John Lennon and the FBI

This episode dives into how the FBI and Nixon administration targeted John Lennon for deportation in the early 1970s, viewing him as a threat to the president's reelection due to his activism with Yoko Ono and his connections to the anti-war movement. The hosts explore how paranoid government officials, fueled by a memo from segregationist Senator Strom Thurmond, launched an extensive surveillance campaign against one of the world's most famous rock stars, complete with bungled surveillance efforts and attempts to manufacture drug charges against him. It's a fascinating look at how authoritarian tactics were deployed against a political activist, ultimately forcing Lennon to abandon his protest work and nearly derailing his career as an artist.