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Category Archives: In The News
How Realistic is Argo?
When it comes to spy fiction, the question inevitably gets asked “how realistic is it?” A leading scholar of intelligence, Professor Wesley Wark, has said that one can discern two different types of realism. The first type of realism involves … Continue reading
Posted in History, In The News, SPY at The Movies, Uncategorized
Tagged agent, Argo, Ben Affleck, Canadians, CIA, declassified, hostage, Spy, Tony Mendez
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Intelligence is a Team Sport
The Washington Post ran a remarkable article on December 10 about “Maya,” as we now know the CIA targeter who played the central role in finding Bin Laden. Her big insight was to analyze Bin Laden’s courier networks, rather than, … Continue reading
Practicing Openness—Secretly
September 19, 2011 Historain Mark Stout The National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), the agency which flies America’s spy satellites, celebrated its 50th anniversary this last weekend with a gala at the National Air and Space Museum’s Udvar-Hazy Center near Dulles Airport. … Continue reading
Posted in In The News
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Predicting the Egyptian Revolution: How Well Did The Intelligence Community Do?
February 4, 2011 Mark Stout, SPY Historian Some senators have started blaming the Intelligence Community for not providing warning of the revolution in Egypt. Senator Dianne Feinstein, for instance, said at a recent hearing “The President, the Secretary of State and … Continue reading
Posted in In The News
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A Jihadist Manual on Intelligence
January 24, 2011 Mark Stout, SPY Historian A manual on intelligence captured during the course of Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan, Coalition Forces offers a unique take on intelligence from a jihadist perspective. Coalition forces found copies of the 300-some … Continue reading
Posted in History, In The News
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The Georgian Spy Case: “Chronic Spy Mania” Flares Up
November, 9th 2010 SPY Historian Mark Stout On November 5 the Government of Georgia announced the arrest of thirteen people whom they accused of working for Russian military intelligence, the GRU. The suspects included four Russians and nine Georgians. The … Continue reading
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Awlaki Visited the Pentagon in 2001: Was This A Security Failure?
SPY Historian Mark Stout A story breaking in the news recently highlights the difficulty of knowing who-is-who in the murky worlds of intelligence, security, and terrorism. It also shows the difficulty of seeing the future, a core aim of the … Continue reading
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Intelligence is Cramping al Qaeda’s Style
SPY Historian Mark Stout The second issue of Inspire, the English language magazine of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) popped up online on 11 October.[1] The first issue came out in July, though for several days only the … Continue reading
Posted in In The News
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The Iranian Nuclear Scientist Who Defected Twice?
Mark Stout, SPY Historian A high-profile Iranian nuclear scientist may have defected to the United States last year. And today he may have defected back. What are the implications for American intelligence? The case is rife with mysteries. Shahram Amiri … Continue reading