Secrets, lies & atomic spies

New secrets behind the greatest intelligence loss in US history.The Soviet Union exploded its first atom bomb in 1949, years earlier than expected. But was their design based on nuclear secrets stolen from Los Alamos? Recently de-classified documents prove that hundreds of Americans spied for the former Soviet Union--yet only a few were prosecuted. In the late 1940s, after American codebreakers successfully deciphered Soviet telegrams, the FBI nabbed Klaus Fuchs--as well as Julius Rosenberg--for giving atomic secrets to the Soviets. But only recently historians have discovered that as many as 300 Americans--including top-level Roosevelt Cabinet members--may have spied for the Soviets during World War II. And while the Rosenbergs were executed, a physicist named Ted Hall, who was identified early on by the FBI as one of the most important spies, got away without punishment. Join NOVA and see how American perseverance and ingenuity cracked a Soviet coding technique believed to be impenetrable. Hear why many experts now believe the Rosenbergs played only a minor role in the loss of atomic secrets. Find out why the truth about high-level Soviet espionage was kept from the American public for nearly 50 years. And, for the first time, hear Ted Hall's wife share his gripping story.

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Gr 7 Up-Narrated by Liev Schrieber, this captivating documentary about Soviet espionage in the United States during and after World War II includes interviews with noted historians, authors, nuclear physicists. and relatives of former spies. According to information only recently made public, convicted spies Julius and Ethel Rosenberg did not cause the most damage. It is estimated that there were over 300 spies employed by the Soviets, and only about 100 have ever been identified. Some spies worked at Los Alamos, Mexico, uncovering and transmitting classified information that enabled the Soviets to build their own atomic bomb. Others worked in almost every U.S. government agency including the State, Justice, and Treasury Departments, as well as the OSS, the precursor to the CIA. Messages were often transmitted to the Soviet Union by telegraph in code. An interesting segment discusses the complex steps American linguists had to use in order to interpret one tiny word in a document. The FBI had many spies under surveillance, but they were unable to arrest and prosecute them due to lack of evidence. This fascinating production, with all the ingredients of a good spy novel, would be helpful in any modern European, Russian, or U.S. history class.-Pat Bender, The Shipley School, Bryn Mawr, PA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

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