Secrecy and the politics of selective disclosures: the US government's intervention in Guatemala

Trenta, Luca; Fahey, Kevin T; Atkinson, Douglas B

Abstract

Recent scholarship debates the signaling function of secrecy and covertness. At the international level, covertness is used to achieve strategic objectives without risking escalation or openly violating international law. Domestically, secrecy is understood as a method to pacify domestic constituencies. These are typically understood as obstacles to the conduct of (covert) foreign policy. Building primarily on archival material, the analysis highlights the role of ‘selective disclosures’ of information regarding covert operations. This article analyses the Eisenhower Administration’s 1954 intervention in Guatemala (PBSUCCESS). We find that the executive used disclosures–and not secrecy–to pacify hawkish domestic constituencies.

Citation

Trenta, L., Fahey, K. T., & Atkinson, D. B. (2023). Secrecy and the politics of selective disclosures: the US government's intervention in Guatemala. Intelligence and National Security, https://doi.org/10.1080/02684527.2023.2279317

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Oct 31, 2023
• Online Publication Date: Nov 28, 2023
• Publication Date: Nov 28, 2023
• Deposit Date: Nov 29, 2023
• Publicly Available Date: Nov 29, 2023
• Journal: Intelligence and National Security
• Print ISSN: 0268-4527
• Electronic ISSN: 1743-9019
• Publisher: Routledge
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/02684527.2023.2279317
• Keywords: Political Science and International Relations; History
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/27864177
• Publisher URL: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/02684527.2023.2279317
• Additional Information: Peer Review Statement: The publishing and review policy for this title is described in its Aims & Scope.; Aim & Scope: http://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?show=aimsScope&journalCode=fint20; Received: 2023-09-18; Accepted: 2023-10-31; Published: 2023-11-28