PODCAST · government
Intelligence Matters
by CBS News
Former acting Director of the CIA Michael Morell speaks with top leaders of the U.S. intelligence community as they reflect on their life, career and the critical roles they play in shaping national security policies. As a central figure in the most significant U.S. counter-terror efforts of the past two decades and a former CIA intelligence analyst, Morell is uniquely skilled at taking industry leading knowledge to make connections that provide deep insight into complex security events – helping decode intelligence officials’ key priorities and providing perspectives on how to achieve national security objectives. Morell is the author of “The Great War of Our Time” and a vivid account of the Central Intelligence Agency, a life in secrets, and a war in the shadows.
Episodes
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CIA Clinical Psychologist Ursula Wilder on Profiling World Leaders
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with Ursula Wilder, a clinical psychologist at the Central Intelligence Agency, about why intelligence agencies conduct psychological profiles of world leaders, and how past policymakers have used what they have learned to make...
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Former Middle East Envoy Dennis Ross on Regional Instability
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with former senior U.S. ambassador and Middle East envoy Dennis Ross about growing instability in the Middle East, including tensions between Israel and Palestine, controversial judicial reforms in Israel, and consistent...
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The U.S. Invasion of Iraq: A Look at Intelligence, 20 Years Later
In this special episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with five former senior CIA officers about the agency's work before, during and after the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003. With personal recollections and reflections, Morell offers a candid walkthrough of what the CIA and...
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Kristin Wood on the Intelligence Value of Open Source Data
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with former senior CIA officer Kristin Wood about the history, value and current applications of open source data to intelligence collection and analysis. Wood, who helped lead the innovation and technology group at CIA's Open...
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Assessing Top Global Security Threats with Expert Frederick Kagan
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with Frederick Kagan, director of the Critical Threats Project at the American Enterprise Institute, about the current landscape of global security threats from the likes of Russia, China, Iran and North Korea. Kagan and Morell...
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Marking One Year of War in Ukraine: State Department Counselor Derek Chollet
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with State Department Counselor Derek Chollet about the state of the war in Ukraine as it enters its second year. Morell and Chollet discuss the implications of a deepening relationship between Russia and Iran as well as Russia…
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Chinese Spy Balloon Fallout: Military Expert John Culver
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with former senior CIA analyst and National Intelligence Officer for East Asia John Culver about the rippling implications of the Chinese surveillance balloon shot down over U.S. territory. Culver and Morell discuss Beijing's...
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Inside Global Diplomacy: RT. Honourable Baroness Catherine Ashton
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with Rt. Honourable Baroness Catherine Ashton, former Vice President of the European Commission and the European Union's first representative for foreign affairs and security policy, about her career and new book, "And Then What?...
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China Expert Dennis Wilder on U.S. Policy Towards Beijing
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with Dennis Wilder, former CIA officer and current research fellow at Georgetown University's Initiative for U.S.-China Dialogue on Global Issues, about the effectiveness of the United States' current diplomatic and economic...
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Understanding Electronic Surveillance with NSA's Former Top Lawyer
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with Glenn Gerstell, former general counsel at the National Security Agency, about how and when the NSA is authorized to use electronic surveillance to collect intelligence on foreign targets. Gerstell offers a detailed…
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Former CIA Officer Rolf Mowatt-Larssen's Strategic Analysis of the Russia-Ukraine War
This week on Intelligence Matters, Michael Morell speaks with former senior CIA officer and Moscow station chief Rolf Mowatt-Larssen about his strategic analysis of the Russia-Ukraine war. He maps out the Russian objectives in the war and the lack of clear Western goals as the war continues....
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Michael Morell on the Year Ahead: Strategic Challenges in 2023
This week on Intelligence Matters, Michael Morell offers an in-depth analysis of the top national security challenges facing the world in 2023. Morell describes how the outcome of the Russia-Ukraine war is in the hands of West and that without Western assistance, Russia could win the war. Morell...
