Episodios

  • INSIDE THE PRESIDENT'S DAILY BRIEF

    INSIDE THE PRESIDENT'S DAILY BRIEF
    Apr 1 2025
    Ever wonder what goes into the President's Daily Brief (PDB)? It's not your average morning news. Stephanie Sellers, a former PDB briefer, is currently the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Representative to the U.S. Army War College and the General Walter Bedell Smith Chair of National Intelligence Studies. She joins host Ron Granieri to share her experiences, and describes the job as trying to keep up with “17 different soap operas at once.” This crucial intelligence update is delivered to the president and other senior government leaders, shaping their understanding of critical issues. Sellers, who previously worked on missile systems for the Navy, joined the CIA after 9/11 out of a desire to continue to serve her country and to use and grow her technical and leadership skills in new and exciting assignments. Her journey to becoming a PDB briefer was fueled by a desire for challenge and the opportunity to work at "the nexus of intelligence and policy."
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    33 m
  • INTEL IMPERATIVES: SECURING THE HOMELAND

    INTEL IMPERATIVES: SECURING THE HOMELAND
    Mar 25 2025
    Retired Rear Admiral Paul Becker joins host Darrell Driver in the studio to discuss the role of intelligence in U.S. Homeland Security. Intelligence is discovering what an adversary seeks to conceal, a concept relevant to both warfare and homeland defense. Becker emphasizes the unique challenges of applying intelligence domestically, including legal and ethical considerations and the increasing convergence of foreign and domestic threats. The discussion highlights the critical importance of interagency coordination, information sharing, open-source intelligence, and public trust. Becker also touches on the threat from China, particularly the potential for cyber attacks targeting critical infrastructure.
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    31 m
  • TECH ADOPTION AT PACE: CULTURE, INTEGRATION, AND LEADERSHIP

    TECH ADOPTION AT PACE: CULTURE, INTEGRATION, AND LEADERSHIP
    Mar 18 2025
    The successful adoption of new technology in the military depends on the organization's culture, the technology's applicability and ease of incorporation into existing systems and processes, and, perhaps most importantly, the leadership guiding the transformation. Dan Gregorio and Andy Knight join host Tom Spahr to discuss the I Corps’s adoption of the Maven Smart System to enhance mission command. Gregorio and Knight discuss the practical technical and leadership actions necessary to introduce a major new capability to the headquarters in just six weeks. Maven Smart System provides a unified interface for data sharing and enables commanders to visualize, act, and direct operations in real-time. Overall, the case is a good example of transformation in contact to significantly enhance lethality.
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    30 m
  • FROM COMPETITION TO CONFLICT: CHARTING THE COURSE OF THE SFABS

    FROM COMPETITION TO CONFLICT: CHARTING THE COURSE OF THE SFABS
    Feb 18 2025
    In 2017, the U.S. Army established Security Force Assistance Brigades (SFABs) to organize, train, equip, and advise foreign security forces. Tom Spahr spoke with two former SFAB commanders, Dustin Blair and Jon Post, to discuss the development of these brigades, their role in great power competition, and their potential use in future large-scale combat operations. Blair and Post emphasized the importance of SFABs in building relationships with partner nations and enhancing interoperability. They also stressed the need for continued investment to ensure the SFABs' long-term success.
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    43 m
  • BONUS EPISODE -- THE MELTING POINT: GENERAL FRANK MCKENZIE, USMC, RETIRED

    BONUS EPISODE -- THE MELTING POINT: GENERAL FRANK MCKENZIE, USMC, RETIRED
    Feb 14 2025
    On 3 February 2025, the U.S. Army Heritage and Education Center (USAHEC) hosted the former commander of U.S. Central Command, General Frank McKenzie, USMC, Retired, to discuss his book "The Melting Point: High Command and War in the 21st Century." Joined by Tom Spahr on stage they discussed his experience as a combatant commander and the challenges of leadership in wartime. Their conversation emphasized the importance of history and its influence on senior leader decision-making. The presentation examined the drone strike that killed Qasem Soleimani, the Iranian Quds Force commander, the raid that killed ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, and the withdrawal from Afghanistan and the challenges faced during the evacuation from Kabul.
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    1 h y 3 m
  • WAR, WORDS, AND THE FOURTH ESTATE

    WAR, WORDS, AND THE FOURTH ESTATE
    Feb 11 2025
    The complex and evolving relationship between the military and the media has spanned various periods in U.S. history. In a discussion with War Room editor-in-chief JP Clark, Thomas Crosbie, author of The Political Army: How the U.S. Military Learned to Manage the Media and Public Opinion, explores how the military has grappled with integrating media considerations into its operations. Crosbie examines how figures like George C. Marshall, Douglas MacArthur, and Matthew Ridgway navigated media relations, highlighting the challenges of balancing transparency and control. Their conversation delves into the impact of the Vietnam War on military-media relations, when attempts to manage the media often backfired.
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    40 m
  • DATA-DRIVEN DEFENSE: THE MAVEN SMART SYSTEM

    DATA-DRIVEN DEFENSE: THE MAVEN SMART SYSTEM
    Feb 5 2025
    Hold on tight, this episode is a whirlwind of data-infused targeting, intel, and logistics. Joe O'Callaghan joins host Tom Spahr in the virtual studio to discuss the Department of Defense's Maven Smart System. Maven was first developed to leverage artificial intelligence and machine learning to help speed intelligence analysis, but has since been applied to targeting, logistics, and even disaster relief. Joe, as the former Chief of Fires in the XVIII Airborne Corps, was one of the key architects of the system. He is the perfect guest to describe the digital and procedural nuts and bolts required to make the Maven Smart System work. Their conversation also touches on the trail-blazing development process and the kind of leaders required to drive such innovation.
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    40 m
  • FIGHTING TOGETHER: THE CANADIAN-AMERICAN PARTNERSHIP IN WORLD WAR II (ON WRITING)

    FIGHTING TOGETHER: THE CANADIAN-AMERICAN PARTNERSHIP IN WORLD WAR II (ON WRITING)
    Jan 14 2025
    It's time for another episode in our On Writing series. Host Michael Neiberg is joined in the studio by Tim Cook, the chief historian at the Canadian War Museum. Tim emphasizes the importance of making history accessible to the public, which involves finding compelling ways to tell stories and connect with readers. Their discussion covers Cook's latest book, "The Good Allies," which explores the relationship between Canada and the United States during World War II. Cook highlights the challenges of writing a book that is both chronological and thematic, and the importance of situating historical events within their specific time period. He explains that while there is an abundance of literature on World War II, he seeks to find unique angles and approaches to the topic.
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    32 m