SpyCast - podcast cover

SpyCast

SpyCast, the official podcast of the International Spy Museum, is a journey into the shadows of international espionage. Each week, host Sasha Ingber brings you the latest insights and intriguing tales from spies, secret agents, and covert communicators, with a focus on how this secret world reaches us all in our everyday lives. Tune in to discover the critical role intelligence has played throughout history and today. Brought to you from Airwave, Goat Rodeo, and the International Spy Museum.  The Spy Museum does not endorse, approve, or support the opinions stated by guest speakers. Statements made by speakers do not represent the position or opinion of the International Spy Museum.

Episodes

The Death of Expertise: An Interview with Tom Nichols

SPY Historian Vince Houghton sat down with Tom Nichols, professor at the U.S. Naval War College and at the Harvard Extension School, and the author of The Death of Expertise: The Campaign Against Established Knowledge and Why it Matters Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jun 20, 20171 hr 14 minEp. 272

Inside the DIA, Episode 1: An Interview with DIA Historian Greg Elder

In the first installment of what will become a recurring series, SPY Historian Vince Houghton sat down with DIA Chief Historian Greg Elder to discuss the DIA’s role in some of the most momentous events in recent US history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jun 13, 20171 hr 7 minEp. 271

Our Latest Longest War: An Interview with Ben Jones

SPY Historian Vince Houghton sat down with Ben Jones, the former Transition Coordinator for the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan, where he coordinated the transfer of Afghanistan's security from the coalition to the Afghan National Security Forces. He is also a contributor to the new book, Our Latest Longest War: Losing Hearts and Minds in Afghanistan. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jun 06, 20171 hr 8 minEp. 270

Agent M: An Interview with Henry Hemming

SPY Historian Vince Houghton sat down (remotely) with British author Henry Hemming to discuss his newest book Agent M: The Lives and Spies of MI5’s Maxwell Knight. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

May 30, 201754 minEp. 269

The Black Hand: An Interview with Stephan Talty

SPY Historian Vince Houghton sat down with Stephan Talty, author of two previous books on intelligence, Agent Garbo and The Secret Agent: In Search of America’s Greatest World War II Spy. They discuss his newest book, The Black Hand: The Epic War Between a Brilliant Detective and the Deadliest Secret Society in American History. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

May 23, 201749 minEp. 268

The Power of Words: An Interview with Sven Hughes

SPY Historian Vince Houghton sat down with Sven Hughes, a former reserve soldier within British Military Intelligence, Psychological Operations, and UK Special Forces, to discuss counter-radicalization and the effectiveness of influence operations. Mr. Hughes is also the author of the new book, Verbalization: The Power of Words to Drive Change. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

May 16, 201754 minEp. 267

Spies in the Family: An Interview with Eva Dillon

SPY Historian Vince Houghton sat down with Eva Dillon, whose father Paul was a career CIA officer who ran one of the most prolific Soviet spies of the Cold War. Their stories are told in Eva’s new book, Spies in the Family: An American Spymaster, His Russian Crown Jewel, and the Friendship That Helped End the Cold War. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

May 09, 20171 hr 25 minEp. 266

CIA Spy Girl: An Interview with Emily Brandwin

SPY Historian Vince Houghton sat down with former improv comedienne and CIA operations officer Emily Brandwin to discuss her career(s) and views on many things intel-related. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

May 02, 20171 hr 2 minEp. 265

The Spy Who Couldn’t Spell: An Interview with Yudhijit Bhattacharjee

SPY Historian Vince Houghton sat down with author and journalist Yudhijit Bhattacharjee to discuss the fascinating case of wannabee spy Brian Regan, detailed in Yudhijit’s book The Spy Who Couldn’t Spell: A Dyslexic Traitor, an Unbreakable Code, and the FBI’s Hunt for America’s Stolen Secrets. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Apr 25, 20171 hr 7 minEp. 264

The Imagineers of War: An Interview with Sharon Weinberger

SPY Historian Vince Houghton sat down with Sharon Weinberger, national security journalist and author of the book The Imagineers of War: The Untold Story of DARPA, the Pentagon Agency that Changed the World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Apr 18, 201759 minEp. 263

Spy Sites of DC: An Interview with Keith Melton and Bob Wallace

SPY Historian Vince Houghton sat down with intelligence historian Keith Melton, and former chief of the CIA’s Office of Technical Services, Bob Wallace, to discuss their newest collaboration: Spy Sites of Washington, DC. Buy Spy Sites of Washington, DC from the Spy Museum Store Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Apr 11, 201758 minEp. 262

Deep Undercover: An Interview with Former KGB Illegal Jack Barsky

SPY Historian Vince Houghton sat down with Jack Barsky, the longest-surviving known member of the KGB illegals program that operated during the Cold War, and author of the memoir Deep Undercover: My Secret Life & Tangled Allegiances as a KGB Spy in America. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Apr 04, 20171 hr 13 minEp. 261

SpyCast Roundtable: The Women of NatSec Journalism

SPY Historian Vince Houghton sat down with six extraordinary journalists to discuss the challenges associated with reporting on intelligence and national security. They include: Ali Watkins (BuzzFeed), Mary Louise Kelly (NPR), Jenna McLaughlin (The Intercept), Nancy Youssef (BuzzFeed), Molly O’Toole (Foreign Policy), and Ellen Nakashima (Washington Post). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mar 28, 20171 hr 10 minEp. 260

Allen Dulles, the OSS, and the German Resistance: An Interview with Scott Miller

SPY Historian Vince Houghton sat down with Scott Miller, author of Agent 110: An American Spymaster and the German Resistance in WWII, to discuss the relationship between future CIA director Dulles and those Germans scheming to overthrow Hitler. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mar 21, 201749 minEp. 259

