Virginie Girod SEASON 2022 - 202315h15h03, April 2023, <>

Discover the rest of historian Virginie Girod's account of the life of J. Edgar Hoover, head of the FBI for nearly half a century. Entering the FBI, Hoover renovates the corrupt institution: he renews its agents, the "G-Men", and develops its intelligence activity during the Second World War. Thanks to his eavesdropping, he managed to thwart Nazi attacks. But the President of the United States does not suspect that his own wife, suspected of affinity with communism, is also bugged... In this new episode of the podcast "At the Heart of History", Virginie Girod tells how J. Edgar Hoover will base his power on obtaining compromising secret information.

Topics covered: role of the United States during the Second World War – history of the FBI – Theodore and Eleanor Roosevelt – witch hunt – hunt for communists in the United States – McCarthyism – Nazi attacks – counter-espionage

Virginie Girod completes her account of the story of J. Edgar Hoover, the first director of the FBI. Thanks to his eavesdropping system, Hoover manages to thwart Nazi attacks. In 1942, he arrested a group of spies and received the Congressional Gold Medal. One wonders if the spy who warned the government was an agent of Hoover, and if he was sacrificed to protect his cover. No one has the answer, but Hoover is an unscrupulous man: in his eyes, the life of an agent is worth much less than his successes... This story is a Europe 1 Studio production.

At the heart of history" is a Europe 1 Studio podcast.

Writing and presentation: Virginie Girod

- Producer: Adèle Humbert

- Artistic direction: Adèle Humbert and Julien Tharaud

- Director: Clément Ibrahim

- Original music: Julien Tharaud

- Additional music: Julien Tharaud and Sébastien Guidis

- Communication: Kelly Decroix

- Distribution and writing: Eloise Bertil

- Visual: Sidonie Mangin

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