The CIA is known for secret assassinations, thrilling spy encounters and international blunders. This course looks at the history of the CIA, beginning with the OSS in WWII to recent involvement in the execution of foreign policy through covert operations. The subject matter will be a world tour of foreign policy though the last 70 years. We will attempt to understand how this agency has shaped not only American diplomacy, but the perception of America throughout the world. Current opinion polls show that a majority of Americans view the CIA favorably, but have significant concerns with respect to the CIA and privacy and the CIA and civil liberties. How do we balance democracy with unseen government intervention? There is a rich assortment of reading materials that invite serious discussions about spying, covert actions, and if a secret bureaucracy is needed to preserve American freedoms.
1. Spies and Secrecy; WWII, Roosevelt and the OSS, and Wild Bill Donovan
2. CIA Beginnings: Truman, George Kennon and Allen Dulles
3. The Iran Coup (1953)
4. South America and the Guatemala Coup (1954)
5. The Bay of Pigs, anti-Castro operations and the Cuban Missile Crises (1962)
6. The CIA and the Vietnam War, and consequences for U. S. Intelligence
7. Nixon, the Coup in Chili (1973) and Watergate (1974)
8. Iran Hostage Crises (1979-81) and the Iran-Contra Affair (1985)
9. The Berlin Wall and the collapse of the Soviet Union (1991)
10 The CIA and the Modern Middle East (1947 Syria, 1988 Iran-Iraq War, 2003 Iraq)
11. The CIA and the 911 Attack (2001), Iraq, Bin Laden and Afghanistan
12. Snowden (2013) Russian cyber hacks (2016) and foreign influence on US politics
13. Technology, Drones and Cybersecurity
14. Cyber weapons, Space, and the future of espionage
Recommended Books:
Andrew, C. (1995), For the President's Eyes Only: Secret Intelligence and the American Presidency.
Immerman, R. (2014) The Hidden Hand, A brief history of the CIA.
Morley, J. (2008). Our Man in Mexico: Winston Scott and the Hidden History of the CIA.
Prados, J. (2006). Safe for Democracy: The Secret Wars of the CIA. *
Wallace, R. & Melton, K. (2008). Spycraft: The Secret History of the CIA's Spytechs from Communism to Al-Qaeda.
Wilford, H. (2019). The Agency: A History of the CIA (the Great Courses - video and audible (audible.com). *
Wilford, H. (2013), America's Great Game: The CIA's Secret Arabists and the Shaping of the Modern Middle East.
* Best for general information