If you’re old enough, think back to the 1960s, that decade of endless turmoil and revelation. Though the CIA had been established in 1947, it wasn’t until 1962 that the agency came to the attention of most Americans, as a result of its disastrous handling of the US-backed Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba. Five years later, another CIA scandal broke: a carefully researched article in Ramparts magazine revealed that the agency had been funding the US National Student Association (NSA) for many years and turning many of its leaders into spies. Now, nearly half a century after the Ramparts article, Karen Paget has written a blockbuster expose, “Patriotic Betrayal,” detailing the full history behind that story, stretching back to the origins of both organizations in the 1940s. “Patriotic Betrayal” is a sordid tale of deception, manipulation, and systematic lying by officers of the Central Intelligence Agency, who turned the student organization into a Cold War weapon. The book was 15 years in the making and is based on Paget’s personal experience in the NSA plus extensive archival research and more than 150 interviews with former officials of both the NSA and the CIA. “Patriotic Betrayal” is not a quick read. […]
If you’re old enough, think back to the 1960s, that decade of endless turmoil and revelation. Though the CIA had been established in 1947, it wasn’t until 1962 that the agency came to the attention of most Americans, as a result of its disastrous handling of the US-backed Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba. Five years later, another CIA scandal broke: a carefully researched article in Ramparts magazine revealed that the agency had been funding the US National Student Association (NSA) for many years and turning many of its leaders into spies. Now, nearly half a century after the Ramparts article, Karen Paget has written a blockbuster expose, “Patriotic Betrayal,” detailing the full history behind that story, stretching back to the origins of both organizations in the 1940s. “Patriotic Betrayal” is a sordid tale of deception, manipulation, and systematic lying by officers of the Central Intelligence Agency, who turned the student organization into a Cold War weapon. The book was 15 years in the making and is based on Paget’s personal experience in the NSA plus extensive archival research and more than 150 interviews with former officials of both the NSA and the CIA. “Patriotic Betrayal” is not a quick read. […]