Jennifer Ewbank, formerly the Deputy Director of CIA for Digital Innovation, shares invaluable insights from her prestigious career. She discusses the crucial integration of technology in intelligence, emphasizing the need for humility and decisive leadership. Risk management is a central theme, highlighting the emotional toll on operatives and the collaborative nature of modern intelligence work. Ewbank also reflects on the shift to open-source intelligence and its role in countering sophisticated adversaries, underscoring the importance of human-machine collaboration.

SummaryPete Langman and Nadine Akkerman join Andrew to discuss espionage in Elizabethan England. Pete and Nadine are authors of the new book Spycraft: Tricks and Tools of the Dangerous Trade from Elizabeth I to the Restoration. What You’ll LearnIntelligence Spymasters of the Elizabethan era  Techniques in forgeries, invisible inks, and seal-making The impact of spies on important historical events like the Spanish Armada The connections between espionage and religious tension Reflections Creativity & Innovation The risks and dangers of early espionage And much, much more …Quotes of the Week“Spies are involved with bribery. They cheat and they lie, so it’s immoral, and often there are things that are just illegal in other instances, such as forgery of documents. Other people would get their ears clipped or their noses slit if they forged documents.If you are a spy, you are being asked to do that on the job. So it's a dangerous game and the lines are very thin.” – Nadine Akkerman.Resources SURFACE SKIM*Spotlight Resource* Spycraft: Tricks and Tools of the Dangerous Trade from Elizabeth I to the Restoration, N. Akkerman & P. Langman (Yale University Press, 2024) *SpyCasts* The British Monarchy and Secret Intelligence with Rory Cormac and Richard Aldrich (2024)  Espionage and the Two Queens with Kent Tiernan (2023) The Information Battlespace – Foreign Denial and Deception with Bill Parquette (2022) So, You Want to Be a Codebreaker? with Elonka Dunin and Klaus Schmeh (2021)  DEEPER DIVEPrimary Sources  Natural magick, Smithsonian Digital Library (1658) Page of Ciphers Used by Mary Queen of Scots, UK National Archives (1586) Letter from Mary, Queen of Scots in Sheffield Castle to Elizabeth I, British Library (1582) Mary, Queen of Scots to Sir William Cecil, UK National Archives (1570) De Furtivis Literarum notis (1563) *Wildcard Resource* Use this invisible ink recipe from the UK National Archives to send your own secret messages.  You may recognize this heat method from one of Erin’s favorite movies, National Treasure (2004), where a secret message is revealed on the back of the Declaration of Independence.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

SummaryJason Barrett (LinkedIn) joins Andrew (X; LinkedIn) to discuss the integration of open-source intelligence into the American Intelligence Community. Jason is the first-ever OSINT Executive. What You’ll LearnIntelligence Historical examples of OSINT The evolution of Open Source Intelligence The challenges and unique opportunities OSINT presents The future of OSINT within the Intelligence Community  Reflections Trust and transparency  Efficiency in intelligence gathering And much, much more …Quotes of the Week“We're living in an age when credibility and trust is really important to build. This is an opportunity for the IC to really build that trust, I think in important ways. So, it's an area I think you will see more of us being more transparent in our work.” – Jason Barrett. Resources SURFACE SKIM*SpyCasts* U.S. Army Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) with Dennis Eger & Shawn Nilius (2024) Cybersecurity in The White House with Camille Stewart Gloster (2024) David Petraeus on Ukraine & Intelligence with the former CIA Director & 4* General (2023) Irregular Warfare & Intelligence with IWC Director Dennis Walters (2023) DEEPER DIVEBooks OSINT