Bureau of Spies: The Secret Connections between Espionage and Journalism in Washington

The Washington Press Club is the residence of numerous journalists who measure the pulse of the Nation’s capital, but it also keep tabs on the world. The history of the Press Club has been rife with informants and spies. The National Press Club was designed as a gathering place for scribes to unwind, relax, and imbibe. The various members over the years labored over their typewriters, scratching out the latest copy in a bid to scoop their fellow club members. The members of the Press Club hailed from all over the globe. The links to espionage and leaking information began with Robert Allen in 1933 when he traded information with the Soviets. The procuring of government documents, gossip, or propaganda would occur frequently over the next 70-plus years, but wasn’t restricted to only one writer. The reasons for the duplicity would vary from money to patriotism. The motives by the countries influencing the journalists would alter as well. The integrity of the written word would suffer in the long run.

Bureau of Spies is an all encompassing look at the perils of investigative journalism. The stories told within are filled with derring-do and reckless abandon, but those who lived the danger are not seen with awe but skepticism. The duplicitous nature of their endeavors are more harmful in the long run. The author has written a hard-hitting expose of journalism. A+