Milton Bearden
Encyclopedia
Milton Bearden is a retired Central Intelligence Agency
officer, author and film consultant. As of 2003, Bearden lives in Reston, Virginia
with his French-born wife, Marie-Catherine.
Bearden was born in Oklahoma
and spent his early years in the Washington state, where his father worked on the Manhattan Project
, and later moved with his family to Houston, Texas
. After serving in the United States Air Force
, he joined the CIA
in 1964.
in Pakistan
, Nigeria
, Sudan
and Germany
. In Pakistan from 1986 to 1989, he became a CIA Field Officer in Afghanistan. He played a role in funding and training the mujahedeen to fight occupying Soviet forces.
Bearden appeared several times in the BBC
Documentary by Adam Curtis
called The Power of Nightmares
where he talked of his involvement with the Mujahadeen, the Afghan Arabs and how he was assigned to the role by William Casey the then current Director of Central Intelligence
. According to Bearden, Casey told him that Afghanistan seemed to be possibly one of the keys to winning. Casey said "'I want you to go to Afghanstian, I want you to go next month and I will give you what ever you need to win... He gave me the Stinger missiles and a billion dollars!"
Further on in the documentary, referring to the Afghan Arabs Bearden said: "The only times that I ran into any real trouble in Afghanistan was when I ran into 'these guys' - You know there'd be kind of a 'moment' or two that would look a little bit like the bar scene in Star Wars, ya know. Each group kinda jockeying around and finally somebody has to defuse the situation."
He was later appointed the Chief of the Soviet/East European Division during the collapse of the Soviet Union
. He received the Distinguished Intelligence Medal
, the Intelligence Medal of Merit
and the Donovan Award for his CIA service. He received the Federal Cross of Merit from the President of the German Federal Republic for his service in Germany at the end of the Cold War
.
(Discovery Channel
), Covert Action (BBC
), The Power of Nightmares
(BBC2) and Heroes Under Fire (The History Channel
). Although generally supportive of the CIA and its mission, he has also been outspoken in his criticism of US actions in the War on Terrorism
. He was co-author of one book with James Risen
. Mr. Bearden is a frequent contributor to the op-ed pages of the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times
and The Wall Street Journal
, and has contributed to Foreign Affairs
and to the book about September 11, 2001, How Did This Happen?, published by PublicAffairs
. He is a consultant for CBS News
.
In August 1999, he argued that the threat posed by Osama bin Laden
had been blown out of proportion. He called for the U.S. to renounce "any plans for a unilateral military action against Osama bin Laden or for another cruise missile attack on Afghanistan." He called for a "serious dialogue" with the Taliban and said that they "have no more obligation to extradite Osama bin Laden to the United States than, say, the French do in the case of Ira Einhorn or the Israelis in the case of Samuel Scheinbein -- both of whom are fugitives from American justice in capital murder cases."
on Universal Studios
’ smash-hit Meet the Parents
, and worked with De Niro and screenwriter Eric Roth
(Forrest Gump
, The Insider
) on The Good Shepherd
, released in December 2006. Universal Studios and De Niro’s Tribeca Productions
have optioned The Main Enemy as a planned sequel to The Good Shepherd. He also worked with director Mike Nichols
on the film Charlie Wilson's War
, released in December 2007.
Central Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...
officer, author and film consultant. As of 2003, Bearden lives in Reston, Virginia
Reston, Virginia
Reston is a census-designated place in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States, within the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. The population was 58,404, at the 2010 Census and 56,407 at the 2000 census...
with his French-born wife, Marie-Catherine.
Bearden was born in Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
and spent his early years in the Washington state, where his father worked on the Manhattan Project
Manhattan Project
The Manhattan Project was a research and development program, led by the United States with participation from the United Kingdom and Canada, that produced the first atomic bomb during World War II. From 1942 to 1946, the project was under the direction of Major General Leslie Groves of the US Army...
, and later moved with his family to Houston, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
. After serving in the United States Air Force
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
, he joined the CIA
Central Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...
in 1964.
Career with the CIA
During his 30-year career with the CIA Bearden was a station chiefStation Chief
Station Chief is a term for certain officials who are appointed as chief of a 'station', i.e. a stationary post, of various natures.-Colonial:...
in Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
, Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
, Sudan
Sudan
Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
and Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. In Pakistan from 1986 to 1989, he became a CIA Field Officer in Afghanistan. He played a role in funding and training the mujahedeen to fight occupying Soviet forces.