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Inside China's Surveillance State: Liza Lin and Josh Chin
This week on Intelligence Matters, Michael Morell speaks with Wall Street Journal reporters Liza Lin and Josh Chin about their new book Surveillance State: Inside China's Quest to Launch a New Era of Social Control. Their new reporting examines how China's data collection goes beyond that of…
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BEST OF: Hal Brands on Potential of Future Conflict with China
In this Best of episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell spoke with Hal Brands, Henry A. Kissinger Distinguished Professor of Global Affairs at the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies and author of the new book, Danger Zone: The Coming Conflict with…
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BEST OF: Former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Strategy and Force Development Elbridge Colby
In this "Best Of" episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with Former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Strategy and Force Development Elbridge Colby about his new book The Strategy of Denial: American Defense in an Age of Great Power Conflict and whether the U.S....
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Former CIA Chief Operating Officer on his Career at the CIA
This week on Intelligence Matters, Michael Morell speaks with former CIA Chief Operating Officer Andrew Makridis on his 37-year career at the CIA. Makridis reflects on his front row seat to history as a Presidential briefer to President George H.W. Bush. He provides his analysis on how the CIA…
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Accidental Czar: The Life and Lies of Vladimir Putin with Former White House Russia Expert Andrew Weiss
This week on Intelligence Matters, Michael Morell speaks with Andrew Weiss, former White House Russia Expert and vice president for studies at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, about his new book Accidental Czar: The Life and Lies of Vladimir Putin. Weiss discusses what motivates...
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The CIA in the Movies: A Review with the Co-Founders of Spycraft Entertainment
This week on Intelligence Matters, Michael Morell speaks with John Sipher and Jerry O'Shea, former CIA officers and co-founders of Spycraft Entertainment, about what Hollywood gets right and wrong about its depictions of the CIA. Sipher and O'Shea review movies, TV series, and books on how...
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Working at CIA: In Conversation with CIA Director of Operations and Director of Analysis
This week on Intelligence Matters, Michael Morell, in partnership with the Michael V. Hayden Center for Intelligence, Policy, and International Security, speaks with Dave Marlowe, CIA Director of Operations, and Linda Weissgold, CIA Director of Analysis about their careers at CIA and global...
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The Evolution of U.S.-China Relations: National Security Analyst Graham Allison
This week on Intelligence Matters, Michael Morell speaks with Professor at the Harvard Kennedy School and national security analyst Graham Allison as he re-examines his interviews on China with Former Prime Minister of Singapore Lee Kuan Yew. Allison inspects how their analysis and predictions on...
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The Threat of North Korea's Nuclear Weapons: Markus Garlauskas
This week on Intelligence Matters, Michael Morell speaks with the National Intelligence Officer on North Korea from 2014-2020 Markus Garlauskas about his assessment of North Korea's missile tests and the threat of nuclear weapons. Garlauskas lays out how the U.S. can deter North Korea even as…
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The Aims and Impact of Chinese Foreign Development: Brad Parks
This week on Intelligence Matters, Michael Morell speaks with the Executive Director of AidData at the College of William and Mary Brad Parks to discuss how China is outspending the rest of the world in foreign development and how the U.S. can catch up. Parks details how China is using foreign…
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Implications of Xi Jinping's Hold on Power: Former Senior CIA China Analyst Chris Johnson
This week on Intelligence Matters, Michael Morell speaks with former senior CIA China analyst Chris Johnson, now President and CEO of the China Strategies Group, to discuss Xi cementing his power at the Communist Party congress, the line-up of the all-powerful Politburo, and what it means for the...
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U.S. Political Violence on the Rise: Professor Bob Pape
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, Michael Morell speaks with University of Chicago political science professor and director of the Chicago Project on Security and Threats Robert "Bob" Pape about his ongoing research on political violence in America and its implications as the midterms...
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The Ethics and Impact of Drone Strikes: Georgetown Law Professor Mitt Regan
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, Michael Morell speaks with Georgetown Law Professor Mitt Regan about his new book Drone Strike: Analyzing the Impacts of Targeted Killing. They discuss the effect of drone strikes on al-Qaeda's continuation and growth, the lack of a systematic civilian...
