THIS IS AMERICA - Reform of the FBI

THIS IS AMERICA
–
June 17, 2002: Reform of the FBI

By Jerilyn Watson

VOICE ONE:

The Federal Bureau of Investigation¹ is the main investigating agency of the United States Department of Justice.
The Justice Department recently announced new measures to help the F-B-I fight terrorism. I’m Sarah Long.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Steve Ember. The F-B-I is our report today on the VOA Special English
program, THIS IS AMERICA.
((THEME)
)
VOICE ONE:

For many years, F-B-I agents investigated threats to national security. Now, however, F-B-I Director Robert S.
Mueller (MUHL-er) has told Congress that the Bureau’s main responsibility must be to protect the United
States from terrorist attacks.

The Justice Department recently announced a major reorganization of the F-B-I.
The size of the agency will be increased. F-B-I agents also will have new powers to
investigate inside the United States. Most of the reforms are to improve the F-B-I’
s ability to gather and study intelligence information about terrorists planning
attacks on the United States.

The changes are in reaction to recent criticism of the F-B-I. Many people have
questioned its actions in relation to the terrorist attacks on the United States last
September eleventh.

VOICE TWO:

President Bush says the F-B-I and the Central Intelligence Agency did not share reports of suspicious activities
before the terrorist attacks. Mister Bush says the F-B-I and C -I-A failed to cooperate. However, the president also
says he does not believe the terrorists attacks could have been prevented.

On September eleventh, Islamic extremists in hijacked² American planes struck and destroyed the World Trade
Center in New York City. They also damaged the Defense³ Department headquarters near Washington, D.C.
Another hijacked plane crashed in Pennsylvania. The attacks killed more than three-thousand people.

VOICE ONE:

This summer, the intelligence committees of the House of Representatives and the Senate are studying antiterrorism
activities. The thirty-seven members of this joint⁴ group are studying American intelligence since the
nineteen-eighties. However, the investigation will deal mostly with events linked to the September attacks.

President Bush supports this investigation. However, Mister Bush has expressed concern that the F-B-I and the
C-I-A may waste time blaming each other for intelligence failings. Instead, he says they should work to prevent
future attacks. A plan is being developed for increasing co-operation between the two agencies.

VOICE TWO:

F-B-I Director Mueller says his agency is spending a great deal of time and effort working to prevent future
attacks. For example, he says the F-B-I has identified a number of suspected terrorists. These people have
possible links to the al-Qaida terrorist group. He says agents are spending many hours watching them.


The F-B-I plans to hire nine-hundred more agents. They include people skilled in computer technology, science
and languages. They will join about eleven-thousand-five -hundred other F -B-I agents. A central Office of
Intelligence will be established in the F-B-I Washington headquarters. The F-B-I already has appointed a number
of officials to intelligence positions.

VOICE ONE:

Mister Mueller and Justice Department officials say the new rules will greatly improve F-B-I performance. For
example, commanders at agency offices will now be able to order investigations⁵ that are limited in time. In the
past, they needed permission from F-B-I headquarters to do this. The commanders also can start limited
investigations when no crime has taken place. Evidence gathered during this time could help launch extended
investigations.

In addition, agents will be able to gather information from the Internet computer system and from libraries. They
will be able to collect information about religious and political organizations. And agents will be able to observe
activities in public places, including religious centers.

VOICE TWO:

Some civil rights groups, however, say the new rules interfere⁶ with traditional American rights. They say privacy
and free speech might be threatened. They note that a Senate committee said the Bureau acted wrongly or
illegally a number of times in nineteen-seventy-five. Those cases were connected to civil rights and the Vietnam
War.

Critics of the new rules say the F-B-I might investigate political dissenters⁷ without any evidence of wrongdoing.
Many American Muslims say they fear the possibility of F-B-I agents targeting them unfairly.

((MUSIC BRIDGE))

VOICE ONE:

Robert Mueller became F-B-I director shortly before the terrorist attacks last September. He has said he agrees
with some recent criticisms of agency actions. For example, he says he welcomes the comments of F-B-I agent
and lawyer Coleen Rowley. Mizz Rowley works in the F-B-I office in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She wrote to
Mister Mueller to criticize the investigation of the only person charged in the September eleventh attacks.

Zacarias Moussaoui (zah-cah-RYE-us moo-SOW-ee) has been in jail since August.
A Minnesota flight school had become suspicious of him and called the F-B-I.
Officials arrested him on immigration charges. But Mizz Rowley says bureau
officials blocked efforts to further investigate Mister Moussaoui. Officials now
believe he was training to join the attackers.

VOICE TWO:

Mizz Rowley also answered questions about the case before the Senate Judiciary
Committee. She said some F-B-I supervisors⁸ do not want to make any unusual or
special efforts. Mizz Rowley said such officials may punish agents for trying to do
their jobs well. She said this creates fear at the F-B-I.

Mizz Rowley also said the Bureau suffers from lack of communication and has too many levels of supervisors.
And, she said the F-B-I computer system is old and ineffective.

((MUSIC BRIDGE)

VOICE ONE:

The F-B-I investigates more than two-hundred-fifty kinds of federal crimes in addition to terrorism. These
include kidnapping, hijacking⁹ and organized crime. It provides evidence in legal actions involving the federal
government. The agency searches for fleeing criminals when asked by state and local officials.


