Group website|The reason Lovick could suddenly divulge information that had been kept secret for nearly 50 years was because the CIA had just declassified it|Jeff Glor talks to Annie Jacobsen about “Area 51.” Jeff Glor: What inspired you to write the book? Annie Jacobsen: In 2007 I was at a Christmas Eve dinner when an 88-year old scientist named Edward Lovick leaned over and said to me, “Have I got a good story for you.” Lovick, it turned out, had been the lead physicist who developed stealth technology for the CIA, dating back to when Eisenhower was president|The past tells us so much about the present|So, the place was real after all|As an investigative journalist, I wanted to know more|My physical trips to the Library of Congress and the National Archives netted 1/1000th of the information I was able to virtually unearth by searching online archives–month after month after month| JG: What’s next for you? AJ: Another book! The column I write most frequently for The Los Angeles Times Magazine is called “Backstory”–meaning the story behind the story}

Jeff Glor talks to Annie Jacobsen about “Area 51.”

Jeff Glor: What inspired you to write the book?

Annie Jacobsen: In 2007 I was at a Christmas Eve dinner when an 88-year old scientist named Edward Lovick leaned over and said to me, “Have I got a good story for you.” Lovick, it turned out, had been the lead physicist who developed stealth technology for the CIA, dating back to when Eisenhower was president. The reason Lovick could suddenly divulge information that had been kept secret for nearly 50 years was because the CIA had just declassified it. When I learned much of Lovick’s secret work took place at the mysterious location Area 51, I smiled. So, the place was real after all. As an investigative journalist, I wanted to know more.

JG: What surprised you the most during the writing process?

AJ: How many declassified government documents can now be found in online archives. My physical trips to the Library of Congress and the National Archives netted 1/1000th of the information I was able to virtually unearth by searching online archives–month after month after month.

JG: What would you be doing if you weren’t a writer?

AJ: I would be an archeologist. The past tells us so much about the present. Society advances but human desires seem to always remain the same.

JG: What else are you reading right now?

AJ: “In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror and an American Family in Hitler’s Berlin.” Erik Larson writes a gripping narrative that is based entirely on archival material. I find this amazing and inspiring.

JG: What’s next for you?

AJ: 마닐라 하얏트 호텔 Another book! The column I write most frequently for The Los Angeles Times Magazine is called “Backstory”–meaning the story behind the story. One of the characters in “Area 51” has a unique backstory that could fill the pages of a small library.

For more on “Area 51,” visit the Hachette Book