"Historical Dictionary of United States Intelligence is a compendium of more than 500 entries on important and relevant personalities, programs, activities, and agencies, beginning with the Sons of Liberty before the onset of the Revolutionary War and ending with the most recent reorganization of the U.S. intelligence community. It covers the myriad pieces of legislation that have governed the activities of U.S. intelligence, from the National Security Act of 1947, which still constitutes the fundamental law setting up modern U.S. intelligence, to the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004, which established the position of the director of national intelligence. Each entry is cross-referenced and provides a definition, as well as a brief but complete historical evaluation. The chronology traces more than two centuries of history, and the introduction explains what intelligence is and does and shows how U.S. intelligence operations have evolved. Appendixes list directors and deputy directors of central intelligence, and an extensive bibliography provides the most relevant and important sources for those interested in further reading."--BOOK JACKET.
Includes bibliographical references (p. 229-290).