Climate and Security: An Interview with Brig. Gen Gerry Galloway and Rear Adm. Dave Titley

SPY Historian Vince Houghton sat down with retired US Army Brigadier General Gerry Galloway and retired US Navy Rear Admiral Dave Titley to discuss the intelligence and national security implication of climate change. Both men are members of the Advisory Board of the Center for Climate and Security. ***NOTE: Vince messed up. The correct link to the survey is podcast.study Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mar 14, 20171 hr 3 minEp. 258

Author Debriefing - Finks: How the CIA Tricked the World’s Best Writers

SPY Historian Vince Houghton sat down (remotely) with Joel Whitney, the cofounder and editor at large of Guernica: A Magazine of Art & Politics, to discuss his book on how the CIA used culture to fight the Cold War, Finks: How the CIA Tricked the World’s Best Writers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mar 07, 20171 hr 8 minEp. 257

Author Debriefing - Beware the Predator: The American’s Guide to Personal Security

SPY Historian Vince Houghton sat down with former CIA Technical Operations Officer Warren Holston and former Air Force intel specialist Dave White to discuss their new book Beware the Predator: The American’s Guide to Personal Security. Get the Book: http://www.spymuseumstore.org/beware-the-predator.html#.WL7Y7xIrJUM Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Feb 28, 201753 minEp. 256

From the Vault: The SpyCast Interview with Michael Flynn

A year ago, SPY Historian Vince Houghton sat down with former DIA Director and National Security Advisor Michael Flynn. Here is their conversation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Feb 21, 20171 hr 5 minEp. 254

Spooks and Nukes: An Interview with Dr. James Acton

SPY Historian Vince Houghton sat down with James Acton, co-director of the Nuclear Policy Program and a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, to discuss the threat of nuclear confrontation and how intelligence can play a vital role in reducing this danger. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Feb 14, 201758 minEp. 253

CIA’s Secret War in Laos: An Interview with Josh Kurlantzick

SPY Historian Vince Houghton sat down with Josh Kurlantzick of the Council on Foreign Relations to discuss his new book A Great Place to Have a War: The Secret War in Laos and the Birth of a Military CIA. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Feb 07, 20171 hr 2 minEp. 252

“Historian” Roundtable: 2016 Revisited

SPY Historians Vince Houghton sat down to rehash the year that was 2016. He was joined by former SPY Historian Mark Stout, former CIA briefer David Priess, and BuzzFeed intelligence and national security reporter Ali Watkins. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jan 31, 20171 hr 20 minEp. 251

John Nixon - Debriefing the President

SPY Historian Vince Houghton is joined by John Nixon, who shares what he learned as the first man to conduct a prolonged interrogation of the captured Iraqi president. Get the book:http://www.spymuseumstore.org/spycast-books.html Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jan 24, 20171 hr 3 minEp. 250

Bioweapons Containment: An Interview with Dr. Hank Parker

SPY Historian Vince Houghton sat down with bioterrorism expert Hank Parker to discuss current threats and Parker's new book Containment. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jan 17, 201745 minEp. 249

Cyber Special Forces: An Interview with Dmitri Alperovitch

SPY Historian Vince Houghton sat down with Dmitri Alperovitch, the CTO and co-founder of CrowdStrike, the cybersecurity firm that detected the hack of the DNC, and traced the breach back to Russian intelligence. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jan 10, 201746 minEp. 248

From the Vault: The Tony and Jonna Mendez Edition, Part 3

The Iranian Hostage Crisis (September 1, 2008) In November 1979, radical Iranian students overran the U.S. embassy in Tehran, capturing most of the embassy staff—except for six diplomats who found refuge with the Canadian embassy. Today, Peter talks with retired CIA officer Tony Mendez who, in an elaborate deception and disguise operation, managed to exfiltrate the six Americans from Tehran before the Iranians were able to track them down. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adc...

Jan 03, 201733 minEp. 247

From the Vault: The Tony and Jonna Mendez Edition, Part 2

Woman in Disguise - Jonna Mendez (November 18, 2008) Jonna Hiestand Mendez began her CIA career as a secretary and ended it as head of the agency’s Office of Technical Services, overseeing the development of gadgets, disguises, and high-tech devices in support of espionage missions. Today, she discusses with Peter some of the operations she was involved in as well as opportunities for women in the intelligence community. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jan 03, 201728 minEp. 246

From the Vault: The Tony and Jonna Mendez Edition, Part 1

The Secret History of Disguises (November 1, 2006) Peter talks with Tony Mendez, former Chief of Disguise for the CIA. Peter and Tony discuss the intricacies of developing disguises for use in hostile environments, the advantages of selective aging, and the secret history of facial recognition technology. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jan 03, 201725 minEp. 245

From the Vault: Russians Behaving Badly Edition, Part 3

An Army of Illegals: Assessing the Russian Spy Case (July 12, 2010) Two weeks ago on 27 June, the FBI arrested a network of 10 Russian "deep cover" spies. Peter sits down with former KGB Major General Oleg Kalugin to discuss this remarkable case and the historic spy swap which took place last Friday. Kalugin, who once ran agents in the United States, is forthright in expressing his views about what this case says about the state of Russian intelligence today. Learn more about your ad choices. Vi...

Dec 27, 201632 minEp. 244

From the Vault: Russians Behaving Badly Edition, Part 2

Leon Trotsky — Murder in Mexico (September 1, 2007) Peter’s guest today is H. Keith Melton, renowned intelligence historian and owner of the largest collection of espionage artifacts. Keith sheds new light on one of the most notorious intelligence operations of all time—the assassination of exiled Russian revolutionary Leon Trotsky in Mexico in 1940. Keith reconstructs the operation in all its phases, including material from his own original research. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit mega...

Dec 27, 201633 minEp. 243