AFIO Podcast

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 Operations Officer. 

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 19 July 2023. Host: Jim Hughes, AFIO President and former CIA Operations Officer. Interviewer: John Quattrocki, AFIO Treasurer and former Senior FBI Officer. 

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 Hughes, AFIO President and former CIA Operations Officer. 

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 2023. Interviewer: Jim Hughes, AFIO President and former CIA Operations Officer. 

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 detail the CIA's operation that detected, penetrated, defined, and eventually blocked that country’s covert effort. Lawless also recounts his duties during the 2002-2008 talks with the rogue North Korean regime—the so-called “Six Party Talks." Recorded 1 Jun 2023. Interviewer: Jim Hughes, AFIO President and former CIA Operations Officer. 

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.