The FBI
Inside the World’s Most Powerful Law Enforcement Agency

Name: The FBI
Brand: Blackstone Audiobooks
Availability: InStock
Author: Ronald Kessler
ISBN: 9781504723367

Author: Ronald Kessler

Narrator: Jeff Riggenbach

Unabridged: 20 hr 50 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Blackstone Publishing

Published: 07/01/1997

Categories: Nonfiction, Political Science, Law Enforcement, True Crime, Murder

Synopsis

No institution in American society generates as much curiosity, fear, and intrigue as the FBI. No institution can obtain so much information and penetrate so deeply into our private lives. And no institution plays a greater role in safeguarding our freedom—or potentially threatening it.In this groundbreaking book, award-winning journalist Ronald Kessler provides a firsthand look at the people who run the Bureau, the methods they use, the powers they wield, and the secrets they hold. Learn how the FBI solved some of the most highly publicized cases in history, including Watergate, the Pan Am 103 bombing, the Patty Hearst kidnapping, and the World Trade Center bombing. Learn also how and why the FBI fumbled such important cases as the David Koresh cult tragedy in Waco and the Rodney King beating. This revealing book will change the way America perceives the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

About Ronald Kessler

Ronald Kessler is the New York Times bestselling author of The FBI, Inside the CIA, Moscow Station, Escape from the CIA, Spy vs. Spy, The Spy in the Russian Club, and The Richest Man in the World. He is an award-winning former correspondent for the Wall Street Journal and the Washington Post, and his articles appear in leading periodicals. Mr. Kessler lives in Potomac, Maryland.

About Jeff Riggenbach

Jeff Riggenbach (1947-2021) narrated numerous titles for Blackstone Audio and won an AudioFile Earphones Award. An author, contributing editor, and producer, he worked in radio in San Francisco for more than thirty years, earning a Golden Mike Award for journalistic excellence.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Christina on August 18, 2012

This book is a seemingly random collection of anecdotes about the FBI throughout its history, apparently some of which the author already covered in one of his previous books about the FBI (which he made sure to mention several times). Some of the anecdotes were interesting -- like the details of ho......more

Goodreads review by Michael on August 12, 2011

Very repetitive.......more

Goodreads review by Maureen on August 09, 2011

I've read more interesting books. Am forcing myself to wade through it.......more

Goodreads review by Randy on August 14, 2012

It was a slow week at our local B&N, a while back when I bought this book. Nothing new on the shelves that looked exciting, but I knew that the Clint Eastwood film about J. Edgar Hoover was coming out, and along with it, probably a renewed discussion of the FBI, then and now. With a yawn I scooped u......more

Goodreads review by Alla S. on August 24, 2012

“The Secrets of the FBI” by Ronald Kessler is an interesting investigation by the author of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s history, techniques, leaders, traitors, successes, failures, and its gradual evolution. The chapters vary in topic: anything from terrorism, to moles, to vignettes about......more

Quotes

“Impressive…An informative study by Kessler…Persuasively documented.”

“Fascinating…a careful and well-written study.”

“A must-read…A compelling account…of the contemporary FBI, warts and all.”

“When this book was published, it was partly responsible for the downfall of the FBI director. It discusses bureau operations, both legal and illegal; provides sketches of important personnel; and analyzes the myth of invincibility that permeates the organization. Jeff Riggenbach relates these in a clear, steady tone, allowing the listener to keep track of the sometimes serpentine subplots.”

“A riveting narrative for public and academic libraries alike.”

“A revealing glimpse of an American institution in transition.”