Bearden appeared several times in the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
Documentary by Adam Curtis
Adam Curtis
Adam Curtis is a British BAFTA winning documentarian and a writer, television producer, director and narrator. He works for BBC Current Affairs.-Early life and education:Curtis was born in 1955...
called The Power of Nightmares
The Power of Nightmares
The Power of Nightmares, subtitled The Rise of the Politics of Fear, is a BBC documentary film series, written and produced by Adam Curtis. Its three one-hour parts consist mostly of a montage of archive footage with Curtis's narration...
where he talked of his involvement with the Mujahadeen, the Afghan Arabs and how he was assigned to the role by William Casey the then current Director of Central Intelligence
Director of Central Intelligence
The Office of United States Director of Central Intelligence was the head of the United States Central Intelligence Agency, the principal intelligence advisor to the President and the National Security Council, and the coordinator of intelligence activities among and between the various United...
. According to Bearden, Casey told him that Afghanistan seemed to be possibly one of the keys to winning. Casey said "'I want you to go to Afghanstian, I want you to go next month and I will give you what ever you need to win... He gave me the Stinger missiles and a billion dollars!"
Further on in the documentary, referring to the Afghan Arabs Bearden said: "The only times that I ran into any real trouble in Afghanistan was when I ran into 'these guys' - You know there'd be kind of a 'moment' or two that would look a little bit like the bar scene in Star Wars, ya know. Each group kinda jockeying around and finally somebody has to defuse the situation."
He was later appointed the Chief of the Soviet/East European Division during the collapse of the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
. He received the Distinguished Intelligence Medal
Distinguished Intelligence Medal
The Distinguished Intelligence Medal is awarded by the Central Intelligence Agency for performance of outstanding services or for achievement of a distinctly exceptional nature in a duty or responsibility.-Notable Recipients:Robert G. Brewster...
, the Intelligence Medal of Merit
Intelligence Medal of Merit
The Intelligence Medal of Merit is awarded by the Central Intelligence Agency for performance of especially meritorious service or for achievement conspicuously above normal duties. -Notable Recipients:* Robert Schaller* Stephen Kasarda* Jerome Calloway...
and the Donovan Award for his CIA service. He received the Federal Cross of Merit from the President of the German Federal Republic for his service in Germany at the end of the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
.
Writer and commentator
Since retiring, Bearden has written books based on his experiences, commented on current events, and appeared on television, including Secret WarriorsSecret Warriors
The Secret Warriors is a Marvel series featuring Nick Fury and Team White, a fictional team of superpowered agents in the . Created by Brian Michael Bendis and Alex Maleev, the characters were introduced in Mighty Avengers #13, and debuted as a team in Secret Invasion #3, both published in...
(Discovery Channel
Discovery Channel
Discovery Channel is an American satellite and cable specialty channel , founded by John Hendricks and distributed by Discovery Communications. It is a publicly traded company run by CEO David Zaslav...
), Covert Action (BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
), The Power of Nightmares
The Power of Nightmares
The Power of Nightmares, subtitled The Rise of the Politics of Fear, is a BBC documentary film series, written and produced by Adam Curtis. Its three one-hour parts consist mostly of a montage of archive footage with Curtis's narration...
(BBC2) and Heroes Under Fire (The History Channel
The History Channel
History, formerly known as The History Channel, is an American-based international satellite and cable TV channel that broadcasts a variety of reality shows and documentary programs including those of fictional and non-fictional historical content, together with speculation about the future.-...
). Although generally supportive of the CIA and its mission, he has also been outspoken in his criticism of US actions in the War on Terrorism
War on Terrorism
The War on Terror is a term commonly applied to an international military campaign led by the United States and the United Kingdom with the support of other North Atlantic Treaty Organisation as well as non-NATO countries...
. He was co-author of one book with James Risen
James Risen
James Risen is a Pulitzer Prize-winning American journalist for The New York Times who previously worked for the Los Angeles Times. He has written or co-written many articles concerning U.S...
. Mr. Bearden is a frequent contributor to the op-ed pages of the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
and The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal is an American English-language international daily newspaper. It is published in New York City by Dow Jones & Company, a division of News Corporation, along with the Asian and European editions of the Journal....
, and has contributed to Foreign Affairs
Foreign Affairs
Foreign Affairs is an American magazine and website on international relations and U.S. foreign policy published since 1922 by the Council on Foreign Relations six times annually...
and to the book about September 11, 2001, How Did This Happen?, published by PublicAffairs
PublicAffairs
PublicAffairs is an imprint of the Perseus Books Group, an American book publishing company located in New York City. From PublicAffairs' web site:...
