Talk:Central Intelligence Agency

Citation for CIA reports to ODNI

The first paragraph says "citation needed" for the CIA reporting to ODNI, this information is available here:

http://www.dni.gov/index.php/about/faq

Click on the PDF icon to get it. Look under "Is the ODNI part of the CIA." I would add this to the article myself but the code to add citations is hopelessly complex. Massysett (talk) 19:22, 13 August 2012 (UTC)

Number of employees

To me it seems stupid to have the number of employees Classified as I think the public has the right to know and I see no reason why it has to be classified. I can see why the annual budget is classified, as I don't think the people don't need to know that, but come on what would it hurt to reveal how many employees you have? Sk8terguy27_Talk 23:15, 9 November 2012 (UTC)

• This isn't a forum to discuss why. Niteshift36 (talk) 00:46, 10 November 2012 (UTC)

Change in leadership

It was claimed today that Gen Petraeus would step down due to an extramarital affair. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 173.13.105.81 (talk) 21:29, 9 November 2012 (UTC)

• There is no "claim" to it. It's a fact, already done, covered by most major news outlets. Niteshift36 (talk) 00:46, 10 November 2012 (UTC)

Useless Citation?

Why is citation 20 (http://www.bluegold-worldwaterwars.com/) in this article? How is it useful, and how does it apply to the sentence it is attached to? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 67.166.35.150 (talk) 13:33, 14 November 2012 (UTC)

it does sort of look like spam NewsAndEventsGuy (talk) 13:45, 14 November 2012 (UTC)

 Done Obvious spam, and now removed. Thank you for pointing it out, and I apologise that nobody removed it more quickly after you posted here. Begoon ^talk 12:52, 1 December 2012 (UTC)

Restrictions on CIA?

Maybe I missed it, but I don't think the article discusses restrictions on the CIA's activities. I think there should be a section on the legal scope of its activities upon creation, the restrictions put on it in the aftermath of Watergate, the loosening of restrictions post-9/11, etc. Duoduoduo (talk) 13:59, 20 February 2013 (UTC)

Prism will throw more light. — Charles Edwin Shipp (talk) 22:39, 11 June 2013 (UTC)

The Echelon, Electronic Surveillance Project

What about Echelon, Electronic Surveillance Project, shouldn't it be in the article as well? 46.9.42.58 (talk) 11:13, 21 February 2013 (UTC)

• That is a NSA program, not CIA. Niteshift36 (talk) 13:34, 21 February 2013 (UTC)

CIA flag?

Does the CIA have an official flag? Illegitimate Barrister (talk) 09:21, 23 February 2013 (UTC)

EDIT: Never mind, found it. Illegitimate Barrister (talk) 09:40, 23 February 2013 (UTC)

Converging Military and Intelligence Activities

I reverted the new section with this title. The added info [1] concerns me. The entire section is based on a single source, a research paper written by a scholar of unknown notability. I can't even tell if it was actually published in the journal or not, but this 91 page document surely didn't all appear on page 539 as the citation would have us believe. I'd like to see some discussion on this before putting in a whole section based on one author that makes some claims not easily found in the source. Niteshift36 (talk) 18:20, 22 March 2013 (UTC)

Thank you for the constructive criticism. I am relatively new to Wikipedia and I am still trying to figure out the "do's and dont's," so to speak. I'm sorry if you were unable to locate the quotes in the page numbers I provided. I assure you they came from the document, but I may have made mistakes when I was coding. The concern you raise regarding my contribution emanating from a single source is fair. I will definitely have a more diverse array of sources for future posts. Cheers Timothysandole (talk) 18:47, 22 March 2013 (UTC)

• Perhaps if you looked at the sources the author used in the paper? That might give you some diversity. Also, please be mindful of WP:COPYVIO. I haven't done a close comparison, but it's a common error among new editors. Niteshift36 (talk) 18:58, 22 March 2013 (UTC)

History - Origins

Prior language used in this article indicated the CIA "descended" from the wartime OSS; such language overstates the case.

The OSS came into existence during a hot war and was primarily concerned with inserting agents for activities behind enemy lines as well as gathering intelligence about those enemies. Quoting the Wikipedia OSS article specifically on that office's founding,

The Office of Strategic Services was established by a Presidential military order issued by President Roosevelt on June 13, 1942, to collect and analyze strategic information required by the Joint Chiefs of Staff and to conduct special operations not assigned to other agencies. During the War, the OSS supplied policy makers with facts and estimates, but the OSS never had jurisdiction over all foreign intelligence activities.

The OSS did not morph into the CIA; it had evaporated by end of the year in which the Allies won World War II and hostilities came to a close, 1945.

The CIA was created anew subsequently in 1947 by formal, specific Congressional legislation, The National Security Act of 1947. That Act specifically charged the CIA with being the head of all US intelligence and created a much more powerful, diverse, complicated and independent agency than the OSS ever was, active in many countries with whom we are not formally at war and in many non-military ways. While I think this distinction is reflected in this article's introduction, that distinction was lost somewhat in the "History" section wherein the CIA was labeled as the OSS's descendant; I have changed that characterization to make it more consistent with the introductory language i.e. while the CIA did succeed the OSS temporally and has tended to attempt to bask in that entity's glory, the CIA was not a direct descendant of the OSS - it was (and is) a different (and eminently less successful) animal. BLZebubba (talk) 15:18, 28 May 2013 (UTC)

"Ex-official: Cia Helped Jail Mandela"

I feel this could be included in the history section: Ex-official: Cia Helped Jail Mandela. --88.68.191.214 (talk) 19:54, 28 June 2013 (UTC)

• It's by the Chicago Tribune. June 10, 1990. By Joseph Albright and Marcia Kunstel, Cox News Service. WhisperToMe (talk) 04:29, 29 June 2013 (UTC)

CIA and NYPD cooperation

• Devereaux, Ryan. "Fresh questions for NYPD as CIA collaboration revealed in new report." The Guardian. June 27, 2013.

WhisperToMe (talk) 04:29, 29 June 2013 (UTC)

To Work And Serve for CIA.

Hi, What are the criteria for entering CIA?

115.114.44.11 (talk) 15:59, 6 August 2013 (UTC) Lalit ,New delhi, India 06/08/13

• The answer is found on their website. Niteshift36 (talk) 19:24, 6 August 2013 (UTC)

Center on Climate Change and National Security

Either include a notation on the Center on Climate Change and National Security of the C.I.A. or someone can create a wikipedia page Center on Climate Change and National Security

• C.I.A. Climate Center Irks Barrasso October 6, 2009 John Barrasso
• Climate Change Report Outlines Perils for U.S. Military November 9, 2012 New York Times

Now disbanded ... http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/11/20/c-i-a-closes-its-climate-change-office/

“As part of a broader realignment of analytic resources, this work continues to be performed by a dedicated team in a new office that looks at economic and energy matters affecting America’s national security. The mission and the resources devoted to it remain essentially unchanged.”

Here is another http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/11/a-warming-planets-foreign-policy-challenge-for-the-united-states/265726/ 99.112.213.231 (talk) 05:45, 11 August 2013 (UTC)

The CIA have supported climate engineering studies. 99.181.134.121 (talk) 01:00, 16 August 2013 (UTC)

From climate engineering wp article ...

The National Academy of Sciences is running 21-month project which will study how humans might influence weather patterns, assess dangers and investigate possible national security implications of geoengineering attempts. The project will be funded by the CIA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and NASA.

99.109.125.210 (talk) 04:11, 17 August 2013 (UTC)