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The AFIO Now series offers the association’s members and the public prerecorded interviews and presentations that feature intelligence experts, historians and officers from the U.S. intelligence community. Content includes historical reviews and analyses of past and current domestic and global events, career insight, intelligence related author and national security reporter interviews.
AFIO NOW videos are released first to our members. Please consider joining AFIO to have access to these videos months before they are released to the public. Already a member? Log in to your account.
Released to the publicmembers on 23 June 2025
Interview of Saturday, 29 March 2025 with Alexander Rose PhD on "Washington's Spies: The Story of America's First Spy Ring"
"Fascinating…. tells how the work of the spies proved to be the tipping point in the summer of 1778, helping Washington begin breaking the stalemate with the British…. [and] brings to light their crucial help in winning American independence."—Dallas Morning News
"After working on Washington, I knew there was a story to tell about his reliance on spies during the Revolutionary War. But I believed the story could never be told because the evidence did not exist. Well, I was wrong, and Alexander Rose tells this important story with style and wit."—Joseph Ellis, author of His Excellency: George Washington
"Making brilliant use of documentary sources, Rose gives us intrigue, crossed signals, derring-do, and a priceless slice of 18th century life…Rose unfolds the story of a Long Island-based spy ring of idealists and misfits who kept George Washington informed of what was going on in enemy-occupied New York." —Richard Brookhiser, author of Founding Father: Rediscovering George Washington
Run time: 20 minutes with many Q&As
Interview conducted by: James Hughes, AFIO President and former CIA Operations Officer
Released to the publicmembers on 24 June 2025
Interview of Monday, 28 April 2025 with David Robarge PhD, CIA Chief Historian, on "The Soldier-Statesman in the Secret World: George C. Marshall and Intelligence in War and Peace" George C. Marshall is best known as the Allies’ “organizer of victory” during World War II and steward of the namesake economic recovery program in postwar Western Europe. Far less well-known is Marshall’s extensive engagement with the world of intelligence during those years. In his Army leadership role in World War II, his diplomatic mission to China right after the war and his service as head of the State and Defense Departments, he grappled with difficult issues concerning intelligence capabilities and authorities, security matters and political and bureaucratic conflicts that persist today in the U.S. intelligence community. How he approached them can provide insights for current intelligence leaders and practitioners as they confront those historically enduring problems. Interviewer and Host: AFIO President James Hughes, a former senior CIA Operations Officer.
Run time: 46 minutes
Interview conducted by: James Hughes, AFIO President and former CIA Operations Officer
To view our other publicly available AFIO Now videos, please visit AFIO on YouTube or browse through the playlists below. To view other items in the playlists, select the icon with three lines and a small arrow on the bottom that is to the right of the title.
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"AFIO Now" Interviews and Podcasts are sponsored by Northwest Financial Advisors. Read the Press Release on this new Joint Arrangement.