Serving in the Middle East, then Writing About It (with Ilana Berry)
Mission Implausible
iHeartPodcasts
3.9 • 593 Ratings
🗓️ 26 April 2026
⏱️ 42 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Award-winning author Ilana Berry explores the gap between how espionage is portrayed and how it actually works. Drawing on her experience in the CIA, the Department of Defense, and er firsthand view of the Arab Spring in Bahrain. She explains why secrecy fuels conspiracy theories, and why even insiders often struggle to separate truth from manipulation.
Watch Mission Implausible on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@MissionImplausiblePod
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | Mission Implausible is now something you can watch. |
| 0:03.2 | Just go to YouTube and search Mission Implausible Podcast, or click on the link to our channel |
| 0:08.2 | in our show notes. |
| 0:10.8 | I'm John Seifer, and I'm Jerry O'Shea. |
| 0:13.7 | We have over 60 years of experience as clandestine officers in the CIA, serving in high-risk |
| 0:19.0 | areas all around the world. |
| 0:20.3 | And part of our job was creating conspiracies to deceive our adversaries. |
| 0:25.1 | Now, we're going to use that experience to investigate the conspiracy theories everyone's talking |
| 0:29.6 | about it, as well as some you may not have heard. |
| 0:31.8 | Could they be true, or are we being manipulated? |
| 0:34.1 | I'll find out now on Mission Implausible. |
| 0:36.9 | Today's guest is award-winning writer Ilana |
| 0:39.1 | Barry. Alana is a former CIA operations officer whose debut novel, The Peacock and the Sparrow, |
| 0:44.5 | has drawn critical praise for its realism and literary approach to espionage fiction. Her novel |
| 0:49.2 | is set in Bahrain during the Arab Spring. Well, since our show explores conspiracy theories, |
| 0:53.4 | we want to spend some time in that gap between what secret institutions really do and what people imagine they do. And given what we are facing today, we also want to look at the world of the Middle East. So, Alana, welcome. Thank you so much for having me. I'm honored beyond. Wait till the end to see if I'll honor your... That's right. Fair enough. That's right. Alana, your novel has won four, like, very significant awards. |
| 1:13.5 | Therefore, you can't really be talking about. That's right. Your know. Ilana, your novel has won four, like, very significant awards. |
| 1:13.5 | Therefore, you can't really be talking what CIA operations officers actually do. |
| 1:18.9 | Well, I mean, I know, I know you are. |
| 1:22.2 | I know. |
| 1:22.5 | Yeah. |
| 1:22.9 | The rogue CIA officer is one that doesn't fill in his monthly financial thing. |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from iHeartPodcasts, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of iHeartPodcasts and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.