The New Spymasters: Inside Espionage From the Cold War to Global Terror; Intercept: The Secret History of Computers and Spies – review

Two timely books on spying reveal the shortcomings of intelligence and its stranglehold on modern life

What good timing for these books on espionage, just as Isis – fruit of the worst “intelligence” lie of recent history, the Blair-Bush excursion into Iraq – surges on and spies for Britain and the US are said to be moving from Russia and China after revelations by whistleblower Edward Snowden. The British GCHQ is caught illegally spying on human rights groups and the American NSA bugging heads of state, including French president François Hollande.

An early chapter in Stephen Grey’s book is entitled The Cult of Intelligence, to describe the self-perpetuating veneer of spy culture and to which journalism subscribes at its peril. How easy it is to impress editors and readers with claims by an “intelligence source”. But what if the source is a) lying, b) lacks intelligence and is wrong, even stupid, or c) has no real impact on events?

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