Read complete books and articles on: CIA (Central Intelligence Agency)

Central Intelligence Agency - (CIA), independent executive bureau of the U.S. government established by the National Security Act of 1947, replacing the wartime Office of Strategic Services (1942–45), the first U.S. intelligence agency. The CIA was established to gather intelligence abroad and report to the President and the National Security Council, his advisory body. It was given (1949) special powers under the Central Intelligence Act: the director may spend agency funds without accounting for them; the size of its staff is secret; and employees, exempt from civil service procedures, may be hired, investigated, or dismissed as the CIA sees fit. To safeguard civil liberties in the United States, however, the CIA is denied domestic police powers; for operations in the United States it must enlist the services of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Allen Welsh Dulles, director from 1953 to 1961, strengthened the agency and emboldened its tactics. The CIA has often been criticized for covert operations in the domestic politics of foreign countries. The agency was heavily involved in the failed 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba, deeply embarrassing the United States. In 1971 the U.S. government acknowledged that the CIA had recruited and paid an army fighting in Laos. In 1973 the CIA came under Congressional investigation for its role in the Pentagon Papers case. The agency had provided members of the White House staff, on request, with a personality profile of Daniel Ellsberg, defendant in the Pentagon Papers trial in 1973, and had indirectly aided the White House "Plumbers," the special unit established to investigate internal security leaks. This direct violation of the National Security Act's prohibition led Congress to strengthen provisions barring the agency from domestic operations. Its foreign operations came under attack in 1974 for involvement in Chilean internal affairs during the administration of Salvador Allende. In 1986 it was shown to be involved in the Iran-Contra investigation. While covert operations receive the most attention, the CIA's major responsibility is intelligence, in which it uses not only covert agents but such technological resources as satellite photos and intercepted telecommunications transmissions.

Bibliography

See publications by the CIA History Staff; see also H. H. Ransom, The Intelligence Establishment (rev. ed. 1970); P. J. McGarvey, CIA: The Myth and the Madness (1972); S. D. Breckinridge, The CIA and the U.S. Intelligence System (1986); J. Ranelagh, The Agency (1986); S. Turner, Secrecy and Democracy; The CIA in Transition (1986); J. Marshall, The Iran-Contra Connection (1987); G. F. Treverton, Covert Action (1987); P. Agee, On the Run (1987); R. Jeffrey-Jones, The CIA and American Democracy (1989); E. Thomas, The Very Best Men: Four Who Dared: The Early Years of the CIA (1996).

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15 of the Best Books and Articles on: CIA (Central Intelligence Agency)

as selected by Questia librarians

1.

The CIA's Secret Operations: Espionage, Counterespionage, and Covert Action » Read Now
by Harry Rositzke. 290 pgs.

Collections: Entire Library

...Central Intelligence Agency. Without them CIA would continue to play an indispensable...was established by act of Congress. CIA came into being as part of the overall...the...
2.

The CIA and the Cult of Intelligence » Read Now
by Victor Marchetti, John D. Marks. 400 pgs.

Collections: Entire Library

...Marchetti, had been turned over to the CIA and that they contained information...in the 1947 law that permitted the CIA to "perform such other functions and...covert-action...
3.

The Central Intelligence Agency: An Instrument of Government, to 1950 » Read Now
by Arthur B. Darling. 514 pgs.

Collections: History, Entire Library

...summary of Darling's work prepared by the CIA's History Staff that covers 224 pages...Thomas F. Troy, Donovan and the CIA Washington, D.C.: Central Intelligence...creation...
4.

Encyclopedia of Cold War Espionage, Spies and Secret Operations » Read Now
by Richard C. S. Trahair. 474 pgs.

Collections: History, Entire Library

Everybody spied on everybody else during the Cold War. France had agents in the U.S., China had agents in East Germany, Poland had agents in Great Britain, and the U.S. and the U.S.S.R. had agents everywhere--in governments, in industry, in the military, and within each other's, and their own...
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Everybody spied on everybody else during the Cold War. France had agents in the U.S., China had agents in East Germany, Poland had agents in Great Britain, and the U.S. and the U.S.S.R. had agents everywhere--in governments, in industry, in the military, and within each other's, and their own, intelligence agencies. A-Z entries provide a fascinating glimpse into the subterranean world, events, people and operations of the Cold War.
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5.

A Century of Spies: Intelligence in the Twentieth Century » Read Now
by Jeffrey T. Richelson. 534 pgs.

