Use BBC.com or the new BBC App to listen to BBC podcasts, Radio 4 and the World Service outside the UK.

Find out how to listen to other BBC stations

The People vs J Edgar Hoover

An examination, half a century on from the first director of the FBI's death in office in 1972, of how Hoover's iron grip still permeates contemporary America.

Radio 4,9 episodes

Episodes

ListGrid

Introducing The People vs J Edgar Hoover
In life, Hoover needed no introduction. In death, he needs this series teaser.
07 Jun 2022,3 mins
1. The Director Will See You Now
Meet the man who made presidents wait. With Emily Maitlis.
13 Jun 2022,14 mins
2. G-Men
Hoover takes on legendary gangsters of the 1930s and builds his own myth.
14 Jun 2022,14 mins
3. Infamy
The Japanese attack Pearl Harbor - an awkward moment for the domestic intelligence chief.
15 Jun 2022,14 mins
4. Witches
Hoover fans paranoia as his spy machine goes after communists - real and imagined.
16 Jun 2022,14 mins
5. "The Most Notorious Liar in the Country”
Martin Luther King Jr crosses Hoover's radar. It doesn't end well.
20 Jun 2022,14 mins
6. The Break-In
Amateur burglars risk all to go after Hoover’s secrets.
21 Jun 2022,14 mins
7. Publish and Be Damned
Hoover begins to lose control of the American narrative.
22 Jun 2022,14 mins
8. Shredded
Hoover’s death starts a race to control his secret files. But his power continues.
23 Jun 2022,14 mins