Techniques: Resources for Uncovering Online Information, M. Bazzell (2023)  Deep Dive: Exploring the Real-world Value of Open Source Intelligence, R. L. Baker (Wiley, 2023) Open Source Intelligence Methods and Tools: A Practical Guide to Online Intelligence, N. A. Hassan & R. Hijazi (Apress, 2018) Primary Sources  The IC OSINT Strategy 2024-2026 (2024) DoS Open Source Intelligence Strategy (2024)  Ethical Frameworks in Open-Source Intelligence (2022)  Open-Source Intelligence, Department of the Army (2012)  Department of Defense OSINT Instruction (2010) *Wildcard Resource* You’ve probably practiced OSINT techniques many times before – Think, Facebook stalking your old college friends to see what they’re up to. Many video games also involve the usage of open-source collection techniques:  Return of the Obra Dinn (2018) is one such critically acclaimed video game. The game, set on an early 19th-century ship, challenges its player to solve the mystery of what happened to the crew onboard by piecing together scraps of information from journal entries and related documents.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

SummaryTim Tate (Website) joins Andrew (X; LinkedIn) to discuss the Spycatcher Affair. Tim is a best-selling author and award-winning filmmaker. What You’ll LearnIntelligence Peter Wright: His background and motives  The contents of Spycatcher including the exposure of alleged soviet moles The UK’s efforts to keep their secrets secret The lasting effects of the Spycatcher Affair Reflections Personal secrecy vs. public security Censorship and free speech And much, much more …Quotes of the Week"[Wright] found truly acres of paperwork from old files which had been disregarded and hadn't been properly followed up on and leads that hadn't been properly followed. And when he pulled at them, those threads of evidence, and when he chased it down, what he found, as often as not, was genuine reason to suspect that the penetration, the widespread penetration, was real and serious.” – Tim Tate.Resources SURFACE SKIM*Spotlight Resource* To Catch a Spy: How the Spycatcher Affair brought MI5 in from the Cold, Tim Tate (Icon Books, 2024)*SpyCasts* The Counterintelligence Chief with FBI Assistant Director Alan Kohler (2023) St. Ermin’s Hotel, London – The History of a Legendary Spy Site with Stephen Duffy (2023) The Information Battlespace – Foreign Denial and Deception with Bill Parquette (2022) Dealing with Russia – A Conversation with Counterintelligence Legend Jim Olson (2022) DEEPER DIVEBooks To Catch a Spy: The Art of Counterintelligence, J. Olson (Georgetown University Press, 2021) Traitors Among Us: Inside the Spy Catcher's World, S. A. Herrington (Harvest Books, 2000) The Spycatcher Affair, C. Pincher (St. Martin’s Press, 1988) Spycatcher, P. Wright (Heinemann, 1987) Primary Sources  Peter Wright Case (Part 1) (1987) Peter Wright Case (Part 2) (1987)  Retired Spy Claims Cover Up in British Service (1984) The Hollis Affair (1981) The “Zinoviev” Letter Investigation (1924) The Zimmermann Telegram (1917) *Wildcard Resource* Areopagitica (1644) by John Milton Illegally published in the UK in protest to the Licensing Order of 1643, this polemic has since become one of the most influential documents defending the right to free speech and free publication.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Rachel Noble, the first woman to lead the Australian Signals Directorate, shares her groundbreaking journey in a male-dominated intelligence landscape. She delves into the significance and missions of the ASD, revealing captivating insights about the Pine Gap facility. Noble discusses the evolution of Australia's signals intelligence, highlighting the role of women during WWII. She emphasizes the importance of diversity in leadership and maintaining work-life balance, all while staying true to her personal identity. An inspiring look at resilience and teamwork in national security!