Collections: History, Entire Library

Here is the ultimate inside history of twentieth-century intelligence gathering and covert activity. Unrivalled in its scope and as readable as any spy novel, A Century of Spies travels from tsarist Russia and the earliest days of the British Secret Service to the crises and uncertainties of today's...
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Here is the ultimate inside history of twentieth-century intelligence gathering and covert activity. Unrivalled in its scope and as readable as any spy novel, A Century of Spies travels from tsarist Russia and the earliest days of the British Secret Service to the crises and uncertainties of today's post-Cold War world, offering an unsurpassed overview of the role of modern intelligence in every part of the globe. From spies and secret agents to the latest high-tech wizardry in signals and imagery surveillance, it provides fascinating, in-depth coverage of important operations of United States, British, Russian, Israeli, Chinese, German, and French intelligence services, and much more. All the key elements of modern intelligence activity are here. An expert whose books have received high marks from the intelligence and military communities, Jeffrey Richelson covers the crucial role of spy technology from the days of Marconi and the Wright Brothers to today's dazzling array of Space Age satellites, aircraft, and ground stations. He provides vivid portraits of spymasters, spies, and defectors--including Sidney Reilly, Herbert Yardley, Kim Philby, James Angleton, Markus Wolf, Reinhard Gehlen, Vitaly Yurchenko, Jonathan Pollard, and many others. Richelson paints a colorful portrait of World War I's spies and sabateurs, and illuminates the secret maneuvering that helped determine the outcome of the war on land, at sea, and on the diplomatic front; he investigates the enormous importance of intelligence operations in both the European and Pacific theaters in World War II, from the work of Allied and Nazi agents to the "black magic" of U.S. and British code breakers; and he gives us a complete overview of intelligence during the length of the Cold War, from superpower espionage and spy scandals to covert action and secret wars. A final chapter probes the still-evolving role of intelligence work in the new world of disorder and ethnic conflict, from the high-tech wonders of the Gulf War to the surprising involvement of the French government in industrial espionage. Comprehensive, authoritative, and addictively readable, A Century of Spies is filled with new information on a variety of subjects--from the activities of the American Black Chamber in the 1920s to intelligence collection during the Cuban missile crisis to Soviet intelligence and covert action operations. It is an essential volume for anyone interested in military history, espionage and adventure, and world affairs.
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6.

Fixing the Spy Machine: Preparing American Intelligence for the Twenty-First Century » Read Now
by Arthur S. Hulnick. 223 pgs.

Collections: Entire Library

With the end of the Cold War and the dawning of a new century, the U.S. intelligence system faces new challenges and threats. The system has suffered from penetration by foreign agents, cutbacks in resources, serious errors in judgment, and what appears to be bad management; nonetheless, it remains...
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With the end of the Cold War and the dawning of a new century, the U.S. intelligence system faces new challenges and threats. The system has suffered from penetration by foreign agents, cutbacks in resources, serious errors in judgment, and what appears to be bad management; nonetheless, it remains one of the key elements of America's strategic defense. Hulnick suggests that things are not as bad as they seem, that America's intelligence system is reasonably well prepared to deal with the many threats to national security. He examines the various functions of intelligence from intelligence gathering and espionage to the arcane fields of analysis, spy-catching, secret operations, and even the business of corporate espionage.
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7.

Flawed by Design: The Evolution of the CIA, JCS, and NSC » Read Now
by Amy B. Zegart. 317 pgs.

Collections: Entire Library

Zegart (policy studies, School of Public Policy and Social Research at UCLA) challenges the belief that national security agencies are well designed to serve the national interest. Using a new institutionalist approach, she asks what forces shaped the design of the CIA, the Joint Chiefs of Staff...
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Zegart (policy studies, School of Public Policy and Social Research at UCLA) challenges the belief that national security agencies are well designed to serve the national interest. Using a new institutionalist approach, she asks what forces shaped the design of the CIA, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the National Security Council. She finds that blame can be ascribed to features of American democracy which limit presidential power and give Congress little incentive to create an effective foreign policy system.
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8.

The U.S. Intelligence Community » Read Now
by Jeffrey T. Richelson. 526 pgs.

Collections: Entire Library

This book provides a detailed overview of America's vast intelligence empire -- its organizations, its operations (from spies on the ground to satellites thousands of miles in space), and its management structure. Relying on a multitude of sources, including hundreds of official documents, it...
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This book provides a detailed overview of America's vast intelligence empire -- its organizations, its operations (from spies on the ground to satellites thousands of miles in space), and its management structure. Relying on a multitude of sources, including hundreds of official documents, it provides an up-to-date picture of the U.S. intelligence community that will provide support to policymakers and military operations into the next century.
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9.

Donovan and the CIA: A History of the Establishment of the Central Intelligence Agency » Read Now
by Thomas F.Troy. 594 pgs.

Collections: History, Entire Library
10.

Lost Crusader: The Secret Wars of CIA Director William Colby » Read Now
by John Prados. 380 pgs.