About twenty-seven-thousand men and women serve in the F-B-I. They work in
more than fifty offices in the United States and in several offices in other countries.
F-B-I agents investigate many kinds of crimes including bank robberies, spying and
crimes involving computers.

Over the years, the F-B-I has been praised for a number of major investigations. For

example, agents helped catch the men who first attacked the World Trade Center in
nineteen-ninety-three. The F-B-I also found the bomber¹⁰ of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma
City, Oklahoma, in nineteen-ninety-five.

VOICE TWO:

The present F-B-I developed from an agency called the Bureau of Investigation. It started in nineteen-oh -eight
with fewer than thirty-five employees.

A Justice Department lawyer, J. Edgar Hoover, was named director of the Bureau of Investigation in nineteen-
twenty-four. He served as director for almost forty-eight years, until his death in nineteen-seventy-two. At the
time Mister Hoover became its leader, the agency was said to be disorganized and dishonest. He reformed the
Bureau.

The agency was named the Federal Bureau of Investigation in nineteen-thirty-five.

VOICE ONE:

People can learn about the modern F-B-I by visiting its headquarters in Washington,

D.C. But first, they must call the agency to make an appointment. The huge F-B-I
building is on Pennsylvania Avenue, not far from the White House.
Visitors can see equipment used to examine many substances, including blood, hair
and clothing. They can see where scientists examine genetic¹¹ material from crime
victims and suspects. They can learn about the famous F-B-I fingerprint¹² and gun
collections.

Visitors can see stolen goods taken from criminals. They can see pictures of people on the F-B-I list of the Ten
Most Wanted Fugitives¹³. Many criminals have been caught because of the Most Wanted list. Visitors also can
learn how the agency helps foreign law -enforcement agencies throughout the world.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has been severely¹⁴ criticized in recent months. Still, it remains¹⁵ one of
America ’s main defenses against crime and terrorism.

((THEME))

VOICE TWO:

This program was written by Jerilyn Watson. It was produced by Caty Weaver¹⁶. I’m Steve Ember.

VOICE ONE:

And I’m Sarah Long. Join us again next week for another report about life in the United States on the VOA
Special English program, THIS IS AMERICA.

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1 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

2 hijacked   

劫持( hijack的过去式和过去分词 )； 绑架； 拦路抢劫； 操纵（会议等，以推销自己的意图）

参考例句：

• The plane was hijacked by two armed men on a flight from London to Rome. 飞机在从伦敦飞往罗马途中遭到两名持械男子劫持。
• The plane was hijacked soon after it took off. 那架飞机起飞后不久被劫持了。

3 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

4 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

5 investigations   

（正式的）调查( investigation的名词复数 )； 侦查； 科学研究； 学术研究

参考例句：

• His investigations were intensive and thorough but revealed nothing. 他进行了深入彻底的调查，但没有发现什么。
• He often sent them out to make investigations. 他常常派他们出去作调查。

6 interfere   

v.(in)干涉，干预；(with)妨碍，打扰

参考例句：

• If we interfere, it may do more harm than good.如果我们干预的话，可能弊多利少。
• When others interfere in the affair,it always makes troubles. 别人一卷入这一事件，棘手的事情就来了。

7 dissenters   

n.持异议者，持不同意见者( dissenter的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He attacked the indulgence shown to religious dissenters. 他抨击对宗教上持不同政见者表现出的宽容。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• (The dissenters would have allowed even more leeway to the Secretary.) （持异议者还会给行政长官留有更多的余地。） 来自英汉非文学 - 行政法

8 supervisors   

n.监督者，管理者( supervisor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• I think the best technical people make the best supervisors. 我认为最好的技术人员可以成为最好的管理人员。 来自辞典例句
• Even the foremen or first-level supervisors have a staffing responsibility. 甚至领班或第一线的监督人员也有任用的责任。 来自辞典例句

9 hijacking   

n. 劫持, 抢劫 动词hijack的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• I have been told about the hijacking . 我已听说了那次劫机事件。 来自英汉 - 翻译样例 - 口语
• They are taking measures to guarantee against the occurrence of hijacking. 他们正采取措施防止劫机事件的发生。

10 bomber   

n.轰炸机，投弹手，投掷炸弹者

参考例句：

• He flew a bomber during the war.他在战时驾驶轰炸机。
• Detectives hunting the London bombers will be keen to interview him.追查伦敦爆炸案凶犯的侦探们急于对他进行讯问。

11 genetic   

adj.遗传的，遗传学的

参考例句：

• It's very difficult to treat genetic diseases.遗传性疾病治疗起来很困难。
• Each daughter cell can receive a full complement of the genetic information.每个子细胞可以收到遗传信息的一个完全补偿物。

12 fingerprint   

n.指纹；vt.取...的指纹

参考例句：

• The fingerprint expert was asked to testify at the trial.指纹专家应邀出庭作证。
• The court heard evidence from a fingerprint expert.法院听取了指纹专家的证词。

13 fugitives   

n.亡命者，逃命者( fugitive的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Three fugitives from the prison are still at large. 三名逃犯仍然未被抓获。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Members of the provisional government were prisoners or fugitives. 临时政府的成员或被捕或逃亡。 来自演讲部分

14 severely   

adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地

参考例句：

• He was severely criticized and removed from his post.他受到了严厉的批评并且被撤了职。
• He is severely put down for his careless work.他因工作上的粗心大意而受到了严厉的批评。

15 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

16 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。