic, “The Sting Man: Inside Abscam.”
It doesn’t get any better than this for someone learning or teaching the crafts of investigative reporting and narrative storytelling.
Greene correctly predicted that the congressional investigation of the FBI’s Abscam tactics would ensure “that no congressman ever again would be nailed with his hand in the cookie jar as the result of such a sting.”
While reporting in great detail on the genesis and execution of Abscam, Greene’s book is just a first step to dig into the layers of politics and intrigue that permeate law enforcement at the highest levels.
Abscam – short for Abdul scam – was conceived to target white collar criminals including forgers and art thieves. When FBI agents got word that a Camden, NJ mayor was ripe for bribes, they went down a road leading to Congress ...
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