Tragic Miscalculations In The Early Years Of The CIA

Fresh Air - A podcast by NPR

In his new book, 'The Quiet Americans,' author Scott Anderson profiles four daring and resourceful soldiers who became intelligence agents after World War II, when America was strong and respected after defeating Nazi Germany. The CIA then embarked on hundreds of ill-considered covert operations in Eastern Europe, and its obsession with fighting Communism propelled it into the subversion of several democratically-elected governments around the world. Anderson says the result was the loss of America's moral standing in the developing world, where many had seen the U.S. as a beacon of freedom and democracy.