Podcast Summary: "Project Mockingbird is alive and well at the CIA"

Redacted News, December 29, 2025
Hosts: Clayton Morris (Redacted.inc)
Guest: Kevin Shipp (ex-CIA Whistleblower, Author of Twilight of the Shadow Government)

Episode Overview

This episode dives deep into the ongoing influence of the CIA within U.S. government institutions, media, and technology, focusing especially on Project Mockingbird—the CIA’s historic and possibly ongoing role in controlling media narratives. Clayton Morris interviews Kevin Shipp, a 17-year CIA veteran and whistleblower, who discusses shadow governance, media co-option, personal retribution he faced after exposing CIA activity, and the agency’s continued expansion into Silicon Valley and mass surveillance. The conversation questions the boundaries of constitutional rights, the difficulty of governmental reform, and the American public's role in demanding accountability.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

The CIA’s Culture of Secrecy and Retaliation

• Book Redactions and Silencing Whistleblowers [03:17–07:58]
  • Kevin describes how the CIA routinely redacts whistleblowers’ books, not only for classified info but to suppress embarrassing facts, criminal activity, and agency failings.
  • Shipp's own family was targeted: “They intentionally put me and my family ... in that poisoned house. … My wife was bleeding from her gums, bruising ... My son's immune system was so damaged they thought he had AIDS.” [03:17]
  • On publishing his latest book without CIA approval: “Somebody’s gotta break this hold that the CIA has on freedom of speech.” [05:40]
  • The CIA responded only with veiled threats, not wanting to draw further public attention.

Defining the “Shadow Government” & Deep State

• What is the Shadow Government? [12:27–15:50]
  • Shipp defines it as essentially the CIA’s control over all branches of elected government—Congress, Presidents, and judiciary—primarily wielded via security clearances, state secrets privilege, and manipulation.
  • Example: When Congressmembers investigate, the agency threatens or destroys their careers, as with Frank Church and Otis Pike.
  • "The upper 20% of the agency ... does not believe in the Constitution. They believe in expanding the CIA and its power.” [20:53]

Manipulation of Judiciary through State Secrets

• The State Secrets Privilege [16:05–19:31]
  • Explains how court cases (like United States vs. Reynolds) set precedent for silencing lawsuits against the government, even for CIA negligence or misconduct.
  • Nowhere in the Constitution is this privilege authorized.
  • Invoked not just for national security but at times to cover up political abuse (e.g., deporting immigrants without oversight).

CIA Influence: Mossad, MI6, and Foreign Operations

• Collaboration & Competition [25:37–28:34]
  • Describes deep CIA-Mossad collaboration (e.g., the Epstein case, drug trafficking). Each agency hedges bets, remaining rivals as well as allies.
  • “Mossad and the CIA are like sisters who don’t trust each other ... Israel ... will do whatever it takes to maintain the existence of the state of Israel.” [26:16]

Project Mockingbird: Media Manipulation Past and Present

• From Covert Assets to Open Contributors [29:45–38:13]
  • Project Mockingbird covertly placed CIA assets in major newsrooms for decades; now, ex-CIA, NSA, and other intelligence figures openly serve as Fox, CNN, MSNBC commentators.
  • Notable Moment: Shipp recounts seeing Sean Hannity wearing a CIA lapel pin live on Fox, then after appearing as a whistleblower guest, received “abject silence” instead of attention—suggesting the agency can instantly “blacklist” truth-tellers. [30:26–33:24]
  • The CIA’s approach now: “If you support the CIA, then we’ll feed you news stories that you’re not going to get anywhere else … but if you criticize us … we’re not going to give you anything.” [34:36]
  • Red flag for viewers: “Any TV news host or journalist ... that never criticizes the CIA, ever ... that’s a red flag.” [37:37]

Watergate, Bob Woodward, and Journalism “Myths” [38:13–46:45]

• Bob Woodward’s Intelligence Ties:
  • Shipp claims Woodward was always operational intelligence, not just a journalist.
  • Relates being personally present to debunk Woodward’s claim of secret interviews with dying CIA Director William Casey.
  • “He never got in there. We caught him and showed him the door ... As an eyewitness ... it’s a lie.” [42:25]
  • Woodward’s book Veil is, in Shipp’s words, a “boldface ... falsity.” [44:27]

CIA in Silicon Valley & the Death of Privacy [47:51–51:46]

• Mass Surveillance and Tech:
  • The CIA now runs “2,000 contracts with Silicon Valley companies ... 300 more that were classified” [47:51].
  • Palantir, Oracle, Amazon (cloud for the CIA), and others are agency-born or controlled.
  • “Privacy is dead … They’re bugging all of us through our phones, collecting our emails, texts, phone calls.” [50:28]
  • The digital surveillance state (“6G”) and state-level tracking are discussed as essentially unavoidable and omnipresent.