SummaryNeil Bradbury (Website, LinkedIn) joins Andrew (X; LinkedIn) to discuss the deadly history of poison and espionage. Neil is an author and biochemist.  What You’ll LearnIntelligence How different poisons affect the human body  The usage of poisons as a covert assassination method The deaths of defectors Alexander Litvinenko and Georgi Markov The Soviet Union’s Lab X and the production and research of poisons on the state level Reflections The double edge of creativity  The necessity for research and experimentation And much, much more …Quotes of the Week“In order to counteract lots of the poisons, you have to know how they work, and you have to be able to develop your own. So, yes, undoubtedly, Western governments are just as actively involved in creating these chemicals and also the antidotes to them.” – Dr. Neil Bradbury. Resources SURFACE SKIM*Spotlight Resource* A Taste for Poison: Eleven Deadly Molecules and the Killers Who Used Them, Neil Bradbury (St. Martin’s Press, 2022) *SpyCasts* The Murder of an IRA Spy with Henry Hemming (2024) I Helped Solve the Final Zodiac Killer Cipher with David Oranchak (2024)  The North Korean Defector with Former DPRK Agent Kim, Hyun Woo (2023) Spies: The Epic Intelligence War Between East vs. West with Calder Walton (2023) DEEPER DIVEBooks Poison: The History of Potions, Powders and Murderous Practitioners, B. Hubbard (Welbeck Publishing, 2020) Poison: A History: An Account of the Deadly Art and its Most Infamous Practitioners, J. Davis (Chartwell Books, 2018) The KGB's Poison Factory: From Lenin to Litvinenko, B. Volodarsky (Zenith Press, 2010)  Primary Sources  Press Release on the Poisoning of Alexei Navalny (2020) Update on the Use of Nerve Agent in Salisbury, UK (2018) The Litvinenko Inquiry (2016) Situation Report on Piesteritz (1953) Analysis of Madame Lefarge’s Arsenic Trial (1840) *Wildcard Resource* This week’s companion song can only be Waterloo Sunset (1967) by The Kinks.  Heralded as one of the most beautiful songs of the swingin’ sixties, “Waterloo Sunset” is appropriately incorporated into the title of Neil’s chapter on the assassination of Georgi Markov, which took place on London’s Waterloo Bridge.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

SummaryJefferson Morley and Mark Zaid join Andrew in a debate over the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Mark and Jeff are longtime friends and colleagues with very different viewpoints of what truly happened on November 22nd, 1963. What You’ll LearnIntelligence The lasting questions surrounding the Kennedy assassination Lee Harvey Oswald’s intelligence connections The Warren Commission and the JFK Assassination Records The strangest theories Mark and Jeff have heard, and the most plausible explanations of who killed President Kennedy Reflections Public distrust and the search for truth Reactions and responses to tragedy And much, much more …Quotes of the Week ”That's why I think they probably have something to hide. Because it doesn't make sense otherwise … If they had access to that kind of straightforward story, we would get that.” – Jefferson Morley.Resources SURFACE SKIM*SpyCasts* The Skinny on American Intelligence & the Law with D.C. “Super Lawyer” Mark Zaid (2024) Rise of Devils: The Origins of Modern Terrorism with James Crossland (2024) Havana Syndrome – A Panel featuring Nicky Woolf, Marc Polymeropoulos, and Mark Zaid (2023) The Past 75 Years with Historian of the CIA Rhodri Jeffreys-Jones (2022) *Beginner Resources* Lee Harvey Oswald, Britannica (2024) [Short biography] JFK Files: What we're learning from newly released Kennedy assassination records, CBS News, YouTube (2022) [6 min. video] Kennedy Assassination Timeline, The Sixth Floor Museum (n.d.) [Timeline of events] DEEPER DIVEBooks The Devil's Chessboard: Allen Dulles, the CIA, and the Rise of America's Secret Government, D. Talbot (Harper Perennial, 2016) JFK and the Unspeakable: Why He Died and Why It Matters, J. W. Douglass (Touchstone, 2010) Our Man in Mexico: Winston Scott and the Hidden History of the CIA, J. Morley (University Press of Kansas, 2008) Primary Sources  President John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection Act (1992) Select Committee on Assassinations Report (1978) Warren Commission Report (1964)  LBJ Address to Congress (1963) Interrogation of Lee Harvey Oswald (1963) JFK Autopsy Report (1963) The President John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection  *Wildcard Resource*Test how you would do in Kennedy’s shoes by playing 13 Days: The Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962 – A two-player board game that tests your quick-thinking strategy and conflict resolution skills.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

