Imperial History of the CIA with Hugh Wilford | SpyCast

🎙️ Distinguished CIA historian Hugh Wilford reveals the untold imperial origins of America's most famous intelligence agency. From "Wild" Bill Donovan's British connections to the elite Groton School's influence on CIA leadership, discover how imperial legacies shaped modern American espionage.
In this SpyCast episode, Wilford explores:
➡️ Imperial influences on American intelligence operations
➡️ Unknown stories behind the CIA's formation
➡️ British impact on early CIA structure
➡️ Cultural connections between education and espionage
➡️ New perspectives on established CIA narratives
📚 Featured Book: "The CIA: An Imperial History" by Hugh Wilford
Host: Dr. Andrew Hammond, Historian & Curator at the International Spy Museum
#CIA #Intelligence #AmericanHistory #Espionage #WildBillDonovan #SpyCast #InternationalSpyMuseum #ImperialHistory
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HOST - Dr. Andrew Hammond, Ph.D. is Historian & Curator at the International Spy Museum, home of the world's preeminent collection of intelligence-related artifacts. He is author of the forthcoming book: "Struggles for Freedom": Afghanistan & US Foreign Policy Since 1979.
The International Spy Museum (SPY) is an independent nonprofit museum which documents the tradecraft, history, and contemporary role of espionage. It holds the largest collection of international espionage artifacts on public display. To plan a visit to the International Spy Museum: www.spymuseum....

[@michaelh2970]

Just ordered , Washington: Behind Closed Doors after looking up quite a few things from this. Thanks and the book is in my list too along with The Great Courses.

[@brek5]

My only gripe with these is that it's really about 15-20 mins of content wrapped inside of 50 minutes of audio. Could cut out all the junk and just get to the point, but...

[@jaymacpherson8167]

The title lead me to assume the subject would be CIA organizational application of Imperialism. Yet the conversation was about individuals’ supposed (I.e. unproven with any facts in the content) imperialist intent as members of the CIA, as opposed to the organization’s intent to seek Imperialism.
The above irks me in part because:
As a US citizen who grew up near DC and frequently vacationed in the NE US, due to having relatives living in the NE, and growing up knowing someone who was in the OSS by 1943 and later worked in the CIA as did his wife and daughter, Mr. Wilford’s thesis as to the pervasive aristocratic and imperialist inclinations in the region ring hollow to me.
Mr. Wilford’s thesis might be compelling with actual examples of CIA influence on other nations paths, such as their 1970s support of Saddam Hussein coming to power in Iraq. Even then I find his thesis falls flat in that the history of US imperialism is largely the invasion of Native American territory. After World War II, US hegemony globally was largely driven by seeking commercial leverage and anti-communist efforts, however abusive those may have been, not from acting out as US-born aristocrats per se.

[@Robespierre-lI]

Agreed. Very shoddy reasoning.

[@DonikaJorgo-l7e]

Cia it's not the most intelligent spy instrument in world..America learned from English but not all forms 😂. English continues to be one of the best..Cia it's the most dangerous without spend intelligent..
World to day have incredible spy games very sophisticated old methods...not technically. 😂..