Amaryllis Fox Kennedy

In 1999, at age 18, Fox Kennedy clandestinely recorded an interview for the BBC with the Burmese leader Aung Sang Suu Kyi, then under house arrest. To arrange the meeting, Fox Kennedy worked with a local dissident journalist with whom she communicated via taped messages inside the water tank of a toilet at a café in Rangoon.[9] Her intent in the trip had been to make a secret recording of planned pro-democracy protests on September 9.[11] A book, called "In the Quiet Land" was set to be published in 2002, with film rights optioned to Golden Square Pictures and screenplay by Nick Thomas.[11]

Fox Kennedy became one of the youngest female officers in the CIA at the age of 22, assigned to "non-official cover," entailing living abroad with a fake identity and no diplomatic protections.[12] During her time at the CIA, she married fellow officer Dean Fox, who she had her first child with. Before their divorce, she lived undercover with him in Shanghai.[4][10] Fox states her work focused on preventing terror organizations from acquiring weapons of mass destruction, assuming the cover of an art dealer.[3] After eight years at the agency, Fox left the CIA in 2010.[3]

Fox's memoir, entitled Life Undercover: Coming of Age in the CIA described her experiences as an officer. Prior to the book's release, numerous journalists and former CIA officers pointed out that her memoir's manuscript had been submitted to publisher Knopf Doubleday without first receiving approval from the CIA's Publication Review Board, a potential violation of nondisclosure agreements signed by CIA staff.[4] Fox was represented in that process by attorney Mark Zaid.[13] Some former CIA case officers have expressed skepticism about elements of Fox's accounts of events or raised questions regarding the circumvention of the CIA's lengthy approval process.[4] Fox responded by stating that she had taken care not to reveal potentially sensitive details, and that some characters were composites.[4]

Fox is the host of the Netflix documentary series The Business of Drugs, for which she traveled to several countries while in the third trimester of pregnancy.[3] The show investigates the supply chains, social effects, and legal issues specific to six types of drugs: cocaine, synthetics, heroin, meth, opioids, and cannabis.[14] She speaks at events around the world on dialogue and peacekeeping.[9] Apple is reportedly developing a TV series based on Fox's memoir that will star American actress Brie Larson, with Fox serving as an executive producer on the series.[10]

In April of 2023, Kennedy joined Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s 2024 presidential campaign, and served as the co-campaign manager, along with Dennis Kucinich, for her father-in-law.[15] On October 13, 2023, upon the resignation of Dennis Kucinich, Kennedy became the sole manager of the campaign.[16]