No insurer was named, nor was the source, so who knows? How did the vaunted fact-checkers over at “The New Yorker” handle this situation? Good luck checking that fact!

In any case, let's assume the report is true. How would this work? Who would write such shadowy professionals, doing deeds some claim violate the Geneva Convention? Under what terms and conditions would coverage be written? At what price? How would a claim be handled? Who would want the publicity of insuring this crowd?

If you want to talk “professional” liability in this case, look out! In another part of the story, Ms. Mayer reports that “the CIA had virtually no trained interrogators” when President George W. Bush signed a secret Presidential finding authorizing the CIA to “create paramilitary teams to hunt, capture, detain or kill designated terrorists almost anywhere in the world.” Doesn't sound like there were best practices available for such “pros.”

Indeed, she reports the CIA turned for interrogation advice to Egypt, Jordan and Saudi Arabia, “all of which the State Department regularly criticizes for human rights abuses.” Would you write interrogators in those countries?

Even if they were Americans, and they meant well, but were at risk of being sued for torturing or falsely imprisoning some terrorist suspect, would you ever cover this covert crowd? If so, how?