‘Firestone and the Warlord: the untold story of Firestone, Charles Taylor and the tragedy of Liberia’, 18 Nov 2014:... In the first detailed examination of the relationship between Firestone and [Charles] Taylor, an investigation by ProPublica and Frontline lays bare the role of a global corporation in a brutal African conflict. Firestone served as a source of food, fuel, trucks and cash used by Taylor’s...rebel army, according to interviews, internal corporate documents and declassified diplomatic cables...In return, Taylor’s forces provided security to the plantation that allowed Firestone to...safeguard its assets...For Taylor, the relationship with Firestone was about more than money...“We needed Firestone to give us international legitimacy,” said John Toussaint “J.T.” Richardson...one of Taylor’s top advisers. “We needed them for credibility.” While Firestone used the plantation for the business of rubber, Taylor used...factories on Firestone’s...rubber farm...[to store] weapons and ammunition. He housed himself and his top ministers in Firestone homes. He also used communications equipment on the plantation to broadcast messages to his supporters, propaganda to the masses and instructions to his troops...