🍎Repost: The Days of Hoover, Here Again? 

*Synopsis: J. Edgar Hoover was FBI director for 48 years. He exercised power over Washington elites, Hollywood actors, and everyday people as America’s top cop. Much of this power was gained through unconstitutional searches and secret files. Currently, there are allegations that the Department of Justice (DOJ) has engaged in collusion with Big Tech social media companies for political weaponization. If true, this sets a dangerous precedent for the country — a new era of Hoover.

*Reposted article. First published in August 2024.

The Days of Hoover, Here Again? 

On May 2^nd, 1972, John Edgar Hoover, the long-time director of the FBI, died of a heart attack. No autopsy was performed.¹ He was deemed America’s top cop and was known for rooting out Nazis and their sympathizers. But Hoover also operated on the dark side of law enforcement. His conduct involved unconstitutional searches and wiretaps. He kept secret files to hold over the heads of Washington elites and Hollywood actors. Everyday Americans, like those involved in the Civil Rights Movement or anti-war activists against the Vietnam conflict, could find themselves the subject of a FBI investigation. Whether they were involved in criminality or not. Hoover supervised the infamous counterintelligence program COINTELPRO. This FBI domestic surveillance program used Gestapo-style tactics in the lives of its targets. From presidents to politicians and everybody in between, Hoover exercised power over all of them. His reign as FBI director lasted 48 years.

It was President Franklin D. Roosevelt (1933-1945) who first authorized Hoover to use phone wiretaps for FBI investigations. Ironically, it would be Eleanor Roosevelt, the president’s wife, who would be the first wiretapped subject. There were rumors that Mrs. Roosevelt was having an affair with a soldier suspected of communism. Hoover put listening devices in her hotel room. No evidence of wrongdoing by the first lady was found.² Hoover’s acts of political espionage continued, and he found new targets within the Civil Rights Movement. He demonstrated an adversarial stance towards civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and wiretapped him as well. Hoover had an unnatural obsession with the possibility of a “messiah” rising from the African-American community. His choice of the word “messiah” is quite interesting. And how Old Testament of him. Seems no one could escape Hoover’s abuse of power, even scientist Albert Einstein had a secret FBI file.³  Four years after Hoover’s death, in 1976, Congress passed an amendment to limit future FBI directors to a term of ten years.  

The Senate Select Committee to Study Governmental Operations with Respect to Intelligence Activities nicknamed “The Church Committee” (1975) was led by U.S. Senator Frank Church. It was a televised investigation of federal intelligence operations and allegations of misconduct. This committee would go on to implement reforms and in its final report state: “Intelligence agencies have undermined the constitutional rights of citizens,” the final report concluded, “primarily because checks and balances designed by the framers of the Constitution to assure accountability have not been applied.” ⁴ This abuse of power was not seen as a political left or right issue. It was an American issue. The Church Committee understood that fact.

Social media has become an integral part of today’s society. It’s a tool for business, social networking, and global communication. But like all tools it can have a dark side as well, in the wrong hands. And those wrong hands can belong to an individual, group, corporation, or government. The current hot social-political climate in the United States provides fertile ground for combustion through social media. Currently, there are allegations that the Department of Justice (DOJ) has engaged in collusion with Big Tech social media companies for political weaponization. This is allegedly done to censor the online voices of some Americans and create political echo chambers. Essentially, a deliberate political manipulation of the American people for partisan agendas.

On February 8th, 2023, The U.S. House of Representatives Oversight & Accountability Committee held a hearing: “Protecting Speech from Government Interference & Social Media Bias Part I: Twitter’s Role in Suppressing the Biden Laptop Story.” The committee subpoenaed four former Twitter executives to provide answers to allegations about the suppression of the NY Post article about Hunter Biden’s laptop just weeks before the 2020 presidential election. The committee also addressed disinformation, domestic extremism, and federal government intrusion. It questioned the interactions of the Department of Justice and FBI with Twitter. Namely, its quarterly meetings with Twitter, a separate BU (for FBI “bureau”) chatroom, possible secret back channels of communication, and a war room. There were fiery claims that Twitter banned the accounts of a few house representatives. These allegations raise some important questions about federal government transparency and accountability.

Anita Moncrief is a former ACORN employee and whistleblower. ACORN was accused of voter fraud, grant fraud, and misconduct. She provides a prophetic warning for the public in 2011: “And this is going to sound crazy. Because I tell people all the time, they think social media and Facebook and Twitter are just for fun. But after Iran and the things that happened in 2009. People should realize it is life-changing” (time-stamp 11:59). ⁵

Once again, the protection of our collective constitutional rights and civil liberties hang in a delicate balance. Social media can be the domain of both good and bad behavior. As such, law enforcement agencies monitor social media sites for criminal activity and threats to national security. The United States has the sovereignty to defend itself from foreign adversaries. But what happens when the threatening call is from inside the house? If these political weaponization allegations are true, this sets a dangerous precedent for the country — a new era of Hoover.

Bibliography

(1, 2, 3) Kuperberg, Clara and Robert. The Dark Side of the FBI. Wichita Films: Canal Jimmy Network, 2006. https://www.wichitafilms.com/en/films/the-dark-side-of-the-fbi/

(4) “The Senate Select Committee to Study Governmental Operations with Respect to Intelligence Activities.” The United States Senate, 1975. https://www.senate.gov/about/powers-procedures/investigations/church-committee.htm

(5) “WI-CFL 2011 Annual Conference – Anita Moncrief ACORN Whistleblower” YouTube video, 18:11. “Crye55,” May 4th, 2011. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=344zseAQhQM

*Notice: This updated repost article “The Days of Hoover, Here Again?” was first published in August 2024. To view click here.

💖For Additional Reading

1.) CNBC: Mark Zuckerberg says White House ‘pressured’ Meta to ‘censor’ Covid-19 content (August 2024)

https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/27/zuckerberg-alleges-white-house-pressured-meta-to-censor-covid-19-content.html

2.) The Guardian: Preventing the rise of a ‘messiah’ (April 2008)

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2008/apr/04/preventingtheriseofamessi

3.) Wichita Films: The Dark Side of the FBI

https://www.wichitafilms.com/en/films/the-dark-side-of-the-fbi/

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