Leadership Lessons and Highlights
How would you explain the importance of intelligence to someone without a background in the field? When I was a reporter, I learned quickly that facts on their own are not enough. You have to provide context, you have to verify, and you have to connect the dots for people. Intelligence is very similar, but the stakes are far higher. Intelligence is like navigation: If you are driving through a storm, you need headlights, wipers, and a map to know where you are going and what dangers lie ahead. It’s not about telling people what they want to hear, it’s about giving them information they need to hear so they can make informed choices in complex and often dangerous situations. At the end of the day, intelligence gives leaders the tools; whether they use these tools is up to them. But without them they are flying blind. Where do you see the future of OSINT and AI? Is there potential for a revolution in intelligence? Absolutely. Open Source has already transformed intelligence. With so much information now available in the open, the challenge is not in the collection, it’s discerning truth from noise. That’s where AI comes in. AI can, and already is, helping process vast amounts at incredible speed. But speed without judgement is dangerous. The revolution will come when we pair AI’s processing power with human expertise and shared standards for credibility. Done right, OSINT and AI won’t just complement classified sources, they will fundamentally change how intelligence is done, ensuring decision-makers have the clearest, most trustworthy picture possible.
Are we in danger of politicizing the IC? If so, how do we turn that clock back? In my experience, the biggest risk is not the analyst or the collector politicizing intelligence – it is those who receive the intelligence who are doing it. In the Intelligence Community, the workforce is almost hard-wired to guard against bias and to present the intelligence as they see it, even when it is unwelcome. The real risk, and where politicization comes to play, is when customers take that analysis and cherry-pick or twist it to fit a political agenda. That corrodes trust in the IC and with the public… and trust is our most important currency. What trends in intelligence do you anticipate over the next decade? Over the next decade, I see three big trends. First the explosion of data, volume and velocity will only grow, which means discernment and credibility will matter more than collections. AI and machine learning will be central to this trend. Second, integration… the IC will have to lean more on partnerships with allies, the private sector and academia. No one can do this alone. The challenge for the IC won’t be keeping up with technology but getting it and using it responsibly and faster than our adversaries. Finally, information integrity. Adversaries will keep weaponizing information, so protecting truth will become a core national security mission.
The Next Revolution with Ellen McCarthy
By Steve Leonard
S easoned is a word that often comes to mind when you hear Ellen McCarthy’s name mentioned. With a career that spans over three decades in the national security and intelligence communities, she’s typically been there, done that, and has the proverbial T-shirt. She began her journey as an all-source intelligence analyst at the Office of Naval Intelligence and continues on that path as one of the leading voices on AI and OSINT. Her travels through government service took her from the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence – where she shaped policy on intelligence reform – to the U.S. Coast Guard – where she played a pivotal role integrating the service’s efforts with the broader intelligence community. From the National Geospatial- Intelligence Agency – where she served as the Chief Operating Officer and led the agency’s transformation efforts – to the State Department – where she served as the Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of Intelligence and Research. In the private sector, she served as the president of Noblis NSP, where she led cybersecurity and data-based solutions tailored to support the needs of the IC, and is the Chairwoman and CEO of the Trust in Media Cooperative, working to restore public confidence in the information ecosystem.
Her work on AI and OSINT is arguably the most relevant at this point in history, but also she possesses a unique and invaluable perspective on intelligence, information, and social media. Even as AI presents incredible opportunities, social media threatens to rip at the cultural divides in our society… and our adversaries are watching. Where does all of this lead? What does the future hold? These and a few other questions awaited Ellen when we sat down to chat: the good, the bad, and the ugly. What inspired your interest in intelligence? Sean Connery! He was starring in a movie adapted from an amazing book, The Hunt for Red October , by Tom Clancy. I was completing my graduate degree in public policy and working on a project at the Institute for Defense Analysis with the Office of Naval Intelligence. When the project was complete, the Navy offered me a job as a Soviet submarine analyst. I took the position thinking it would get me two steps closer to my real dream, a golden retriever, a sailboat and a house on Chesapeake Bay. From the very first day on the job, I was hooked.
12 SEPTEMBER 2025 | NATSEC@WORK Powererd by ClearanceJobs
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NATSEC@WORK Powererd by ClearanceJobs | SEPTEMBER 2025
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