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Putin's Threat of Nuclear War: Former CIA Moscow Chief of Station Rolf Mowatt-Larssen
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with former CIA Moscow Chief of Station and William J. Perry Distinguished Fellow at the Nuclear Threat Initiative Rolf Mowatt-Larssen about Putin's nuclear threats and how U.S. policymakers should respond. Mowatt-Larssen…
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75th Anniversary of the CIA with Deputy Director of the CIA David Cohen
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell is joined by Deputy Director of the CIA David Cohen to discuss the 75th anniversary of the intelligence agency and his career path to the ranks of top leadership. Cohen details the invisible work of CIA agents and responds to critiques…
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The Status of a U.S.-Iran Deal: Middle East Expert Karim Sadjadpour
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with Senior Fellow at the Middle East Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace Karim Sadjadpour about a potential new deal between the U.S. and Iran. Sadjadpour details that the Iranians do not believe the Biden...
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Former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Strategy and Force Development Elbridge Colby
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with Former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Strategy and Force Development Elbridge Colby about his new book The Strategy of Denial: American Defense in an Age of Great Power Conflict and whether the U.S. military is...
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Journalist and Former Marine Elliot Ackerman
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with Journalist and Former Marine Elliot Ackerman about his new book The Fifth Act: America's End in Afghanistan. Ackerman reflects on the impact of the war in Afghanistan for a generation of veterans. He discusses the constructs...
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Global Energy Expert Daniel Yergin
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with Global Energy Expert Daniel Yergin about energy security in the context of deep power rivalries as he provides his analysis of Putin's energy miscalculations. Yergin details the Biden administration's efforts to promote more...
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Terrorism Analyst Bill Roggio
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with Terrorism Analyst and Long War Journal Editor Bill Roggio on the state of the counterterrorism fight in Afghanistan a year after the full U.S. withdrawal and the Taliban regaining control of the country. Roggio says that al...
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Former Senior CIA Analysts on China: Chris Johnson and John Culver
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with Former Senior CIA analysts Chris Johnson, President and CEO of China Strategies Group, and John Culver, former national intelligence officer for East Asia, about Chinese and Taiwan relations after Speaker Pelosi's trip to...
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The Potential of Future Conflict with China: Professor Hal Brands
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with Hal Brands, Henry A. Kissinger Distinguished Professor of Global Affairs at the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies and author of the new book, Danger Zone: The Coming Conflict with China, about...
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Battlefield Lessons for Ukraine, Taiwan: Former Diplomat Eric Edelman
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with Eric Edelman, former U.S. Ambassador to Turkey and Finland and Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, about the ongoing conflict in Ukraine and likely lessons being drawn about the West's response and the nature of the…
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Best Of: Stanford Professor and Author Amy Zegart
In this "Best Of" episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with Amy Zegart, the Morris Arnold and Nona Jean Cox Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution and Professor of Political Science at Stanford University about her new book, "Spies, Lies and Algorithms: The History and...
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Best Of: Psychiatrist Kenneth Dekleva on Profiling World Leaders
In this "Best Of" episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with Kenneth Dekleva, a psychiatrist, former U.S. Department of State Regional Medical Officer, and Senior Fellow at the George H.W. Bush Foundation for US-China Relations, about how experts compile psychological…
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Making Fun of Spies: Former CIA Officer and Satirist Alex Finley
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with Alex Finley, a former CIA officer in the Directorate of Operations and an author of three satirical books depicting life and work at the agency. Finley describes how CIA officers often use humor in unique ways to cope with...
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Expert Heather Conley on Russia's "Strategic Conservatism"
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with Heather Conley, president of the German Marshall Fund of the United States, about Russia's use of "strategic conservatism" to exploit divisions with and within the West. Conley explains how Russian President Vladimir Putin…
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Former Ambassador Peter Wittig on Foreign Perceptions of the U.S.
