Episodes

  • 171. Out of the Shadows and Into the Boardroom: Intelligence in the Private Sector with Dr. Lewis Sage-Passant
    Oct 28 2024

    This week's guest is Dr. Lewis Sage-Passant. Lewis is a former British military intelligence officer and holds a PhD in Intelligence Studies. He's currently the global head of intelligence for one of Europe's most valuable companies, where he helps the firm navigate geopolitical, security, and industrial espionage risks. He also teaches courses in intelligence studies as an adjunct professor at Sciences Po Paris. His work has appeared in many publications and media organizations, including BBC, France 24, CNBC, The Harvard Business Review, GQ, and more. Today, he discusses hew new book exploring how private corporations use intelligence to understand, navigate, and sometimes shape the world around them.

    Connect with Lewis:

    encyclopediageopolitica.com
    Linkedln: Lewis Sage-Passant, PhD
    Twitter/X: @LSagePassant
    Check out the book, Beyond States and Spies, now available in the UK or December 31 preorder in the US, here on Amazon or here with Edinburgh University Press.

    https://a.co/d/6U1kNDh

    https://edinburghuniversitypress.com/book-beyond-states-and-spies.html

    Connect with Spycraft 101:
    Get Justin's latest book, Murder, Intrigue, and Conspiracy: Stories from the Cold War and Beyond, here.
    spycraft101.com
    IG: @spycraft101
    Shop: shop.spycraft101.com
    Patreon: Spycraft 101

    Find Justin's first book, Spyshots: Volume One, here.
    Check out Justin's second book, Covert Arms, here.
    Download the free eBook, The Clandestine Operative's Sidearm of Choice, here.

    Tenderfoot TV
    Real. Powerful. Storytelling. Tune in to "To Die For" wherever you listen to podcasts.

    History by Mail
    Who knew? Not me! Learn something new every month. Use code JUSTIN10 for 10% off your subscription.

    Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.

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    1 hr and 11 mins
  • 170. The Secret History of the Civil War with Patrick K. O'Donnell
    Oct 21 2024

    This week, Justin welcomes back Patrick K. O'Donnell. Patrick is a combat historian who has covered the war in Fallujah, Iraq in 2004, where he was armed and participated in the battle alongside the U.S. Marines. He's an expert on special operations units and irregular warfare. He's published 13 books so far on combat history, covering stories from the American Revolution, World War II, The Global War on Terror and more. He's also the author of The Brenner Assignment, which informed episode number 90 of the podcast with Jack Chappell, the son of OSS officer Howard Chappell, who was one of the primary subjects of Patrick's book.

    You may remember Patrick from episode number 146 earlier this year. This is the first time an author has returned to the show to discuss the same book once again, and that's because The Unvanquished is so full of incredible stories that we barely scratched the surface the first time around.

    Check out Patrick's first appearance on the podcast, Civil War Special Operations Units.

    Connect with Patrick:
    patrickkodonnell.com
    Twitter/X: @combathistorian
    The Unvanquished is available here.

    https://www.amazon.com/Unvanquished-Lincolns-Special-Americas-Operations/dp/080216286X

    History by Mail
    Who knew? Not me! Learn something new every month. Use code JUSTIN10 for 10% off your subscription.

    Tenderfoot TV
    Real. Powerful. Storytelling. Tune in to "To Die For" wherever you listen to podcasts.

    Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.

    Support the show

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    1 hr and 3 mins
  • 169. MKUltra and the Real Mind-Altering Potential of Psychedelics with Norman Ohler
    Oct 14 2024

    Today Justin talks with Norman Ohler. Norman is a best selling novelist, a journalist, and a screenwriter. He's written three novels, which comprise the City Trilogy, and while working in the West Bank in 2004, he interviewed Yasser Arafat in what turned out to be the final interview of his life before he passed away in November of that year. He's also the author of the non fiction book Blitzed: Drugs in Nazi Germany, published in English in 2016. In this episode he discusses his newest book, Tripped: Nazi Germany, the CIA, and the Dawn of the Psychedelic Age, which was published earlier this year. Norman built on his previous research here to cover post-war efforts to control narcotics in occupied Germany and the rise of psychedelic drugs, both within the populace and as potential tools for interrogation and mind control by the world's intelligence agencies.

