The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation, or FBI, began as a counterintelligence unit in July 1908. Counterintelligence describes activities undertaken to neutralize or exploit the terrorist activities of another country. The FBI was officially established by U.S. Attorney General Charles Bonaparte during the presidency of Theodore Roosevelt. The FBI was originally called the Office of the Chief Examiner. In 1935, the Office of the Chief Examiner was again renamed the Bureau of Investigation, and then the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Say no to plagiarism. Get a custom essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get the original essay The FBI grew out of the Department of Justice, established in 1870. The Department of Justice was primarily created to prevent anti-judicial policies. and enforce federal law. Most of the investigations concerned cases of counterfeiting. When the FBI was established, most cases declined, so a separate agency, such as the FBI, was able to focus on counterintelligence issues such as radicalism. The first agents numbered around 34, but their numbers increased to over 300 during the First World War. In the decades since the creation of the FBI, the general public has expressed numerous concerns about its practices of abuse of power. Public criticism of the FBI has been the subject of extensive reporting. Journalists had suspicions about societal disruptions involving government officials and wars abroad. They found that the FBI was abusing its authority by hiding important information from the public. For example, the effects of the Watergate scandal concluded that the FBI had illegally shielded President Nixon from investigation. In summary, the Watergate scandal was a political incident that occurred in the 1970s, during the administration of Richard Nixon. What happened was a break-in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters in Washington, DC, in the Watergate offices. Several investigations followed, and then journalistic evidence revealed that the FBI had covered up the fact that someone in the Nixon administration had concocted a plan for the break-in. Ultimately, and under heavy fire from the Americans, Nixon chose to resign or face prison time for his involvement in this scandal. Other public criticism of the FBI concerned possible systematic racist practices. During the 1980s and early 1990s, a massive crack epidemic affected black American neighborhoods. Many lives have been lost to addiction and violence with the emergence of crack cocaine in these. Once again, through investigations by specialist journalists, it was discovered that the FBI and CIA were hiding large amounts of their own drug sales industries with Latin countries. The evidence found concluded that the purchased drugs were sold only in marginalized neighborhoods, such as the black community. Due to public leaks about the FBI's actions, many are distrustful of the government and its relationship with ordinary citizens. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a personalized article from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay The FBI was originally created as a branch of government that protected America from invasion, traitors, and societal collapse. However, over the decades, the public saw an increasing amount of illegal activity revolving around the FBI. Thanks to journalistic research, the..