Amidst the publicity surrounding publication of the Paradise
Papers last November, some important facts were lost.
In journalists' efforts to make the revelations seem more
dramatic than they otherwise would be, that is perhaps inevitable,
but it remains regrettable.
First, much of the coverage focused on the names of a few
high-profile individuals, whose behavior (on the basis of expert
tax advice) was portrayed as being on the borderline of
acceptability, if not implicitly illegal.
Second, by focusing on a very narrow section of the activities
of the international finance sector revealed in the leaked papers
(which totalled some 13.4 million confidential electronic
documents), the media tended to conflate illegal tax evasion and
legitimate tax planning. In all the coverage, there was little time
given to explaining the important role the international finance,
or offshore, centers play in the world economy.
