The Agency That Is Big Brother

Deep in a remote, fog-layered hollow near Sugar Grove, West Virginia, hidden by fortress-like mountains, sits the United State’s largest eavesdropping bug. Located in a radio quiet zone, the station’s large parabolic dishes secretly and silently sweep in millions of private telephone calls and e-mail messages an hour. Run by the ultra-secret National Security Agency, the listening post intercepts all international communications entering the eastern United States. Another NSA listening post, in Yakima, Washington, eavesdrops on the western half of the country. Both are part of ECHELON