In the Beginning

Résumé du livre

Introduction. Examination of the major investigative, institutional, legislative, and judicial factors between 1936 and 1941, that contributed to the accelerated development of the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Counterintelligence Program. Method. Archival records, as well as, private papers, unpublished memoirs, court transcripts, and secondary material were analyzed in detail for the first time. Dozens of interviews of the participants involved in the events and issues were conducted, in order to develop a fuller understanding of the context of American counterintelligence developments during this period. Results. The period under study witnessed the formalization of the American counterintelligence process as a legitimate governmental function. The Federal Bureau of Investigation evolves from a small federal law enforcement agency with very limited jurisdiction, into a counterespionage service, then into a counterintelligence organization, and finally into America's first foreign intelligence agency. This metamorphosis was completed in five years. It occurred before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, and the forms created during this period have remained essentially unchanged to the present day.