The Panama Papers sparked major international controversy when they were leaked last Sunday and with good reason; the 11.5 million files from the database of Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca exposed offshore tax havens of current and former world leaders, politicians and public figures.
The Western media's influence on the release could not have been more obvious.
While the files were leaked to German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung, The Guardian released the first major story. But this article traced the path of 2 billion dollars linked to Russian President Vladimir Putin, naming no others involved in the leak. Subsequent stories from major news outlets mentioned leaders in Iceland, Pakistan, Iraq, Ukraine and Egypt, while also focusing on Putin and his associates. As the enormous amount of data was sifted through, one American client, millionaire life coach Marianna Olszewski, found her way into the spotlight.
But why has Olszewski been one of the only Americans mentioned? And why has the focus been predominantly on Russia and Middle Eastern countries? Here are some possible reasons:
1. Size
The Panama Papers leak became the largest leak in history with 2.6TB of data. Given that 1TB is equivalent to 1,000,000MB, and 1MB is the average size of an MP3 file, the Panama Papers leak is essentially the size of 2.6 million songs. WikiLeaks was only 1,700 songs (1.7GB).
The sheer number of files leaked means it will take a while for investigators to sift through them all, which may mean more Americans and Western players will be revealed as time goes on. In fact, only 211 people with U.S. addresses have been identified in the Panama Papers at this point, according to The New Yorker.
2. Filtering
Using a program used by international investigators, the Süddeutsche Zeitung and International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) categorized the data to make it easier to sort through. They then compiled a list of prominent world figures (including athletes and criminals among politicians and world leaders) used to initially filter through the data. This list may have played a part in skewing the search away from Westerners.
3. American Havens
Americans aren’t absent from the Panama Papers because they’re more law-abiding than people in other countries. They just don’t always have to cross borders to find a tax haven. Delaware and Nevada have loose regulations and low taxes, according to NBC News, making them an easy place to hide assets without leaving the country.
4. Trade transparency
In 2010, the United States and Panama signed an agreement to promote trade that requires Panama to disclose any information on company ownership. This effectively closed off Panama to Americans looking to hide activities and/or assets in offshore companies as the ownership information would not be private. Americans may not be heavily involved with this leak because their offshore accounts are elsewhere.
There’s no doubt that Putin and his associates play a large part in this leak ($2 billion is not chump change). But there were others involved who have found a safe place in Putin’s shadow, a shadow cast by the harsh light of Western media. This leak, and the way the media has handled it, raises questions of media bias as well as the extreme wealth inequality and ethical standards the wealthy seem to hold themselves to.
