As Russian tanks rolled into Ukraine earlier this year, the fate of the world seemed to

be held hostage by one man.

Vladimir Putin announced a special military operation in eastern Ukraine.

Explosions were heard in key areas.

Democratic leaders all over the world began asking themselves the same question.

How far would this man go in the name of power?

The war in Ukraine has begun.

More than a decade ago, journalist Scott Anderson wrote a provocative story for men's

magazine GQ that all but answered that very question.

I approached GQ with this idea.

Here's this crazy story from Russia.

Vladimir Putin's rise to power may have all been done by a false flag operation in which

over 300 people died.

Ever since peace, none dare call it conspiracy.

Was published in the September 2009 issue of GQ.

But the story of Putin's criminal rise didn't even get a shout out on the cover.

The magazine's PR didn't reach out to book Scott on Rachel Maddow or Bill Marr.

It was almost as if Kondaynast, the publisher of glossies like Vogue, The New Yorker,

and Vanity Fair didn't actually want anyone to read it.

My first inclination that there was a problem was actually the article had just come out.

And someone at GQ leaked me this email from Kondaynast lawyers.

The basic idea was, okay, we have to run this article, but we're just going to bear it

...