. He is a consultant for CBS News
CBS News
CBS News is the news division of American television and radio network CBS. The current chairman is Jeff Fager who is also the executive producer of 60 Minutes, while the current president of CBS News is David Rhodes. CBS News' flagship program is the CBS Evening News, hosted by the network's main...
.
In August 1999, he argued that the threat posed by Osama bin Laden
Osama bin Laden
Osama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden was the founder of the militant Islamist organization Al-Qaeda, the jihadist organization responsible for the September 11 attacks on the United States and numerous other mass-casualty attacks against civilian and military targets...
had been blown out of proportion. He called for the U.S. to renounce "any plans for a unilateral military action against Osama bin Laden or for another cruise missile attack on Afghanistan." He called for a "serious dialogue" with the Taliban and said that they "have no more obligation to extradite Osama bin Laden to the United States than, say, the French do in the case of Ira Einhorn or the Israelis in the case of Samuel Scheinbein -- both of whom are fugitives from American justice in capital murder cases."
Film consultant
He worked with Robert De NiroRobert De Niro
Robert De Niro, Jr. is an American actor, director and producer. His first major film roles were in Bang the Drum Slowly and Mean Streets, both in 1973...
on Universal Studios
Universal Studios
Universal Pictures , a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, is one of the six major movie studios....
’ smash-hit Meet the Parents
Meet the Parents
Meet the Parents is a 2000 American comedy film written by Jim Herzfeld and John Hamburg and directed by Jay Roach. Starring Robert De Niro and Ben Stiller, the film chronicles a series of unfortunate events that befall a good-hearted but hapless male nurse while visiting his girlfriend's parents...
, and worked with De Niro and screenwriter Eric Roth
Eric Roth
Eric Roth is an American screenwriter. He won the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay for Forrest Gump . He also co-wrote the screenplay for Michael Mann's The Insider , the Steven Spielberg film Munich , and David Fincher's film The Curious Case of Benjamin Button , all of which were nominated for...
(Forrest Gump
Forrest Gump
Forrest Gump is a 1994 American epic comedy-drama romance film based on the 1986 novel of the same name by Winston Groom. The film was directed by Robert Zemeckis, starring Tom Hanks, Robin Wright and Gary Sinise...
, The Insider
The Insider (film)
The Insider is a 1999 film based on the true story of a 60 Minutes television series segment, as seen through the eyes of a real tobacco executive, Jeffrey Wigand. The 60 Minutes story originally aired in November 1995 in an altered form because of objections by CBS’ then-owner, Laurence Tisch, who...
) on The Good Shepherd
The Good Shepherd (film)
The Good Shepherd is a 2006 spy film directed by Robert De Niro and starring Matt Damon and Angelina Jolie, with an extensive supporting cast. Although it is a fictional film loosely based on real events, it is advertised as telling the untold story of the birth of counter-intelligence in the...
, released in December 2006. Universal Studios and De Niro’s Tribeca Productions
TriBeCa Productions
Tribeca Productions, a film and television production company, was co-founded in 1989 by actor Robert De Niro and producer Jane Rosenthal in the lower Manhattan neighborhood of TriBeCa...
have optioned The Main Enemy as a planned sequel to The Good Shepherd. He also worked with director Mike Nichols
Mike Nichols
Mike Nichols is a German-born American television, stage and film director, writer, producer and comedian. He began his career in the 1950s as one half of the comedy duo Nichols and May, along with Elaine May. In 1968 he won the Academy Award for Best Director for the film The Graduate...
on the film Charlie Wilson's War
Charlie Wilson's War
Charlie Wilson's War is a 2007 American biographical comedy drama film recounting the true story of U.S. Congressman Charlie Wilson who partnered with "bare knuckle attitude" CIA operative Gust Avrakotos to launch Operation Cyclone, a program to organize and support the Afghan mujahideen in their...
, released in December 2007.
Books
- The Black Tulip: A Novel of War in Afghanistan (1998) ISBN 0-375-76083-0
- The Main Enemy, The Inside story of the CIA's Final showdown with the KGB, with James RisenJames RisenJames Risen is a Pulitzer Prize-winning American journalist for The New York Times who previously worked for the Los Angeles Times. He has written or co-written many articles concerning U.S...
(2003) ISBN 0-679-46309-7 - How Did This Happen, Terrorism and The New War (2001) (contributor) ISBN 1-58648-130-4
External links
- Sunday (Australia) online chat
- PBS interview (conducted late 1998 or early 1999 http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/binladen/interviews/)