Graphic of a blue block spacer
Link to Federal Bureau of Investigation hompeage
Extra Graphic Ever wonder what happens when a report of a suspicious powder is forwarded to the FBI? Take a quick look at "Suspicious Powders 101".
Graphic of a blue block spacer
Graphic link to FBI Priorities
Graphic link to About Us
Graphic link to Press Room
Graphic link to What We Investigate
Graphic link to Counterterrorism
Link to Intelligence Program
Graphic link to Most Wanted
Graphic link to Law Enforcement Services
Graphic link to Your Local FBI Office
Graphic link to Reports and Publications
Graphic link to FBI History
Graphic link to For the Family
Graphic link to Freedom Of Iinformation Act Library / Requests
Graphic link to Employment
Graphic link to How Do I..?
Graphic link to Search

Graphic for Home

 

Graphic link to Submit a Tip
Graphic link to Apply Today
Graphic link to Links
Graphic link to Contact Us
Graphic link to Site Map
Graphic link to Privacy Policy

Retiring Chicago Special Agent in Charge Thomas Kneir, on what it's been like working for the FBI: "To say it's been interesting would be a huge understatement. You kind of get thrown into the middle of history."

Photographs of the Waldorf, Maryland transmitting station, and the North Beach, Maryland station.A BYTE OUT OF HISTORY
Not So Public Radio: Gathering Intelligence Over the Airwaves in WWII

As far as the war effort went, 1942 was a big year for radio. The "Voice of America" began broadcasting American-based news of the war throughout Europe. Armed Forces Radio was launched to boost the morale of soldiers around the world.

And, on October 9, on a small farm outside Clinton, Maryland--some 25 miles southeast of the nation's capitol--the FBI launched its first major radio station.

An FBI radio station? That's right. But it didn't play the hits of Glenn Miller, Harry James, and other top recording artists of the day. It covertly monitored and intercepted Nazi radio traffic, gathering vital bits of intelligence that supported the Allied cause.

We'd actually been using radio monitoring stations to intercept signals from secret Nazi radio networks for more than a year, including at the Clinton site. But with enemy radio traffic growing by leaps and bounds (the Clinton station alone had intercepted nearly a thousand espionage messages by March 1942), more engineering and personnel firepower were needed.

By October 1942, the revamped station was complete. A larger complement of FBI radio operators--both men and women--began working 24/7 to intercept any and all enemy transmissions coming from inside and outside the U.S.

How did the Nazis transmit these messages? Usually via Morse Code over "covert" Nazi stations discovered by the FBI or other agencies. Other times by embedding secret messages in popular German radio programs.

Once intercepted, though, the messages were handled the same way: they were quickly sent via teletype to the FBI Lab, which analyzed and decoded the intercepts.

It was a two-way street. Beyond picking up transmissions, our operators also sent messages of their own: to FBI employees connected via radio networks, of course. But also to Nazi agents. Thinking they were talking to fellow spies, these agents were actually being used to spread disinformation. Once, with the help of a German double agent, we sent the Nazis over 140 bogus messages, many of which were then forwarded to the Japanese government.

With the success of the Clinton operation, the Bureau built more radio facilities. By February 1943, our radio circuits stretched from Juneau, Alaska, to Santiago, Chile, with more than a dozen stations in between. Ultimately, nearly 30 of these radio stations were operating in the western hemisphere.

The wartime dividends? Outing many Nazi agents in the U.S., across South and Central America, and even in Europe; throwing the Axis powers off course with disinformation; and providing key bits of intelligence that were shared with the military, the State Department, and some foreign intelligence agencies.

Links: FBI History
Related Story: Long Island Double Agent


Recent Stories

Graphic link to Recent Stories
Announcements

On 10/13, federal authorities arrested an Iowa man for sending e-mail threats to a national Arab-American leader.

On 10/13, German company Bayer AG agrees to plead guilty in price-fixing conspiracy.
On 10/8, Nashville resident arrested by Joint Terrorism Task Force on weapons charges.

On 10/7, superceding indictment in Florida charges two men in terrorism conspiracy.

Photograph of Chris SweckerOn 10/7, FBI exec testifies before Congress on the Bureau's efforts to combat mortgage fraud.

On 10/6, British resident indicted in Connecticut on charges of providing material support to terrorists.

Photograph of Public Affairs Assistant Director Cassandra ChandlerOn 10/6, FBI exec takes "opposing view" on Bureau translation capabilities in USA Today debate.
On 10/6, Peregrine Systems executives and auditor indicted on securities fraud charges.
On 10/5, former Enron exec pleads guilty to fraud.
The FBI and the Jamestown, NY, PD need your help in locating a missing woman and are offering a reward for useful information.

On 10/4, British national charged with conspiring with "Shoe Bomber," Richard Reid.

On 9/30, El Paso man pleads guilty in civil rights case to threatening violence to members of an Islamic center.

On 9/30, 4 arrested in Wisconsin in scheme to export electronic equipment to China.

On 9/30, Bayer Corp. agrees to plead guilty in CA in price-fixing conspiracy.

On 9/30, Director Mueller appoints Chief of Staff, Charles M. Steele.

Counterterrorism SealPREVENTING TERRORIST ATTACK:
How You Can Help
New E-Scams and Warnings

Responding to Your Concerns:
- Can the FBI look at your library records any time they want?
- FBI interviews at Special Events
- Checks and Balances on the FBI

Some of these publications are in PDF (Portable Document Format). To view them you will need to have the Adobe Acrobat Reader plug-in installed on your computer. The Reader can be downloaded at no cost from Adobe's site on the World Wide Web.

If you have difficulty accessing any material on this site because of a disability, please contact us in writing or via telephone and we will work with you to make the information available.

Federal Bureau of Investigation
Attention: Content Manager, FBI Home Page
935 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Room 7350
Washington, DC 20535
(202) 324-3000

Photograph inside the Waldorf, Maryland transmitting station. Photograph of an operator at the North Beach, Maryland station.