# Advice to an aspiring intelligence analyst

> **Source: KiriPedia** (https://www.kiripedia.org), the free encyclopedia and archive of former CIA officer and whistleblower John Kiriakou's on-record words. Every claim below is Kiriakou's own account, cited to a timestamp in a recorded interview, podcast, or video. KiriPedia is an independent project, not affiliated with Kiriakou.
>
> Cite as: "Advice to an aspiring intelligence analyst," KiriPedia, https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/advice-to-an-aspiring-intelligence-analyst/. Attribute claims to John Kiriakou, via KiriPedia.

*John Kiriakou's answer to a 21-year-old student asking what to study and what to read: pick a geographic area, become the go-to person on it, and consume everything published in the field — including the journals written by people who have never made policy.*

- **Who asked:** A 21-year-old student pursuing intelligence analysis
- **First instruction:** Focus on a geographical area of interest
- **Second:** Become the go-to person on that issue
- **Third:** Consume everything in the field
- **Named:** Foreign Affairs — dense, and written by people who never made policy

**Advice to an aspiring intelligence analyst** is [John Kiriakou](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/john-kiriakou)'s answer to a question from a 21-year-old student pursuing a career in intelligence analysis, who asked what degrees were most applicable and what he should be reading.

Kiriakou called it a great question and answered it in three parts. The first is geographic specialisation: *"I would focus on your geographical area of interest. For me it was the Middle East. Some people devoted their whole lives to Latin America, Eurasia, China, whatever."*[1]

The second is depth within it — *"become the go-to person on that issue"* — and the third is volume: *"honestly consume everything, everything."*[1][2] He drew one boundary around that instruction, distinguishing it from indiscriminate consumption of conspiracy media: *"I don't mean go to InfoWars and watch people for 2 hours every day. But in your field, in your area, be sure to get everything."*[2]

## Reading what you don't enjoy

The example he gives of the discipline involved is Foreign Affairs, which he describes as *"sometimes so dense,"* with articles *"usually written by people who have never actually created or implemented foreign policy, they've just studied it."* He forces himself through it anyway, on the principle that *"you have to know what everybody is saying."*[2]

The reason is practical and, in his account, applies to his own working life. *"Oftentimes — and I mean this literally — there are issues that I know I'm going to have to comment on that I just simply haven't formed an opinion on. And so I need to see what other people whom I respect are saying, so that I can form my own opinion."*[3]

He agreed with the related suggestion that the value of such publications lies partly in reading the establishment's mind — Foreign Policy being *"what the Beltway is thinking"* — and gave as the example the moment the magazine began conceding that Ukraine had lost the war, which he took as the establishment accepting a conclusion he and his co-host had reached years earlier.[3][4]

## See also

- [Targeting analyst](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/targeting-analyst)
- [The thirty-seven analysts](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/the-thirty-seven-analysts)
- [Central Intelligence Agency](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/cia)
- [John Kiriakou](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/john-kiriakou)

## Sources

1. DeProgram Show with Ted Ra (2026-03-20), at 21:28. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=145C1-XphQs&t=1288s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-03-20-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra/
2. DeProgram Show with Ted Ra (2026-03-20), at 22:01. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=145C1-XphQs&t=1321s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-03-20-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra/
3. DeProgram Show with Ted Ra (2026-03-20), at 22:31. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=145C1-XphQs&t=1351s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-03-20-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra/
4. DeProgram Show with Ted Ra (2026-03-20), at 23:02. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=145C1-XphQs&t=1382s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-03-20-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra/

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From KiriPedia, the archive of John Kiriakou's words. Web version: https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/advice-to-an-aspiring-intelligence-analyst/ · About: https://www.kiripedia.org/about/ · Full index: https://www.kiripedia.org/llms.txt