Norman Mailer: Works and Days

The CIA vs. Democracy

Mailer's essay for Counter-Spy, the magazine he helped found, on the sins of the CIA and the role of the Fifth Estate as 'homeopathic medicine - one small drop for a large disease.'

“The CIA vs. Democracy,” an essay (dated 24 January) in Counter-Spy 2 (spring/summer 1975), Mailer’s contribution to the magazine he helped found. It focuses on the sins of the CIA and the role of The Fifth Estate as “homeopathic medicine — one small drop for a large disease.”

First published: 1975
Form: essay
Lennon & Lennon: 75.4
Cite as: /works/1975-cia-vs-democracy
Last updated: 2026-06-04