For Whistleblowers, Journalism and Democracy
By Sam Husseini – FAIR
Two-time Oscar nominee Keira Knightley is known for being in period pieces such as Pride and Prejudice, so her playing the lead in the new film Official Secrets, released in the US on Friday, August 30, may seem odd at first. That is, until one considers that the time span depicted—the early 2003 run-up to the invasion of Iraq—is one of the most dramatic and consequential periods of modern human history.
By KirkusReviews.com
Jeffrey Sterling Unwanted Spy bookSterling, a lawyer who spent eight years in the CIA, relates his life story and the details of what he maintains was a phony conviction for espionage. “During the trial,” he writes, “the government did not present a shred of hard evidence to validate the charges against me.
By Jake Johnson, staff writer – Common Dreams
Greenwald, co-founder of The Intercept, applauded the court for protecting journalism against “repressive, retaliatory acts threatened by the Bolsonaro government”
By Reporters Without Borders
In a message published today (31 July) and co-signed by leading international and Brazilian free speech organizations, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) appeals for support for the staff of The Intercept Brasil, a Rio de Janeiro-based investigative news website that has been the target of a fierce campaign of harassment and intimidation since 9 June.
By Tony Messenger : St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Jeffrey Sterling was a man without a country.
It was May 2016 and the former CIA spy was watching television in the Federal Correctional Institution in Englewood, Colorado. He was in the black TV room.
In prison, Sterling says, everything was segregated. There was a black TV room, a white TV room, a Hispanic TV room.
By Rights & Dissent
One hundred and seventy three individuals and 50 organizations have joined Defending Rights Dissent, Roots Action, and the Whistleblower Source Protection Program (WHISPeR) at Expose Facts in condemning the Espionage Act charges against drone whistleblower Daniel Hale. Included among the signatories are other whistleblowers who have been victims of Espionage Act abuse, including Daniel Ellsberg, Thomas Drake, John Kiriakiou, and Jeffrey Sterling.
By Camille Fassett — Freedom of the Press Foundation
Australian authorities raided the home and electronic devices of journalist Annika Smethurst on Tuesday [June 4], and the headquarters of ABC News in Sydney on Wednesday [June 5]. These incidents are the latest in a string of instances — in no way limited to Australia — of government targeting of journalists for their reporting.
By SHARMINI PERIES — The Real News Network
On the occasion of the 48th anniversary of the Pentagon Papers, Daniel Ellsberg describes the tension waiting for the publishing of the story: “The Times was on lock down with armed guards… they were fearing an injunction”
By Camille Fassett – Freedom of the Press Foundation (5/24/19)
Yesterday, Trump’s Justice Department used an indictment against WikiLeaks publisher Julian Assange for publishing secret government documents under the Espionage Act of 1917.
The Espionage Act, originally intended for use against spies, has been wielded against as sources of journalists and whistleblowers in recent decades, but never a publisher or a journalist. These new charges against him are unprecedented and threaten to criminalize national security reporting in the United States.
Launched by the Institute for Public Accuracy in June 2014, ExposeFacts.org represents a new approach for encouraging whistleblowers to disclose information that citizens need in order to make truly informed decisions in a democracy. From the outset, our message is clear: “Whistleblowers Welcome at ExposeFacts.org.”
ExposeFacts aims to shed light on concealed activities that are relevant to human rights, corporate malfeasance, the environment, civil liberties and war. At a time when key provisions of the First, Fourth and Fifth Amendments are under assault, we are standing up for a free press, privacy, transparency and due process as we seek to reveal official information—whether governmental or corporate—that the public has a right to know. More information
ACLU Comment on Edward Snowden Lawsuit
NEW YORK — The Department of Justice today filed a lawsuit against Edward Snowden over his new book entitled Permanent Record. The lawsuit alleges that Snowden published his book without submitting it to the agencies for pre-publication review, a process that prohibits millions of former intelligence-agency employees and military personnel from writing or speaking about topics related to their government service without first obtaining government approval.