Double Agent

In Imaginary Witness: Hollywood and the Holocaust, Gene Hackman pointed out that movies such as Confessions of a Nazi Spy were based off of a Nazi spy ring in New York City. This group was the Duquesne Spy Ring. This ring of 33 Nazi spies were all arrested and convicted due to the work of William Sebold. Nazi Secret Service officers “persuaded” Sebold to spy on America and instructed him to meet with spies to pass along instructions from Germany as well as receive messages and transmit them back to Germany. However, before completing his German Secret Service training, Sebold visited the American consulate in Cologne and expressed his interest in cooperating with the FBI. The FBI then built a shortwave radio transmitting station and pretending to be Sebold, sent coded messages to German superiors. In addition, the FBI set up an office for Sebold. This office had hidden microphones and a two-way mirror, through which FBI agents watched and filmed Sebold’s meetings. Nazi agents who met with Sebold passed on information pertaining to bomb designs as well as sensitive defense and wartime information. After the FBI collected enough evidence, the 33 Nazi spies were arrested. This step ahead provided the U.S. with confidence entering the war that there were no significant espionage networks hidden and operating on U.S. soil.

Sebold’s courage and desire to help the U.S. made me wonder if I would have been able to withstand the pressure of being a double agent. Would I risk my life? In my opinion, choosing to be a double agent depends on the individual’s evaluation of the risk versus the reward. The acting skills and quick thinking required coupled with tense moments would be extremely stressful and nerve-racking. Any small slip-up could tip the enemy and lead to death. However, it’s hard to say how one would act in certain challenging situations until the moment actually arises. Sebold’s story did not seem to be highly publicized outside of Hollywood productions; however, these productions highlight Hollywood’s ability to capitalize on relatively small, feel-good stories.

Sources:http://www.fbi.gov/libref/historic/famcases/spyring/spyring.htm