During his fortyeight years as director of the Federal Bureau ofInvestigation J. Edgar Hoover scrupulously maintained secret office files andarranged for specia... » 

During his fortyeight years as director of the Federal Bureau ofInvestigation J. Edgar Hoover scrupulously maintained secret office files andarranged for special filing procedures to safeguard sensitive information.None of the documents in five separate files was intended ever to be disclosed.Athan Theoharis one of the FBIs most diligent critics secured thesematerials after intensive research in FBI files using the Freedom ofInformation Act. Published here with supporting documents and Mr. Theoharissauthoritative comments they reveal the shocking extent of FBI activities incollecting and using defamatory information about prominent Americans andpolitical groups. «