Mark Hunter's Page: http://www.ucs.mun.ca/~mhunter/pigs.htm


The Parascope Page: http://www.parascope.com/articles/1296/bayofpigs.htm

     In the atmosphere of the Cold War, the very presence of one nation plagued the United States in a uniquely personal way. Penetrating the Americas with an openly communist government, Castro-led Cuba mocked the United States and challenged its leadership in the Western Hemisphere. Refusing to accept such insolence, the US government embarked on a covert mission to overthrow the Castro regime. The result, however, was a complete failure--an international embarrassment known as the Bay of Pigs Invasion. With the creation of the Internet, several Web pages on the incident have made knowledge of the event more accessible and (perhaps) less tedious. Unfortunately, rumors, lies, and misinterpretations can abound on the Web with as much frequency as fact. To sort through the mass of information, therefore, reviewing Web sites on the basis of the authorship, purpose, information, and organization is necessary to arrive at a clear and unobstructed view of reality.

     In creating their respective Web sites, Mark Hunter and Parascope had two very different backgrounds and two starkly contrasting purposes. A student at the Memorial University of Newfoundland, Mark Hunter is working on his MA in History with special interest in maritime history research. As a student of history, Hunter has most likely created his Bay of Pigs page in an earnest attempt to spread academic knowledge and to demonstrate his own research and writing capabilities--although he does not specifically divulge his motivation. The Parascope page written by Dossier editor Jon Elliston, however, does not display the same sincere appreciation for the intrinsic value of knowledge. Instead, this second page actually serves as a source of conspiracy theories and rumors for anyone contemptuous of the US government, obsessed with the thought of political cover-ups, or amused by the paranoid fears of others. Containing articles about Area 51, UFO sightings, and the tobacco industry scandal, the Parascope page blends articles of fascination with genuine, newsworthy topics. Throughout the page, however, Parascope is blatant about its political position as it constantly mocks the US government with its derisive and condescending tone. Thriving on paranoia, the Dossier section begins with the statement, "something weird is happening…and we have the papers to prove it." Furthermore, Parascope has its own Parastore to cater to the consumer needs of its audience. A fully commercialized institution, the Parascope page stands a great distance from the scholarly undertaking of Mark Hunter.

     Despite the great differences between Hunter and Parascope, they do present the same basic information about the Bay of Pigs invasion. Possibly because of the absolute debacle of the Bay of Pigs, Parascope even presents the facts objectively and still manages its humiliation of the US government. Providing a general overview of the facts, Parascope traces the story from the plan's inception in the Eisenhower administration to the fraudulent defection of Cuban pilots and finally to the actual invasion. To create its description, Parascope employs secondary sources from such integral political figures as David Atlee Phillips and Arthur Schlesinger Jr. For supplemental information, Parascope also provides copies of government documents detailing the events. In a more thorough account, Hunter confirms the Parascope information, provides additional facts, and employs a moderate amount of personal interpretation. For example, Hunter offers a comprehensive analysis of the reasons for the plan's failure. Among other mistakes, one interesting factor involved the staged defection of Cuban pilots. As Hunter explains, the CIA painted its own plane with Cuban symbols to help convince the US press of the existence of a popular Cuban movement against Castro. Unfortunately, the CIA failed to notice a crucial mistake: while Cuban planes had plexiglass noses, the nose of the defectors' plane was opaque. In the face of such an obvious lie, Hunter decides that intelligence personnel around the world would know to be suspicious. Overall, Hunter's information is quite reliable and reputable. He employs quotes from vital politicians like George Kennan, Secretary of State Dean Rusk, and Soviet leader Khrushchev. Hunter assures his audience that the product of his research both acknowledges the atmosphere of 1961 foreign relations and provides a more recent, comprehensive critique of the spectacle.

     Attempting to facilitate the use of their respective Web pages, both Hunter and Parascope do employ the typical conveniences available on the World Wide Web. To organize their reviews, both creators introduce the text with a table of contents that instantly links the reader to the different sections of the work. For example, skipping to the section of Hunter's page entitled "Failure and Ramifications" is possible with minimal delay. Furthermore, Hunter has placed his entire text and a map directly below the table of contents so that a reader can also choose to complete the article without interruption. Interestingly, the thematic organization of the page actually gives the reader full information about the actual invasion before commenting on the reasons for its failures. An effective approach, Hunter's choice of organization complemented his actual text. The Parascope page, however, is not available in one section. Instead, it divides its report into independent sections that create a chronological review of the events of the Bay of Pigs invasion. Despite this small nuisance, the Bay of Pigs section of the Parascope site still presents the facts in an intelligible and sensible manner. Navigating the rest of the Parascope page, however, can be difficult. A massive page with several subdivisions, this site can present difficulties to anyone searching for a particular story. Nevertheless, both of the Bay of Pigs pages display a clearly defined and easily navigable organization. Unfortunately, despite the helpful organization, both pages make the surprising omission of links to other Bay of Pigs pages. A convenience that abounds on the Web, such links could have made researching the subject much easier for interested students.

     Providing thorough information about the Bay of Pigs invasion in structured patterns of organization, both the Hunter and Parascope Web sites are helpful for initiating research into the Bay of Pigs fiasco. In his critique of the reasons for the failure of the invasion, Hunter creates a particularly useful discussion about US foreign policy in the late 1950's and early 1960's. The Parascope page, on the other hand, requires an especially cautious approach. Because of its emphasis on controversial issues, the Parascope page--as a whole--is a poor source of factual evidence; its commercial needs can interfere with the unbiased and incorruptible presentation of the facts. For both pages, however, the most significant research value they possess is in their bibliographies: both provide the researcher with substantiated lists of potential primary and secondary resources. For the World Wide Web in general, certain databases are invaluable for students and researchers. Unfortunately, biased reasoning, fabricated documents, and outright lies are probably more abundant on the Web than those genuinely praiseworthy Web sites. Caution and skepticism, therefore, are invaluable to the Internet researcher.