The Greek Connection: The Life of Elias Demetracopoulos and the Untold Story of Watergate

The first-ever biography of Elias Demetracopoulos, a relentless freedom fighter and journalist who held the secret behind Watergate

Elias Demetracopoulos (1928-2016) is among the most fascinating yet overlooked figures in 20th-century political history. As a precocious twelve-year-old in occupied Athens, he engaged in heroic resistance efforts against the Nazis, for which he was imprisoned and tortured.

After his life was miraculously spared, he became a journalist, covering American affairs in Greece. A clever and scoop-hungry reporter, Elias soon gained access to powerful figures in both governments . . . and attracted many enemies. When the Greek military dictatorship took power in 1967, he narrowly escaped to Washington where he would lead the fight to restore democracy in his homeland--while running afoul of the American government, too.

Now, after a decade of research and original reporting, James H. Barron uncovers the story of a man caught between the military junta in Greece and Cold War America--dangerous places about which Elias knew valuable secrets. Throughout his life, Elias's tireless pursuit of uncomfortable truths would put him at odds with the Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, Ford, Carter and Reagan administrations, making him a target of CIA, FBI, and State Department surveillance and harassment.

A stunning feat of biographic storytelling that reads like a real-life Cold War thriller, The Greek Connection is about a lifetime of standing up for democracy and a free press against powerful special interests. It has much to teach us about our own era of journalist intimidation, dark money, and international intrigue.