Collections: History, Entire Library

From his years as America's point man in Vietnam to his mysterious death in 1996, William E. Colby was one of the most enigmatic figures of the Cold War. Whether it was in CIA operations against Russia, anti-Communism in Western Europe, covert action in Southeast Asia, or its involvement in the...
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From his years as America's point man in Vietnam to his mysterious death in 1996, William E. Colby was one of the most enigmatic figures of the Cold War. Whether it was in CIA operations against Russia, anti-Communism in Western Europe, covert action in Southeast Asia, or its involvement in the Watergate affair, Colby stood at the center of the agency's secret activities. Lost Crusader for the first time uncovers the real story of this master spy, from his beginnings in the OSS to his tumultuous years as Director of Central Intelligence in the 1970s. Reviled by many outside the CIA for his role in Vietnam, he was later cast as a scapegoat by the Nixon White House during the Church and Pike congressional investigations of CIA activities. Based on extensive research and interviews with key participants, John Prados offers new revelations on the CIA in Western Europe and elsewhere: a fresh analysis of the notorious Phoenix program in Vietnam, and the most authoritative account of agency involvement in the bloody Indonesian coup of 1965 that overthrew Sukarno and brought General Suharto to power. Moreover, Prados has uncovered new evidence on the CIA's role in the 1963 assassination of President Ngo Dinh Diem of South Vietnam and also furnishes the first account of the action at the top level of the CIA during the final demise of South Vietnam in 1975. A masterful study of a master spy, Lost Crusader offers vital insight into the Cold War, Vietnam, and the inner workings of the CIA.
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11.

Unleashing the Rogue Elephant: September 11 and Letting the CIA be the CIA, in Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy » Read Now
by Frederick P. Hitz. 16 pgs.

Collections: Entire Library

...that the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) has been unwisely stifled since the...recruit only nice people." (3) Have the CIA and other intelligence community...
12.

Ending the CIA's Cold War Legacy, in Foreign Policy » Read Now
by Melvin A. Goodman. 16 pgs.

Collections: Entire Library

...Glass, 1872 "Facts can confuse." --CIA director William Casey, 1985 The next...to justify higher defense spending. CIA scientists contributed to the development...Central...
13.

Challenging the Secret Government: The Post-Watergate Investigations of the CIA and FBI » Read Now
by Kathryn S. Olmsted. 255 pgs.

Collections: Entire Library

...postWatergate investigations of the CIA and FBI / by Kathryn S. Olmsted. p...program by the Central intelligence Agency CIA . According to Hersh, the CIA had...
14.

Killing Detente: The Right Attacks the CIA » Read Now
by Anne Hessing Cahn. 232 pgs.

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A detailed account of a major episode of intelligence intervention in politics in the mid-1970s.
Killing Detente tells the story of a major episode of intelligence intervention in politics in the mid-1970s that led to the derailing of detente between the Soviet Union and the United States and to the...
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A detailed account of a major episode of intelligence intervention in politics in the mid-1970s.
Killing Detente tells the story of a major episode of intelligence intervention in politics in the mid-1970s that led to the derailing of detente between the Soviet Union and the United States and to the resurgence of the Cold War in the following decade. Although the basic outlines of the story are already known, Anne Cahn succeeded in getting many previously declassified documents released and uses these, supplemented by seventy interviews with principal players, to add much greater depth and detail to our understanding of this troubling event in U.S. history.
In the mid-1970s a very controversial intelligence estimate was performed by people outside the government. They were given access to our most secret files and leaked their "Team B Report" to the press when Jimmy Carter was elected president. The ensuing debate moved the center of arms control policy strongly to the right from where it hadbeen during the years of detente. Those opposed to the easing of tensions between the two countries used every means available, including accusing the Central Intelligence Agency with understating the threat posed by the Soviets. Team B presaged the triumph of Ronald Reagan and a military buildup on a scale unprecedented in peacetime that left present and future generations with the most crippling debt in our nation's history.
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15.

Covert Network: Progressives, the International Rescue Committee, and the CIA » Read Now
by Eric Thomas Chester. 270 pgs.

Collections: Entire Library

This book tells the story of the International Rescue Committee (IRC), the largest nonsectarian refugee relief agency in the world. Founded in the 1930s by socialist militants, the IRC attracted the support of renowned progressives such as Eleanor Roosevelt, Norman Thomas, and Reinhold Niebuhr. But...
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This book tells the story of the International Rescue Committee (IRC), the largest nonsectarian refugee relief agency in the world. Founded in the 1930s by socialist militants, the IRC attracted the support of renowned progressives such as Eleanor Roosevelt, Norman Thomas, and Reinhold Niebuhr. But by the 1950s it had been absorbed into the American foreign policy establishment. Throughout the Cold War, the IRC was deeply involved in the volatile confrontations between the two superpowers and participated in an array of sensitive clandestine operations. The IRC thus evolved from a small organization of committed activists to a global operation functioning as one link in the CIA's covert network.
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