THE ORIGIN STORY OF MODERN U.S.-LED REGIME CHANGE
Operation Ajax was the first modern playbook for covert regime change – still being used today.
Operation Ajax brings to life the real events behind the CIA’s first covert operation: the 1953 coup in Iran.
First launched as an award-winning iPad app, Operation Ajax combined moving comics, archival newsreels, and declassified documents to examine a pivotal moment in U.S. foreign policy.
Now reimagined as a free-to-read web experience, the project is being rebuilt to reach a global audience.
The complete story is currently available to read online with portions of the second half presented without sound and final animation.
With your support, we can complete the full web experience as originally envisioned.
The original award winning iPad App
our ipad app received critical acclaim
4.9/5 RATING
140,000+
downloads
"Operation Ajax offers a riveting narrative... It's an excellent introduction to this pivotal moment in modern history, and an important contribution to a fraught historical record."
"One of the coolest media experiences I've seen on the iPad."
"Sets a new benchmark for the medium."
"Creates a film-like setting… to enhance the experience without interfering with the reading."
From Award-Winning App to Accessible Web Story
2015 Operation Ajax published in print by Random House, classroom use and educational pilots begin
2021 Relaunch initiative begins, aiming for 1M readers online
This revival is not just a port — it’s a reinvestment in the power of independent journalism, digital storytelling, and education.
WHY OPERATION AJAX MATTERS RIGHT NOW
Operation Ajax reveals the origins of modern U.S.-led regime change. First executed in Iran in 1953 and now resurfacing in Venezuela – strategic interests, energy resources, and political intervention once again intersect.
The fallout from the 1953 coup shaped decades of regional instability and global conflict. As similar strategies reemerge today, Operation Ajax offers a critical lens: to understand the consequences now, we have to see how they played out then.
This isn’t just history. It’s essential context for U.S. foreign policy choices being made today.
Our Mission
Finish and release the complete online version with full animation and sound.
Establish educational partnerships and curriculum materials for classroom use.
Create more stories in the same format: free, online, media-rich educational content.