The Fixer is a narrative nonfiction work drawn from Amjad M. Tadros's 33-year career in journalism, much of it spent as a senior producer with CBS News and 60 Minutes covering the Middle East, particularly Iraq, the Gulf, and Yemen.
Amjad, a Jordanian son of Palestinian refugees, survived a U.S. missile strike in Baghdad, only to be visited by Saddam Hussein in his hospital bed. The Fixer goes from tracking 9/11 hijackers' origins to witnessing the Arab Spring's broken dreams; he navigated wars, dictators, and hope with a front-row seat to history.
Straddling Arab and Western worlds, Tadros faced accusations of betrayal from both sides - labeled a spy by some Arabs, a defender of tyrants by Westerners. With humor, courage, and unflinching honesty, he unveils the truth behind the headlines, offering a rare glimpse into a region of chaos and resilience.
Rather than presenting a conventional political history, the book offers a firsthand account of how major events unfolded on the ground. Through stories, encounters, and moments often absent from official records, The Fixer reveals the human, political, and institutional forces that shaped the region during some of its most consequential decades.
Written for general readers, the book provides context to a region frequently discussed through abstraction or ideology. It explores how power was exercised and negotiated, how decisions were made under pressure, and how seemingly minor actors and moments sometimes influenced outcomes more than grand strategies or official statements.
The book also reflects on the practice of journalism itself. Drawing on experiences reporting from conflict zones, it examines the realities behind news coverage: the constraints imposed by security, access, and politics; the compromises required under deadline and risk; and the ethical dilemmas that rarely appear on air. In doing so, The Fixer offers readers insight not only into what was reported, but how reporting actually worked.
Spanning conflicts, political shifts, and regional transformations, The Fixer does not seek to assign simple blame or advance a single thesis. Instead, it invites readers to understand complexity-how history is shaped by individuals as much as institutions, by chance as much as intention, and by what is unseen as much as what makes headlines.
Combining reportage, reflection, and narrative storytelling, The Fixer is intended for readers interested in the Middle East, international politics, and journalism. It offers an informed perspective on events that continue to shape global affairs, while encouraging a more critical understanding of power, media, and modern history.
