In conversation: Lewis Bush and Elspeth Van Veeren on his new project, Depravity's Rainbow and Trading Secrets

In this final episode of the latest series of the SPIN Podcast, Dr Elspeth Van Veeren and Dr Peter Finn discuss how secrecy impacts democracy through an analysis of official government records in countries such as the US, UK, and Canada. Dr. Finn shares research from his recent book including the complexity of official records and how they are not neutral documents, examples of classified information leaking from records, questions around technology's role in both creating and maintaining records going forward, and tensions between transparency and secrecy in government. They also discuss the complexities of balancing individual privacy and national security in the digital age.View Peter's academic profile: https://www.kingston.ac.uk/staff/profile/dr-peter-finn-643/ Browse and purchase Peter's latest book, The official record: oversight, national security and democracy: https://manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk/9781526174321/

In this episode of the SPIN Podcast series, Lewis Bush shares details of what led him into his visual and archival work on security and secrecy, sharing details of his latest projects: Depravity's Rainbow and Trading Secrets. In Depravity's Rainbow, he explored the 'secret' and controversial histories of US space exploration using archival work, site visits and cyanotype printing. In his work in progress, Trading Zones, Lewis looks at the concentration of power and wealth, and the secrecy and ignorance politics of offshore finance centres.Browse Lewis' work here: https://www.lewisbush.com/ For more on Trading Zones see: https://secrecyresearch.com/2023/07/12/introducing-lewis-bush-spin-research-fellow-2023/

In this next episode of the SPIN Podcast series, Dr. Elspeth Van Veeren provides an overview of the concept of 'secrecy games' that is at the heart of the paper recently published in Review of International Studies, co-authored with Dr. Clare Stevens (Cardiff) and Dr. Amaha Senu. You can also download and read the paper at: https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/review-of-international-studies/article/secrecy-games-power-and-resistance-in-global-politics/A9F2834F169D66304FD5F39722CFAA0C?utm_campaign=shareaholic&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_source=bookmark You can also watch a video of a SPIN Talk on the paper here: https://wp.me/pb19Tu-Rw

In this week's episode of the SPIN Podcast, Professor Brian Rappert is in conversation with Dr. Elspeth Van Veeren on revelations, secrecy, and his new book project. Inspired by a longstanding interest in thinking through revelation, Brian outlines some of its complex features -- its relationship with secrecy, its involvement in state security special ops, the nuances of revelation associated with authenticity, for example in memoirs and political exposés, at the heard of stage magic to the design of museum spaces. Brian's new book on revelation will be published in the new year, with a SPIN book launch in January 2025.

In the next in our new series of SPIN podcast episodes, Dr. Luca Trenta discusses the history of US government involvement in assassinations and targeted killings from the Cold War era to today. Dr Trenta shares insights from his research and latest book including the evolving justifications around labels like "assassination" versus "targeted killing", the expanding legal interpretations of self-defense to include imminent and continuing threats, and the role of secrecy in both carrying out operations and publicly legitimizing certain covert actions over time. The discussion provides useful context for understanding the normalisation of practices like targeted killings and how this intersects with issues of secrecy, legal precedents, and international relations.Further details about Luca's work at: https://www.swansea.ac.uk/staff/l.trenta/ Read Luca's recently released book, The President's Kill List: Assassination in US foreign policy since 1945: https://edinburghuniversitypress.com/book-the-president-s-kill-list.html Browse Luca's recent activities: https://secrecyresearch.com/2024/10/29/what-has-spin-ster-luca-trenta-been-up-to/ Stream Luca's book launch, hosted by SPIN: https://youtu.be/tO_mS_I8TtQ SPIN website: https://secrecyresearch.com

Kate Thornton, our first graduate podcaster, reads her entry from SPIN's A-Z series: O is for Omertà. This talk explains how omertà, which literally means silence, has developed into a code of secrecy and loyalty for mafia members. By keeping their criminal activities secret from authorities, the mafia is able to operate freely and influence society. The code of omertà ensures solidarity and cooperation between mafiosi by binding them through shared secrets. Rather than relying on violence, the mafia cultivates deeper loyalty among its members through the mutual dependence created by omertà. This culture of silence has historically woven the mafia's power tightly within Italian communities.Part of SPIN's A-Z Series. Read the A-Z entry here: https://secrecyresearch.com/2024/04/17/a-z-series-o-is-for-omerta/ SPIN website: https://secrecyresearch.com

In this episode, SPIN member Dr. Oliver Kearns presents the findings from his new book, The Covert Colour Line. Oliver argues that postwar Western intelligence represents an emergency response to anti-colonialism. As European empires collapsed, intelligence analysts scrambled to come up with ways of studying new independent governments and populations, while still defending the right of the US and Britain to dictate Middle Eastern affairs.  During this recording, Oliver presents some key ideas from The Covert Colour Line and hears from Dr. Claudia Hillebrand (University of Cardiff) and Dr. Shuk Ying Chan (UCL), who offer their thoughts on the book and its contributions.  There is also a brief Q&A with the author at the end of the recording. 

In this episode, Dr Thomas Leahy, lecturer in British and Irish politics and contemporary history at Cardiff University, talks about how his work on Northern Ireland conflict, peace process and post-1998 politics, interacts with secrecy. 

In this episode, Lisa Graves, Curator of World Cultures at the Bristol Museum talks about the ‘Do you believe in magic?’ exhibition that features over 200 objects and stories that reveal how magic has been used to heal, hunt and harm across the world.

In this episode Rosie Nelson, PhD student at Bristol University  talks about the meaning of secrecy for bisexual people.