Writers & Media1942–1961
Ernest Hemingway
The FBI monitored Hemingway for years, contributing to the paranoia that plagued his final years.
InvestigatedRead the guide
Category
FBI Files on Writers, Media Figures & Thinkers
Read plain-English guides to public records involving writers, journalists, scientists, media personalities, and influential thinkers. These files often reflect political anxieties, background checks, intelligence concerns, or public controversy.
5 files
Writers & Media1991
Steve Jobs
Jobs' FBI file is a background check from when he was considered for a presidential appointment.
Background checkRead the guide
Writers & Media1958–1974
James Baldwin
Baldwin's file runs to roughly 1,800 pages — one of the largest the Bureau ever kept on an American writer.
InvestigatedRead the guide
Writers & Media1940s–1960s
John Steinbeck
Steinbeck asked the Attorney General to tell "Edgar's boys" to stop following him — and the letter is in his file.
Unclear or mixedRead the guide
Writers & Media1960s–1980s
Truman Capote
Capote's file is mostly about *In Cold Blood* — how he portrayed the Bureau, and how the Bureau reacted.
CorrespondenceRead the guide
How to read these files
FBI files and public records may include verified facts, allegations, third-party claims, redactions, press clippings, public complaints, surveillance notes, or correspondence. A file does not always mean the person was investigated or accused of wrongdoing.
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