Ex-Officer Wants @CIA to Stop With the Jokes

Former Central Intelligence Agency officer and current national security analyst Bob Baer isn't keeping his distaste for the CIA's social media strategy confidential.

"I'm sort of old school, and I think intelligence agencies should stay out of the news as much as they can," he told CNN today. "Intelligence agents aren't very funny generally. You know, the British don't make their intelligence agents try to be funny, so why should the CIA?... This is all supposed to be secret, and you know, humor isn't its strong suit."

The CIA began joined Twitter on June 6, posting the following:

We can neither confirm nor deny that this is our first tweet.

— CIA (@CIA) June 6, 2014

...which (almost) everyone on Twitter loved:

Fire everyone. pic.twitter.com/Bh4qoR3KPO

— Choire (@Choire) June 6, 2014

Until, that is, the agency stopped tweeting like an intelligence agency for its #twitterversary: 

Sorry for not following you back @TheEllenShow. But if you visit us maybe we can take a selfie? #twitterversary

— CIA (@CIA) July 7, 2014

No, we don’t know your password, so we can’t send it to you. #sorrynotsorry #twitterversary

— CIA (@CIA) July 7, 2014

No, we don’t know where Tupac is. #twitterversary

— CIA (@CIA) July 7, 2014

The CIA hasn't responded on Twitter to Baer's (other other's) comments as of Tuesday afternoon. We'll just take it as the agency neither confirming nor denying the claim.

(Image via Gil C/Shutterstock.com)