SummaryJefferson Morley and Mark Zaid join Andrew in a debate over the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Mark and Jeff are longtime friends and colleagues with very different viewpoints of what truly happened on November 22nd, 1963. What You’ll LearnIntelligence The lasting questions surrounding the Kennedy assassination Lee Harvey Oswald’s intelligence connections The Warren Commission and the JFK Assassination Records The strangest theories Mark and Jeff have heard, and the most plausible explanations of who killed President Kennedy Reflections Public distrust and the search for truth Reactions and responses to tragedy And much, much more …Quotes of the Week ”That's why I think they probably have something to hide. Because it doesn't make sense otherwise … If they had access to that kind of straightforward story, we would get that.” – Jefferson Morley.Resources SURFACE SKIM*SpyCasts* The Skinny on American Intelligence & the Law with D.C. “Super Lawyer” Mark Zaid (2024) Rise of Devils: The Origins of Modern Terrorism with James Crossland (2024) Havana Syndrome – A Panel featuring Nicky Woolf, Marc Polymeropoulos, and Mark Zaid (2023) The Past 75 Years with Historian of the CIA Rhodri Jeffreys-Jones (2022) *Beginner Resources* Lee Harvey Oswald, Britannica (2024) [Short biography] JFK Files: What we're learning from newly released Kennedy assassination records, CBS News, YouTube (2022) [6 min. video] Kennedy Assassination Timeline, The Sixth Floor Museum (n.d.) [Timeline of events] DEEPER DIVEBooks The Devil's Chessboard: Allen Dulles, the CIA, and the Rise of America's Secret Government, D. Talbot (Harper Perennial, 2016) JFK and the Unspeakable: Why He Died and Why It Matters, J. W. Douglass (Touchstone, 2010) Our Man in Mexico: Winston Scott and the Hidden History of the CIA, J. Morley (University Press of Kansas, 2008) Primary Sources  President John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection Act (1992) Select Committee on Assassinations Report (1978) Warren Commission Report (1964)  LBJ Address to Congress (1963) Interrogation of Lee Harvey Oswald (1963) JFK Autopsy Report (1963) The President John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection  *Wildcard Resource*Test how you would do in Kennedy’s shoes by playing 13 Days: The Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962 – A two-player board game that tests your quick-thinking strategy and conflict resolution skills.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

SummaryHenry Hemming (X, Website) joins Andrew (X; LinkedIn) to discuss the case of Frank Hegarty, a British spy operating within the IRA. Henry is a bestselling espionage author. What You’ll LearnIntelligence Espionage and the role of MI5 within the Troubles The story of Frank Hegarty, a British spy working in Derry Freddie Scappaticci, or Stakeknife, and Operation Kenova The moral implications of spying Reflections Sacrifice, risk, and trust The nuances of conflict  And much, much more …Quotes of the Week“This is where it becomes, morally, much more complex. What’s difficult … is that most of the handlers who were faced with these decisions didn't have adequate training. They didn't know what the law said. They didn't know exactly what the limits were to what they could and could not do … And suddenly, as we're beginning to find out, mistakes were made.” – Henry Hemming. Resources SURFACE SKIM*SpyCasts* Irish Garda Intelligence Chief with Assistant Commissioner Michael McElgunn (2023)  Espionage and the Two Queens with Kent Tiernan (2023) The IRA, The Troubles & Intelligence with Eleanor Williams and Thomas Leahy (2022) *Beginner Resources* Why is Ireland Divided? History Matters, YouTube (2022) [3 min. video] What You Need to Know About The Troubles, Imperial War Museum (n.d.) [Short article]  A Brief History of Ireland, T. Lambert, Local Histories (n.d.) [Short article]  DEEPER DIVEBooks Stakeknife's Dirty War: The Inside Story of Scappaticci, the IRA’s Nutting Squad, and the British Spooks who Ran the War, R. O’Rawe (Merrion Press, 2023) The Intelligence War against the IRA, T. Leahy (Cambridge University Press, 2020) Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland, P. Radden Keefe (Anchor, 2020) Primary Sources  Operation Kenova Interim Report (2024) Report of the Bloody Sunday Inquiry (2010) The Good Friday Agreement (1998) The Anglo-Irish Agreement (1985) IRA Green Book (1977)  Guerrilla Warfare Handbook for IRA Volunteers (1956) *Wildcard Resource* Much of the events mentioned in this week’s episode take place in Derry, or Londonderry, Northern Ireland.  