For Whistleblowers, Journalism and Democracy
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.
By Scott Shackford – Reason
A former Air Force intelligence officer has been arrested and charged with espionage for leaking information to the press detailing how the U.S. government uses armed drones for secret assassination missions in foreign countries.
Daniel Everette Hale, 31, of Nashville, was arrested this morning. According to the Justice Department, Hale, during his time in the Air Force as an intelligence analyst, and then later as a private sector employee of a defense contractor, passed along top secret documents to a reporter, some of which were published.
By Nolan Good – Daily Emerald
Former U.S. Air Force drone technician and human rights activist Cian Westmoreland, who made the news in 2015 when he spoke out against the use of military drones in combat, spoke at the University of Oregon this Thursday. The talk was part of a five-city “Whistleblower Tour” through Oregon.
Westmoreland helped to construct a relay system that sent aerial footage to drone operators when he was stationed on a U.S. Air Force base in Kandahar, Afghanistan. He has since called it a “sword of Damocles over the Afghan panopticon,” that hurt innocent people. After leaving the Air Force, Westmoreland became a human rights activist and has spoken publicly about the dark side of modern warfare.
By Cindy Cohn – EFF.org
While the indictment of Julian Assange centers on an alleged attempt to break a password—an attempt that was not apparently successful—it is still, at root, an attack on the publication of leaked material and the most recent act in an almost decade-long effort to punish a whistleblower and the publisher of her leaked material. Several parts of the indictment describe very common journalistic behavior, like using cloud storage or knowingly receiving classified information or redacting identifying information about a source. Other parts make common free software tools like Linux and Jabber seem suspect.
Institute for Public Accuracy
Consortium News notes in “Moreno Withdraws Asylum as Assange is Arrested” that Jen Robinson, a lawyer for Assange tweeted: “Just confirmed: Assange has been arrested not just for breach of bail conditions but also in relation to a U.S. extradition request.”
Edward Snowden tweeted: “Important background for journalists covering the arrest of Julian Assange by Ecuador: the United Nations formally ruled his detention to be arbitrary, a violation of human rights. They have repeatedly issued statements calling for him to walk free — including very recently.”
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
RSF launches International Appeal for support for The Intercept Brasil’s staff
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.