Tom Secker and Matthew Alford spent years digging into a secret that was hiding in plain sight. Or rather, hiding in movie theaters, television sets, and streaming services everywhere: The secret influence the Department of Defense and intelligence community had on Hollywood. In this Requester’s Voice, Secker shares what he learned.

The popular imagination has conjured a Central Intelligence Agency of stealth and shadows, but sometimes the Agency’s spookiest moves are the ones that really happened.