Check out one of Erin’s favorite TV shows, Derry Girls – It tells the story of a young group of friends growing up in Derry during the Troubles. The town loved the show so much, they erected a mural to immortalize the five fictional friends that represented so many of their own upbringings in Derry. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

SummaryBrett Forrest and Warren Strobel join Andrew to discuss reporting intelligence. Brett and Warren are national security reporters for The Wall Street Journal. What You’ll LearnIntelligence The intelligence learning curve  Stories from the front lines of modern conflicts and critical moments  The unique challenges that come with reporting on intelligence, and ... The risks, including being a target of espionage Reflections Privacy and protection  The power, and danger, of sharing information And much, much more …Episode NotesThis week on SpyCast, Andrew was joined in the studio by Brett Forrest and Warren Strobel, intelligence correspondents at the Wall Street Journal. As SpyCast listeners will know, issues of intelligence and espionage are constantly going on all around us – But how does the public stay in the know and up to date on the latest cases and news from around the world? Well, that's where these two come in. Quotes of the Week“It's about knocking on every possible door that you can imagine, that you can come up with, that you can dig up. And, all you're hoping for is one of those doors to open. You know, you knock on a hundred doors, you get 99 doors to open. You just want that one door to open because that's where the information is. That's where the source is. So, I don't know if I would call that luck, I would call that persistence.” - Brett ForrestResources SURFACE SKIM*SpyCasts* Zelensky, Ukraine, and Intelligence with Simon Shuster (2024) China’s Corporate Spy War with CNBC’s Eamon Javers (2023) My Life Looking at Spies & the Media with Paul Lashmar (2021) The Women of NatSec Journalism – 6 Leading Journalists (2017) *Beginner Resources* A Brief History of Journalism in America, M. A. McIntosh, Brewminate (2022) [Short article] A History of The Wall Street Journal, G. Hughes, Historic Newspapers (2021) [Short article] What Is Journalism and Why Does it Matter? CTRL-F, YouTube (2018) [3 min. Video] DEEPER DIVEBooks Spies, Spin and the Fourth Estate, P. Lashmar (EUP, 2021) Spies and the Media in Britain, R. Norton-Taylor (IBT, 2018) Spinning Intelligence, R. Dover and M. Goodman (CUP, 2009) Articles How Cuba Recruits Spies to Penetrate Inner Circles of the U.S. Government, B. Forrest & W. Strobel, The Wall Street Journal (2024) Reporters who covered U.S. invasion of Iraq reflect on impact of war, N. Schifrin & Z. Warsi, PBS News (2023) Russian Spy or Ukrainian Hero? The Strange Death of Denys Kiryeyev, B. Forrest, The Wall Street Journal (2023) In Ukraine, New Reports of War Crimes Emerge as Russians Retreat From Kyiv Area, B. Forrest, The Wall Street Journal (2022) Questioning the Case for War, C. A. Preble, CATO Institute (2018)  CIA Intercepts Underpin Assessment Saudi Crown Prince Targeted Khashoggi, W. Strobel, The Wall Street Journal (2018) Video Lost Son with Brett Forrest, International Spy Museum, YouTube (2023)  Ukrainians in Bucha reflect on horrors and brutality suffered at hands of Russian forces, PBS News (2023) Primary Sources  It is time to do everything to make the war crimes of the Russian military the last manifestation of this evil on earth - address by the President of Ukraine (2022)  UN Report on the Killing of Civilians in Ukraine (2022) McClatchy (Knight Ridder) Iraq Intelligence Archive (2001-2007) Reporting the War (2005) *Wildcard Resource* Shock and Awe (2017) Starring James Marsden as Warren Strobel!  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices