AFIO Podcast

In this episode, Stuart A. Reid - Executive Editor of Foreign Affairs - discusses his new book "The Lumumba Plot: The Secret History of the CIA and a Cold War Assassination." Recorded 2 Oct 2023. Interviewer: Jim Hughes, AFIO President and former CIA Operations Officer. 

In this episode, Dr. John A. Gentry - former Senior CIA Analyst and current Adjunct Professor at Georgetown University - discusses his recent book "Strategic Warning Intelligence: History, Challenges, and Prospects." Dr. Gentry explains the 'paradox of warning' and what needs to done in the U.S. to revive and re-establish a healthy warning system. Recorded 28 Sept 2023. Interviewer: Jim Hughes, AF...

*AFIO Special Edition episodes offer intelligence expertise and assessments of breaking news* In this inaugural AFIO Special Edition episode, former CIA Division Chief and National Intelligence Manager for ODNI Norman Roule discusses the aerial system attack at a military base in Jordan near the Syrian border last week that killed 3 service members. Recorded 31 Jan 2024. Interviewer: Jim Hughes, A...

In this episode, Michael V. Hayden, General USAF (Ret), Former Director of NSA and CIA, and first Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence (PDDNI), discusses the biggest challenges he faced in the senior positions he held in the U.S. Intelligence Community. He also offers advice to those considering careers in intelligence. Recorded 31 July 2023. Interviewer: Jim Hughes, AFIO President a...

In this episode, prize winning author and journalist Jimmy Burns discusses his latest book "A Faithful Spy: The Life and Times of an MI6 and MI5 Officer" which unveils the exceptional intelligence career of Walter Bell. Recorded 14 Nov 2023. Interviewer: Jim Hughes, AFIO President and former CIA Operations Officer. 

In this episode, David Bickford - former UK Under Secretary of State and MI5 & MI6 Legal Director - discusses his spy thriller "Katya," which takes inspiration from his career in Britain's premier intelligence agencies. Bickford also provides advice to those considering a career in the intelligence services. Recorded 20 July 2023. Interviewer: Jim Hughes, AFIO President and former CIA Operatio...

In the second of a 2-part series for AFIO Now, award-winning journalist/author, James Bamford discusses his latest book, "Spyfail: Foreign Spies, Moles, Saboteurs, and the Collapse of America’s Counterintelligence."  Bamford describes foreign operations against the U.S. and our allies and gives an overview of the expansion of Chinese listening posts in Hong Kong, Mainland China, and Cuba. Recorded...

In the second of a two-part series, former CIA Operations Officer and Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence Michael Vickers discusses his new memoir, "By All Means Available: Memoirs of a Life in Intelligence, Special Operations, and Strategy." Recorded 29 Jun 2023. Interviewer: Jim Hughes, AFIO President and former CIA Operations Officer. 

In this episode, former CIA Operations Officer, lawyer, and novelist I.S. Berry discusses her latest novel, "The Peacock and the Sparrow", a spy thriller that takes place against the backdrop of the Arab Spring. Recorded 5 July 2023. Interviewer: Jim Hughes, AFIO President and former CIA Operations Officer. 

In this special episode, CIA Museum Director and Curator Robert Byer gives a sneak peek at the newly renovated and expanded CIA Museum. Byer reveals some of the new artifacts and describes a few of the unusual collections. This special tour also Includes a first look (by many) of the remarkable model used to brief President Biden on the al-Zawahiri mission. Recorded 12 Jun 2023. Interviewer: Jim H...

In the first of a two-part series, former CIA Operations Officer and Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence Michael Vickers discusses his new memoir, "By All Means Available: Memoirs of a Life in Intelligence, Special Operations, and Strategy." Recorded 9 Jun 2023. Interviewer: Jim Hughes, AFIO President and former CIA Operations Officer. 

In this episode, historian and author Matthew Black discusses his book "Operation Underworld: How the Mafia and U.S. Government Teamed Up to Win World War II." Black reveals the full story of how American Mafia boss Charles “Lucky” Luciano was recruited by U.S. Naval Intelligence in 1942 to aid the Allied war effort in the U.S. invasion of Sicily - which was a turning point in WWII. Recorded 2 Jun...

