Introduction to Intelligence Studies234
Members of the Executive Branch and Congress as well as military com-
manders oen request NIEs from the IC.
In NIEs, analysts assess the issue at hand and forecast how the issue
might further develop in the future. Oentimes, analysts include alternative
analysis to document the dissenting opinions of those writing the product;
because so many people across so many agencies are involved in the writing
of an NIE, analysts oen fail to unanimously agree on their nal judgments.
A 2002 NIE about the nuclear capabilities of Iraq contained a footnote
describing the Department of State Bureau of Intelligence and Research’s
disagreement with the consensus opinion of the report; although the major-
ity of int