    Connect with Norman:
    normanohler.com
    IG: @normanohler
    Check out Tripped here.

    https://amzn.to/3Nshgw5

    Connect with Spycraft 101:
    Get Justin's latest book, Murder, Intrigue, and Conspiracy: Stories from the Cold War and Beyond, here.
    spycraft101.com
    IG: @spycraft101
    Shop: shop.spycraft101.com
    Patreon: Spycraft 101

    Find Justin's first book, Spyshots: Volume One, here.
    Check out Justin's second book, Covert Arms, here.
    Download the free eBook, The Clandestine Operative's Sidearm of Choice, here.

    Support the show

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    44 mins
  • 168. Unveiling the October Surprise: The Treason That Put Reagan in the White House with Craig Unger
    Oct 7 2024

    This week Justin sits down with Craig Unger. Craig is a journalist and the author of eight books. He's a graduate of Harvard University, where he worked as an editor for The Harvard Crimson. He's written articles which have appeared in The Washington Post, The Guardian, The New Yorker, The New York Times, Esquire, and other publications. He also served as a contributing editor for Vanity Fair, where he covered national security and foreign affairs for more than 15 years. He's here today to discuss his newest book, Den of Spies: Reagan, Carter and the Secret History of the Treason That Stole the White House, which is available now. It's the story of the October Surprise, a long-rumored secret campaign to delay the release of American hostages in Iran until after Ronald Reagan successfully won the 1980 presidential election.

    Connect with Craig:
    craigunger.com
    Twittwer/X: @craigunger
    Check out Den of Spies here.

    https://a.co/d/29SpRog

    Connect with Spycraft 101:
    Get Justin's latest book, Murder, Intrigue, and Conspiracy: Stories from the Cold War and Beyond, here.
    spycraft101.com
    IG: @spycraft101
    Shop: shop.spycraft101.com
    Patreon: Spycraft 101

    Find Justin's first book, Spyshots: Volume One, here.
    Check out Justin's second book, Covert Arms, here.
    Download the free eBook, The Clandestine Operative's Sidearm of Choice, here.

    Support the show

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    1 hr and 1 min
  • 167. The Real Guns of 007 with Caleb Daniels @CommandoBond
    Sep 30 2024

    This week Justin talks with Caleb Daniels. Caleb is a lifelong fan of the James Bond films and novels, as well as a firearms enthusiast from Kansas City, Missouri. For seven years, he worked in the firearms industry. In 2020, he started the website and social media pages titled Commando Bond, which are a passion project of his to bridge the gap between pop culture and the world of firearms by analyzing how to live like James Bond from his daily carry to his wardrobe and lifestyle.Todya he discusses his book, Licensed Troubleshooter: The Guns of James Bond, which is available for pre order now from Headstamp Publishing. Caleb has spent years researching all the firearms that appeared in the Bond books and films, and is now finally sharing that research with us.

    Connect with Caleb:
    IG: @CommandoBond
    YouTube: @CommandBond
    YouTube: @Steel-and-Style
    Check out presale for the book, Licensed Troubleshooter, here.

    https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/headstamp/licensed-troubleshooter?ref=1oee53

    Connect with Spycraft 101:
    Get Justin's latest book, Murder, Intrigue, and Conspiracy: Stories from the Cold War and Beyond, here.
    spycraft101.com
    IG: @spycraft101
    Shop: shop.spycraft101.com
    Patreon: Spycraft 101

    Find Justin's first book, Spyshots: Volume One, here.
    Check out Justin's second book, Covert Arms, here.
    Download the free eBook, The Clandestine Operative's Sidearm of Choice, here.