MK Ultra, Mind Control, and Directed Energy Weapons

• Modern Secret Programs [53:17–58:32]
  • Shipp asserts MK Ultra (mind control) remains alive under new tech, still compartmentalized and secret even from directors.
  • Shares personal experiences of psychological and physical retaliation, including targeted attacks on his family.
  • On recent high-profile killings/attempted assassinations: “It’s operations 101 ... That’s exactly how they do it.” [58:05]
  • “I am convinced MK Ultra is still alive and directed energy weapons are still alive ... that’s the darkness at the top of the agency.” [58:32]

Final Thoughts: Patriotism, Reform, and Public Power

• Can the CIA be Reformed? [24:01, 25:37, 57:27]
  • Despite past optimism, Shipp doubts real reform is possible from within government—only mass public pressure can force change.
  • “Congress and the Senate are gone ... It’s up to us, the American people.” [24:01]
  • Many CIA employees consider themselves patriots, especially lower levels; upper echelons only care about agency power.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Somebody’s gotta break this hold that the CIA has on freedom of speech.”
  — Kevin Shipp [05:40]

• “It's nowhere in the Constitution at all.”
  — Kevin Shipp, on the State Secrets Privilege [16:05]

• “The upper 20% of the agency … does not believe in the Constitution. They believe in expanding the CIA and its power.”
  — Kevin Shipp [20:53]

• “Project Mockingbird is right there in our face now. They’re not even hiding it any longer.”
  — Kevin Shipp [29:45]

• “Privacy is dead. … They’re bugging all of us through our phones, they’re collecting our emails, they’re collecting our texts, they’re collecting our phone calls.”
  — Kevin Shipp [50:28]

• “No, [MK Ultra] is alive under another name now.”
  — Kevin Shipp [53:42]

• “How do you kill a monster?”
  — Kevin Shipp, on dismantling the CIA’s structural power [24:01]

Important Segment Timestamps

• [03:17] Shipp describes CIA’s censorship, the targeting of his family, and book redactions
• [05:40] Shipp explains why he published without CIA approval
• [12:27] Definition and reach of the “shadow government”
• [16:05] The unconstitutional roots and uses of the "state secrets" privilege
• [25:37] CIA’s integration with Silicon Valley & Mossad
• [29:45] Project Mockingbird, CIA assets in newsrooms, public and covert ways
• [30:26] Sean Hannity and the symbolism of the CIA lapel pin
• [34:36] CIA’s continuing quid-pro-quo relationship with editors/producers
• [37:37] How to spot CIA influence: media figures never criticize the Agency
• [42:25] Shipp debunks Bob Woodward’s CIA claims from firsthand experience
• [47:51] The CIA’s influence in Silicon Valley, tech contracts, and mass surveillance
• [50:28] “Privacy is dead”—discussion on how pervasive surveillance has become
• [53:42] MK Ultra and mind control technology remain “alive under another name”
• [58:05] Recent political assassinations and CIA “playbook” tactics
• [60:17] Final recommendation of Kevin Shipp’s book and appreciation from the host

Tone & Style

The tone is urgent, candid, and conspiratorial, blending personal testimony, historical analysis, and contemporary warnings. Both Clayton and Kevin speak directly, unsparingly, and frame their discussion as a wake-up call for the public. The language is accessible, combining industry-insider specifics with plain, emotive examples.

For Listeners:

This episode offers a detailed critique of intelligence agency overreach, blending little-known whistleblower experiences and institutional analysis. The message is clear: to preserve constitutional freedoms, American citizens must demand transparency and reform from a deeply entrenched and largely unaccountable intelligence apparatus.