Deep Throat, the most fabled secret source in American history, was regarded for decades as a conscientious but highly secretive whistleblower who shunned the limelight. But when the FBI’s former no. 2 executive, W. Mark Felt, came forward in 2005 to claim the mantle, questions about his true motivation began to be raised. Max Holland will discuss the Deep Throat puzzle, revealing for the first time in detail why Mark Felt leaked and his inadvertent place in history. In the process, Holland will lay bare the complex and often-problematic relationship that exists between the Washington press corps and federal officials.

Max Holland is the editor of washingtondecoded.com, an online publication, and a contributing editor at The Nation and Wilson Quarterly. A fellow at the Wilson Center in 1991-92, he is the author or co-author of six books, most recently Leak: Why Mark Felt Became Deep Throat and Blind over Cuba: The Photo Gap and the Missile Crisis (with David M. Barrett), both published in 2012.

Reservations requested because of limited seating:

HAPP@wilsoncenter.org or 202-691-4166

Monday December 3: Bettye Collier-Thomas on women’s roles

in ecumenism and interracial organizing