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Wind of Change (podcast)

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Wind of Change is a podcast documentary that debuted on May 11, 2020. It was hosted by Patrick Radden Keefe and co-produced by Pineapple Street Media, Crooked Media, and Spotify.

Background

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The podcast is hosted by Patrick Radden Keefe and co-produced by Pineapple Street Media, Crooked Media, and Spotify.[1] The show is composed of 8 episodes.[2] The series is over 6 hours long.[3] The research for his recent book Say Nothing had been gruelling, and Radden Keefe was looking for a change, so he turned to a rumor he had heard a decade earlier from a friend in the intelligence community.[4] The podcast focuses on the rumor that the Scorpions song "Wind of Change" was written by the CIA.[5]

The podcast discusses similar instances of the CIA using music such as the jazz ambassadors tour where Louis Armstrong visited the Congo.[6] Similarly, the CIA front organization called the American Society of African Culture sent Nina Simone on tour in Nigeria in 1961.[7]

The show followed Radden Keefe as he travels to Washington DC, Kiev, St Petersburg, Ohio, Moscow, Florida, and Hanover to interview various people including Klaus Meine.[8] Klaus Meine denies that the CIA was involved in the creation of the song.[9] Radden Keefe also interviews Doc McGhee, who was a band manager involved in drug smuggling.[10] The series discusses how music was often distributed via samizdat cassettes in the USSR.[11]

Radden Keefe hinted at the possibility of a season 2.[12]

Reception

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The show reached the top 10 podcasts in the United States and Australia when it debuted on May 11, 2020.[13] Nicholas Quah wrote in Vulture that the show was a "really enjoyable listen" if a little "meandering at times".[14] Eoghan O’Sullivan criticized the show in the Irish Examiner, calling it a "bloated damp squib".[15]

Awards

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Award Date Category Result Ref.
Webby Awards 2021 Podcasts: Documentary (Limited-Series & Specials) Won [16]
Webby Awards 2021 Podcasts: Best Limited Series 2021 Won [16]
Ambies 2021 Best Podcast Host Won [17]
Ambies 2021 Best Reporting Won [17]
Ambies 2021 Best Scriptwriting, Nonfiction Won [17]
Ambies 2021 Best Production and Sound Design Nominated [17]
iHeartRadio Podcast Awards 2021 2020 iHeartRadio Podcast Awards Winners Nominated [18]
Discover Pods Awards 2020 Society & Culture Podcast Nominated [19]

Adaptations

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The series was optioned by Hulu for a television series.[20]

References

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  1. ↑ Marks, Andrea (July 14, 2020). "Could the CIA Have Planted Hair-Metal Propaganda During the Cold War?". Rolling Stone. Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  2. ↑ Moss, Hilary (May 8, 2020). "Was a '90s Scorpions Song the Work of the C.I.A.? This Podcast Is on It". The New York Times. Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  3. ↑ Wojcik, Nadine (May 25, 2020). "'Wind of Change': The Scorpions and the CIA – DW – 05/25/2020". Deutsche Welle. Archived from the original on November 7, 2024. Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  4. ↑ Chick, Stevie (May 15, 2020). "Wind of change: did the CIA write the cold war's biggest anthem?". The Guardian. Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  5. ↑ D., J. (May 28, 2020). "The curious tale of a West German band, a power ballad and the CIA". The Economist. Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  6. ↑ Wheeler, Brad (June 10, 2020). "The Podcast Files: Did the CIA write the rock tune that ended the Cold War?". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  7. ↑ Jeet, Heer (May 29, 2020). "How the CIA Learned to Rock". The Nation. Archived from the original on July 15, 2025. Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  8. ↑ Sturges, Fiona (May 17, 2020). "Wind of Change podcast asks: did the CIA write a power ballad as propaganda?". Financial Times. Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  9. ↑ Chinchón, Jaime Lorite (May 24, 2020). "¿Compuso la CIA 'Wind of change' de Scorpions, la balada más famosa del 'heavy'?". El País (in Spanish). Archived from the original on April 17, 2023. Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  10. ↑ Winwood, Ian (May 20, 2020). "Can a power ballad change the world? The astonishing true story behind The Scorpions' Wind of Change". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  11. ↑ Keating, Joshua (May 18, 2020). "Was This Hit Power Ballad Written by the CIA?". Slate. Archived from the original on December 9, 2020. Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  12. ↑ Collis, Clark (May 15, 2020). "Did the CIA write the Scorpions' hit 'Wind of Change'? A new podcast investigates". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  13. ↑ Moran, Robert (May 29, 2020). "Wind of Change: Why a podcast about a '90s power ballad is 'ripe for right now'". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  14. ↑ Quah, Nicholas (May 11, 2020). "Hair Metal, the CIA, and a Cold War Plot: Wind of Change Is a Thrilling Ride". Vulture. Archived from the original on October 16, 2025. Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  15. ↑ O'Sullivan, Eoghan (May 25, 2020). "Podcast Corner: Scorpions, the CIA and Wind of Change". Irish Examiner. Archived from the original on March 28, 2023. Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  16. 1 2 "2 Wins: Wind of Change". Webby Awards. 2021. Retrieved April 26, 2026.
  17. 1 2 3 4 "2021 WINNERS & NOMINEES". Ambies. 2021. Retrieved May 1, 2026.
  18. ↑ "2021 iHeartRadio Podcast Awards: Full List of Winners". iHeart. Retrieved May 1, 2026.
  19. ↑ Goldberg, Kevin (November 9, 2020). "Announcing the winners of the 2020 Discover Pods Awards". Discover Pods Awards. Retrieved May 1, 2026.
  20. ↑ White, Peter (December 16, 2020). "Hulu Lands TV Adaptation Of Rock 'N' Roll Spy Podcast 'Wind Of Change'". Deadline. Retrieved May 1, 2026.
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