In this episode, Richard Lawless - a former CIA operations officer - discusses his book "Hunting Nukes" which chronicles Lawless's half-century quest to seek out and expose undeclared nuclear weapons activities by countries of the highest concern to the US government. In particular. Lawless reveals the successful takedown of the South Korean strategic weapons program in the mid-1970s. He describes...

In this episode,  LTG Michael Groen - the former Commander of the Joint Artificial Intelligence Center - delves into the meaning, uses, adoption problems, and ethics of AI in the military and beyond. Recorded 4 May 2023. Interviewer: Jim Hughes, AFIO President and former CIA Operations Officer. 

In this episode, Brittany Butler - a former intelligence officer - discusses her first novel, "The Syndicate Spy."  Based on her experiences as a CIA targeting officer, the thriller tells the tale of two female spies as they race to uncover terrorist conspiracies and ultimately change the course of war. Recorded 2 May 2023. Interviewer: Jim Hughes, AFIO President and former CIA Operations Officer....

In his third episode, senior National Security Reporter for The Washington Post Shane Harris discusses the recent shocking events in Ukraine - from the Wagner Group's march towards Moscow, to missing Russian generals,  to Putin's renewed threats to use tactical nuclear weapons. Recorded 7 July 2023. Interviewer: Jim Hughes, AFIO President and former CIA Operations Officer. 

In the first of a 2-part series for AFIO Now, award-winning journalist/author, James Bamford discusses his latest book, "Spyfail: Foreign Spies, Moles, Saboteurs, and the Collapse of America’s Counterintelligence."  Bamford describes the expanding capability of foreign countries to conduct large-scale espionage within the US and how the FBI and other agencies are struggling to prevent it. Recorded...

In this episode, Alma Katsu, a former intelligence officer and award winning author, discusses her newest novel Red London. The second book in this spy thriller series is set in a post-Putin Russia which has been financially devastated by its loss in the war with Ukraine. Alma also discusses her career experiences at NSA and CIA, gives pointers to women considering careers in the Intelligence Comm...

In this final installment of a three-part series, acclaimed intelligence historian and author Nigel West discusses his book, "Hitler's Trojan Horse: The Fall of The Abwehr." Recorded 19 Jan 2023. Interviewer: Jim Hughes, AFIO President and former CIA Operations Officer. 

In this episode, Naval professor and author Erik Dahl discusses his latest book, "The COVID-19 Intelligence Failure: Why Warning Was Not Enough" which explores the roles that both traditional intelligence services, medical intelligence, and surveillance systems play in providing advance warning against public health threats ― and how these systems must be improved for the future. Recorded 2 March...

In this second installment of a three-part series, acclaimed intelligence historian and author Nigel West discusses his book, "Hitler's Nest of Vipers: The Rise of The Abwehr." Recorded 19 Jan 2023. Interviewer: Jim Hughes, AFIO President and former CIA Operations Officer. 

In this episode, historian, professor, and author Todd Bennett discusses his latest book - "Neither Confirm nor Deny: How the Glomar Mission Shielded the CIA from Transparency"  - about the secret CIA mission using billionaire Howard Hughes's deep-sea mining vessel to retrieve a sunken Soviet sub. Recorded 1 Feb 2023. Interviewer: Jim Hughes, AFIO President and former CIA Operations Officer. 

In his third episode for AFIO Now, Vince Houghton discusses his role as the Director/Curator of the National Cryptologic Museum and gives a sneak peek at the one-of-a-kind exhibits now on display at the newly reopened museum - including the The Hitler Enigma -- the only remaining B-variant Enigma --and the original Jefferson Cipher device. Recorded 20 Jan 2023. Interviewer: Jim Hughes, AFIO Presid...

In this first installment of a three-part series, acclaimed intelligence historian and author Nigel West discusses the captivating figures from his recent book, "Spies Who Changed History: The Greatest Spies and Agents of the 20th Century." Recorded 15 Jan 2023. Interviewer: Jim Hughes, AFIO President and former CIA Operations Officer. 

In this episode, Geoff O'Connell - Senior CIA Operations Officer and former Chief of Station Tel Aviv -  discusses the 2002 siege by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) at the Church of the Nativity -- the purported birthplace of Jesus Christ -- in Bethlehem in the West Bank, which targeted Palestinian terrorists who had taken shelter in the church. Recorded 8 Nov 2022. Interviewer: Jim Hughes, AFIO P...