AFIO Podcast

RADM Peg Klein speaks with AFIO board member Everette Jordan about her exceptional career at the NSA, the US Cyber Command, and the US Navy. 

Interview: Tuesday, 28 May 2024. Hosted by AFIO President James Hughes, Interviewed by Everette Jordan.

 Dr Vince Houghton and Eric Driggs discuss their new book: Covert City: The Cold War and the Making of Miami (PublicAffairs Books, Apr 2024) with AFIO President James Hughes. The history of how the entire city of Miami was constructed in the image of the US-Cuba rivalry. From the Bay of Pigs invasion to the death of Fidel Castro. They discuss secret operations, corruption, crime, and a city teeming with spies and why Miami was as crucial to winning the Cold War as Washington, D.C., or Moscow.

Interview: Monday, 20 May 2024. Hosted by James Hughes, AFIO President. 

OSINT Defense Intelligence Senior Leader Dennis Eger and Director of Army OSINT Office Shawn Nilius discuss the Army Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) Strategy. The Army defines OSINT as a foundational intelligence discipline that plays a central role in the support of operations. Interviewed by Jennifer Daniel, former senior officer of NGA and ODNI, and hosted by AFIO President James Hughes. 

Interview of Monday, 29 Apr 2024 

Former US Air Force Intelligence Officer and senior aerospace executive Brian J. Morra discusses his semi-fiction book "The Righteous Arrows" with AFIO President James Hughes. The book highlights the stubbornly persistent rivalry between the US and Russia in a story of international espionage and war. 

Interview: Monday, 15 Apr 2024. Interviewed by James Hughes 

Former CIA Chief of Disguise, Jonna Mendez, discusses her latest book,
"In True Face: A Woman's Life in the CIA, Unmasked" with Linda Millis, former CIA, NSA, and ODNI. A courageous story of being a female spy at the height of the Cold War. She began her CIA career as a "contract wife" performing secretarial duties for the Agency. Yet Mendez had a talent for espionage and soon took on more significant roles at the Agency. She parlayed her interest in photography into an operational role overseas. She lived undercover and served tours of duty all over the globe, rising first to become an international spy and ultimately to Chief of Disguise at CIA's Office of Technical Service. 

Interview: Wednesday, 27 March 2024. Interviewed by Linda Millis and Hosted by AFIO President James Hughes. 

Author and historian Alexander Rose discusses his latest book "The Lion And The Fox: Two Rival Spies and the Secret Plot to Build a Confederate Navy." In 1861, soon after the outbreak of the Civil War, two secret agents — one a Confederate, the other his Union rival — were dispatched to neutral Britain, each entrusted with a vital mission. This is the untold tale of two implacable foes and their twilight struggle for the highest stakes involving the lucrative Cotton trade.

Interview: Tuesday, 13 February 2024. Host and Interviewer: AFIO President James Hughes, a former senior CIA Operations Officer and Former NSA Associate Deputy Director of Operations.

James Roth, author and former CIA Officer, on The Dead Drop: Espionage is a Dangerous Game for Amateurs, explores themes of duplicity and betrayal. The novel captures the human tension of real-world espionage with a memorable cast of characters. Former CIA Officer James Lawler wrote of the book: "...a riveting tale of spies, youthful idealism, and adult betrayal, which accelerates to a thrilling climax worthy of a major motion picture."

Interview on Friday, 9 February 2024. Host and Interviewer is AFIO President James Hughes, a former senior CIA Operations Officer and Former NSA Associate Deputy Director of Operations. The interview runs 22 minutes and includes several Q&As.

In this episode, James Stejskal, Author, Military Historian, Conflict Archaeologist, former CIA, and Special Forces, discusses his book "Dead Hand" on what happens after Russia has won the war in Ukraine and is eyeing the Baltics. As the world stands on the precipice of war, a legendary CIA Officer rushes to meet a spy deep in the Kremlin, on an operation where failure could mean nuclear Armageddon. Recorded 12 December 2023. Interviewer and host: AFIO President James Hughes, a former senior CIA Operations Officer and Former NSA Associate Deputy Director of Operations.

In this episode, Ronald Drabkin, author of Beverly Hills Spy: The Double-Agent War Hero Who Helped Japan Attack Pearl Harbor, discusses the story of the WWI hero who became a fixture of high society in Golden Age Hollywood while acting as a double agent for the Japanese Empire as it prepared to attack Pearl Harbor. Recorded 01 Feb 2024. Host and Interviewer: James Hughes, AFIO President and former senior CIA Operations Officer. 

 

In this new episode, Jennifer Ewbank discusses her position as the Deputy Director of CIA for Digital Innovation and her responsibility for accelerating the development and integration of digital and cyber capabilities across all of CIA’s mission areas as well as building the digital acumen of the CIA workforce through training and education. Ms Ewbank retired from her CIA post shortly after this interview. Recorded 3 Jan 2024. Host: Jim Hughes, AFIO President and former CIA Operations Officer. Interviewer: Paul Hollingsworth PhD, former senior CIA Executive in Analysis and Operations and AFIO Board member.