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Secrecy and Security News

Newer News: October 2012

September 2012

• Readers Have a Stake in Obama's Free-Speech Disconnect by Margaret Sullivan, New York Times, September 27. "With all the praise Mr. Obama received for his protection of free speech on one of the world's largest stages, it's worth acknowledging that he has also authorized the federal government to engage in an unprecedented crackdown on journalists and whistle-blowers here in the United States."
• DoD Security Guidance Concerning the Book "No Easy Day", from DoD Director of Security, September 20. "DoD personnel are not required to store No Easy Day in containers or areas approved for the storage of classified information, unless classified statements in the book have been identified."
• Drone Strikes Memo Debates Legality of Targeted Killing by Andrea Stone, Huffington Post, September 14. "A newly surfaced Congressional Research Service analysis of the government's targeted killing of suspected terrorists, including U.S. citizens, suggests the Obama administration's view of due process in these situations is similar to that of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas."
• U.S. spies press for renewal of broad electronic surveillance law by Mark Hosenball, Reuters, September 11. "U.S. intelligence officials made a public plea on Tuesday, the 11th anniversary of the September 11, 2001, attacks, for quick congressional action to extend a sweeping but controversial U.S. electronic surveillance law."
• DoD Says It Does Not Conduct Surveillance of Journalists, letter from DoD spokesman George Little to Pentagon Press Association, September 6. "The review of media reports is part of an effort to improve the Department's tracking of unauthorized disclosures so that operational risk can be effectively mitigated and to ensure the referral of any possible violations of law to law enforcement agencies in a timely manner."
• Pentagon Spokesman on Publication of SEAL Book on Bin Laden Killing, news briefing, September 4. "We continue to review our options when it comes to legal accountability for what in our estimation is a material breach of nondisclosure agreements that were signed by the author of this book."
• Nowhere to Hide: Secret Spy Sat Agency Plans Unblinking Array by David Axe, Wired Danger Room, September 4. "The National Reconnaissance Office, America's secretive spy satellite agency, wants to expand the current flashlight-like satellite deployment to a horizon-spanning, overhead spotlight that can illuminate vast swaths of the planet all at once."
• Rare victories in recent FOIA cases raise questions about judicial deference by You-Jin Han, The News Media and the Law, Summer 2012. "Many FOIA experts say that recent wins this year in these areas are the product of an unusual, yet more ideal, level of judicial review. Some say these cases are aberrations, rather than a new trend of decreased deference. However, others say these unusual rulings raise questions about whether judges are becoming more skeptical of agencies' claims in these cases."

Older News: August 2012

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Maintained by Steven Aftergood
Updated October 3, 2012