    Support the show

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    1 hr and 11 mins
  • 166. My Father Defected to Russia for Love with Vladimir McMillin
    Sep 23 2024

    Today Justin sits down with Vladimir McMillin. Vlad was born in Moscow and worked for 20 years for the TASS Russian news agency as a sports reporter. He immigrated to the United States in 1990 and has lived here since then. At a very young age, Vlad realized that there was something different about his family, because they were the only family named McMillin in all of Russia. Vlad's father was James McMillan, a former U.S. Army NCO stationed at the American Embassy in Moscow in the late 1940s. At the end of his tour, rather than come home, he decided to defect to remain in Moscow with his new wife. Vlad was born two years later. He's here to discuss the story of his father's service at the U.S. Embassy, his shocking decision to defect, and how he created a new family and built a life for himself in the Soviet Union. It's also the story of just what it cost him to never be able to go home again.

    Connect with Vlad:
    Facebook: Vladimir McMillin

    Check out the book, Stationed in Moscow ... for Good, here.

    https://a.co/d/2uQbuxs

    Connect with Spycraft 101:
    Get Justin's latest book, Murder, Intrigue, and Conspiracy: Stories from the Cold War and Beyond, here.
    spycraft101.com
    IG: @spycraft101
    Shop: shop.spycraft101.com
    Patreon: Spycraft 101

    Find Justin's first book, Spyshots: Volume One, here.
    Check out Justin's second book, Covert Arms, here.
    Download the free eBook, The Clandestine Operative's Sidearm of Choice, here.

    Support the show

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    58 mins
  • 165. Secrets of the Subcontinent: Post-Colonial Intelligence in India with Dr. Paul McGarr
    Sep 16 2024

    Today Justin talks with Dr. Paul McGarr. Paul is a researcher, lecturer, and author who has focused particularly on security and intelligence interventions by the U.S. and U.K. governments into the global south. He's published more than two dozen articles in professional journals over the past 15 years and teaches several courses on intelligence and diplomacy at King's College London. He is also a fellow of the Royal Historical Society and the Royal Asiatic Society. He's here to discuss the story of the often overlooked history of intelligence, espionage, and covert operations which took place in India during the Cold War, as well as how those events shaped India's place in the world today.

    Connect with Paul:
    paul.mcgarr@kcl.ac.uk
    Twitter/X: @Paul_McGarr
    LinkedIn: Paul McGarr
    Check out the book, Spying in South Asia, here.

    https://a.co/d/9AFbtZA

    Connect with Spycraft 101:
    Get Justin's latest book, Murder, Intrigue, and Conspiracy: Stories from the Cold War and Beyond, here.
    spycraft101.com
    IG: @spycraft101
    Shop: shop.spycraft101.com
    Patreon: Spycraft 101

    Find Justin's first book, Spyshots: Volume One, here.
    Check out Justin's second book, Covert Arms, here.
    Download the free eBook, The Clandestine Operative's Sidearm of Choice, here.

    Support the show

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    1 hr and 14 mins
  • 164. An OSS Memoir Reborn with Jacek Waliszewski
    Sep 9 2024

    Today's guest is Jacek Waliszewski. Jacek is an Army Special Forces warrant officer. During his career, he has served primarily with 10th Group and has deployed 18 times on three different continents to date and trained more than 2, 500 soldiers worldwide in special operations tactics and strategies. He's also published two novels. He's here to discuss his newest book, the true memoirs of an OSS agent on the ground in Southern Europe in 1944, working with local partisans in the fight against Axis forces. It's also the story of the origins of modern U.S. special forces.

    Connect with Jacek:
    IG: @jw_jack_official
    @codenamespike
    GoFundMe: Code Name: SPIKE the movie

    https://www.gofundme.com/f/code-name-spike-the-movie?qid=df4b1499d5a074929ec6d0c1d1afab37

    Check out the book, Code Name SPIKE, here.

    https://www.amazon.com/CODE-NAME-SPECIAL-FORCES-GROUNDBREAKING/dp/B0D52QP3G3

    Connect with Spycraft 101:
    Get Justin's latest book, Murder, Intrigue, and Conspiracy: Stories from the Cold War and Beyond, here.
    spycraft101.com
    IG: @spycraft101
    Shop: shop.spycraft101.com
    Patreon: Spycraft 101

    Find Justin's first book, Spyshots: Volume One, here.
    Check out Justin's second book, Covert Arms, here.
    Download the free eBook, The Clandestine Operative's Sidearm of Choice, here.

    Support the show

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    1 hr and 2 mins