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During the early Cold War era, the United States Army and later the NSA began recruiting and training codebreakers and intelligence officers to decipher intercepted Soviet messages.
Among those recruits were a group of highly skilled Black women who were employed as cryptologists to decode these messages. But their role in Cold War intelligence operations has been largely overlooked, until now.
Host Flora Lichtman talks with historian Sarah Valentine about her book, “Decoding the Devil: Black Women Codebreakers and the Secret War Against Stalin’s Bomb.”
Read an excerpt of “Decoding the Devil.”
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Segment Guests
Sarah Valentine
Dr. Sarah Valentine is the author of “Decoding the Devil: Black Women Codebreakers and the Secret War Against Stalin’s Bomb.”
Segment Transcript
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Meet the Producers and Host
About Flora Lichtman
Flora Lichtman is a host of Science Friday. In a previous life, she lived on a research ship where apertivi were served on the top deck, hoisted there via pulley by the ship’s chef.
About Shoshannah Buxbaum
Shoshannah Buxbaum is a producer for Science Friday. She’s particularly drawn to stories about health, psychology, and the environment. She’s a proud New Jersey native and will happily share her opinions on why the state is deserving of a little more love.