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with Peter Wittig, Germany's former ambassador to the United States, United Kingdom, Lebanon, Cyprus and the United Nations, about foreign perceptions of the United States at pivotal historical moments. Wittig and Morell trace…
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Strategic Opportunities and Challenges in Latin America: Pedro Burelli
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with Pedro Burelli, a Venezuelan citizen, a former senior Venezuelan oil official, and an astute observer of Latin America and the world. Burelli and Morell exchange observations about Latin America's political and economic...
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China's Path and Xi's Political Future: Expert Chris Johnson
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with former senior CIA China analyst Chris Johnson, now President and CEO of the China Strategies Group, about the state of play in the U.S.-China relationship and how China's approach to Russia, its COVID lockdowns and economic...
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Big Tech, Regulation & National Security: Klon Kitchen & Jamil Jaffer
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with Klon Kitchen, Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, and Jamil Jaffer, founder and Executive Director of the National Security Institute at George Mason University, about a range of current national security...
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The Sandy Hook Shooting and How Conspiracy Theories Affect National Security: Journalist Elizabeth Williamson
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with journalist and author Elizabeth Williamson, who traced the rise and proliferation of conspiracy theories surrounding the 2012 Sandy Hook school shooting in a new book, Sandy Hook: An American Tragedy in the Battle for Truth....
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Reporting From Ukraine's Front Line: CBS News Correspondent Holly Williams
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with award-winning CBS News senior foreign correspondent Holly Williams about her on-the-ground reporting in Ukraine since the days of the 2014 Maidan revolution. Williams and Morell discuss the scenes at the front lines of the...
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State of Play in Ukraine: Former Moscow Chief of Station Rolf Mowatt-Larssen
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with former senior CIA operations officer and Moscow station chief Rolf Mowatt-Larssen about the likely trajectory of the war in Ukraine, including the possibility of a negotiated peace -- or dangerous escalation. Mowatt-Larssen...
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Counterterrorism Chief Christy Abizaid on Top Terror Threats to the U.S.
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with Christine "Christy" Abizaid, director of the National Counterterrorism Center within the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. Abizaid explains how the center's mission has evolved in the two decades following…
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Israel's Security Challenges: Former Senior Mossad Officer Zohar Palti
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with Zohar Palti, former senior Mossad officer and head of the Israeli Defense Forces' Political-Military Bureau, about his career, Israel's approach to the Iran nuclear issue and Tehran's response to Russia's invasion of…
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Former GOP Congressman and CIA Officer Will Hurd
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with Will Hurd, a former CIA officer and Republican Congressman from Texas who served on the House Intelligence Committee. Morell and Hurd, who is the author of the new book, "American Reboot: An Idealist’s Guide to Getting Big...
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John McLaughlin on Russia's World-Changing War
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with former CIA deputy director John McLaughlin about the global implications of Russia's invasion of Ukraine - including within Russia itself, across Europe, the Middle East and Asia. McLaughlin offers analysis on Russian...
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
Former acting Director of the CIA Michael Morell speaks with top leaders of the U.S. intelligence community as they reflect on their life, career and the critical roles they play in shaping national security policies. As a central figure in the most significant U.S. counter-terror efforts of the past two decades and a former CIA intelligence analyst, Morell is uniquely skilled at taking industry leading knowledge to make connections that provide deep insight into complex security events – helping decode intelligence officials’ key priorities and providing perspectives on how to achieve national security objectives. Morell is the author of “The Great War of Our Time” and a vivid account of the Central Intelligence Agency, a life in secrets, and a war in the shadows.
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How many episodes does Intelligence Matters have?
Intelligence Matters currently has 291 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is Intelligence Matters about?
Former acting Director of the CIA Michael Morell speaks with top leaders of the U.S. intelligence community as they reflect on their life, career and the critical roles they play in shaping national security policies. As a central figure in the most significant U.S. counter-terror efforts of the...
How often does Intelligence Matters release new episodes?
Intelligence Matters publishes regularly with 291 episodes available. Check the episode list for the typical release schedule.
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Intelligence Matters is created and hosted by CBS News.
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