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Secrecy and Security News

Newer News: January 2002

December 2001

• Bush OKs Intelligence, Defense Bills by Scott Lindlaw, Associated Press, December 28. "President Bush signed a bill Friday to raise intelligence spending but warned Congress he won't turn over documents that he thinks could compromise national security."
• U.S. Prods Afghan Allies to Resume Tora Bora Hunt by Jim Wolf, Reuters, December 26. "The Defense Department canceled its regularly scheduled briefing Wednesday on the campaign in Afghanistan and other topics because 'there's no news'...."
• Operation Public Lockout by Bradley Peniston, Washington Post, December 21. "Since the Sept. 11 attacks, senior military officials have worked to prevent Pentagon employees from talking to the press and the public."
• Bush Gives Health Secretary Authority to Keep Information Secret by Alison Mitchell, New York Times, December 20. "President Bush has granted the secretary of health and human services the power to classify information as secret, a step that shows how the battle against terrorism is drawing domestic agencies into the national security apparatus."
• Previously Withheld Reagan Presidential Materials to be Released, NARA press release, December 20. Approximately 8,000 pages of materials from the records of Ronald Reagan's Presidency are to be opened to researchers on January 3.
• Steven Garfinkel, Director of Information Security Oversight Office, Retires, NARA press release, December 19. "Garfinkel was the leader in drafting the current legal foundations for the security classification and industrial security systems."
• Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board Instructed to Slap Lid on DOE Documents as noted by Tom Clements, Nuclear Control Institute, December 16. "The action was taken in response to a citizen request to view DOE documents held by the DNFSB in Washington, D.C., and which in the past were accessible."
• Interagency Task Force to Review Ways to Combat Leaks of Classified Information, Justice Department release, December 14. "Attorney General John Ashcroft announced an interagency Task Force to review current administrative and legal sanctions governing leaks of classified information."
• Alteration Of Tapes Can Be Detected, Experts Say by Lou Dolinar, Newsday, December 14. "If the credibility of the latest Osama bin Laden tape is attacked, experts say, advanced digital-imaging forensics could be used to authenticate the sound and graphics."
• Bush Asserts Executive Privilege, excerpts from White House press briefing, December 13. "The reason President Bush asserted executive privilege was to protect the effectiveness and the deliberativeness of the justice process."
• Justice Department releases report on Lee investigation by Robert Gehrke, Associated Press, December 12. "The Justice Department released on Wednesday a massive review of the FBI's bungled espionage investigation of former nuclear scientist Wen Ho Lee."
• House OKs 8 Percent Rise in Spy Spending by Carolyn Skorneck, Associated Press, December 12. "The House unanimously passed an intelligence bill Wednesday that will boost spending by 8 percent and emphasize rebuilding traditional human spy networks."
• Is CIA Using Journalistic Cover In Afghanistan? by Todd Shields, Editor and Publisher, December 7. "The Central Intelligence Agency says its policy is not to use journalistic cover for its operations abroad, but it also says tough cases might force it to do so. Afghanistan may offer one current example."
• Conferees Agree on Intelligence Spending by Carolyn Skorneck, Associated Press, December 5. "Lawmakers from the Senate and House agreed Wednesday to increase intelligence spending by 8 percent."
• U.S. Intelligence Community Reaches Crossroads by John Stanton, National Defense, December 2001. "What needs to be asked and answered is at what point should U.S. intelligence have been able to detect the planning for the September 11 attack?"
• CIA Defends Decision to Identify Officer Killed in Afghanistan by Anne Plummer, InsideDefense.com, December 4. "The CIA yesterday lashed out against 'several self-described' experts who criticized its decision to identify the agency officer killed last week in Afghanistan as a public relations stunt."
• U.S. Pro-Taliban Fighter's Fate Unclear - Rumsfeld by Tabassum Zakaria, Reuters, December 4. "The fate of an American pro-Taliban prisoner involved in a revolt at a fortress in northern Afghanistan has not yet been determined."
• Security concerns drive rise in secrecy by Brad Knickerbocker, Christian Science Monitor, December 3. "Clampdown covers websites, libraries, even press releases."
• Freedom Is History (and Vice Versa) by Eric Alterman, The Nation, December 10. "While some new security measures are obviously necessary, the Bush people's zeal to shut down the free flow of information goes well beyond any legitimate need."
• Ridge's Troubled Waters: The Labyrinth of Homeland Security by Jason Vest, The American Prospect, December 3. "It's vital that these policies be formulated and implemented above board, with full transparency and congressional oversight."
• Anthrax Mail Emergency Delays FOIA Correspondence, Justice Department notice, November 30. "At the Office of Information and Privacy, for example, mail delivery has been delayed by more than six weeks."

Older News: November 2001

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