A correspondent in “Time” Magazine’s Washington, D.C. bureau, she has covered criminal justice issues, including international arms trafficking, drug trafficking, and espionage. Shannon is the author of the best-selling book, “Desperados: Latin Drug Lords, U.S. Lawmen, and the War America Can’t Win.” Shannon has won the Clarion Award from Women in Communications and the New York State Bar Association Award. In October, 1992, she won the Inter-American Press Association IAPA-Bartolome Mitre Award for a “Time” cover story. She speaks often on drug trafficking and related issues.