The Open Source Center (OSC) of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence consistently generates a wealth of informative analytic and bibliographic products. But for reasons that are hard to understand, such materials are generally withheld from public disclosure even when they are unclassified and not subject to copyright. The following OSC publications (both […]
The Open Source Center (OSC) of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence recently ranked the individuals whom it considers to be the ten most influential political commentators in the British press and profiled them in an OSC publication (pdf). These commentators — from the BBC, Sky News, the Guardian, and elsewhere — are […]
The shifting legal framework governing the interrogation of detainees held by the U.S. Government was examined in several newly updated reports from the Congressional Research Service that have not previously been made readily available to the public (all pdf). “Interrogation of Detainees: Requirements of the Detainee Treatment Act,” updated January 23, 2009. “U.N. Convention Against […]
“Despite President Obama’s vow to open government more than ever, the Justice Department is defending Bush administration decisions to keep secret many documents about domestic wiretapping, data collection on travelers and U.S. citizens, and interrogation of suspected terrorists,” Michael J. Sniffen reported for the Associated Press. See “Despite Obama Pledge, Justice Defends Bush Secrets,” February […]
In a recent news story about the public availability of Congressional Research Service reports (“Thousands of Congressional Reports Now Available Online” by Brian Krebs, Washingtonpost.com, February 11), I was accurately quoted saying: “While 90 percent of the [CRS] reports are probably mediocre, at their best they are very good.” I wish I had not said […]
“There is no known instance in which classified information was leaked or compromised by Government Accountability Office (GAO) employees,” I wrote on February 9 (“Senate Bill Revisits GAO Oversight of Intelligence”). But that may not be true, according to one former GAO analyst. “Sadly, your assertion of GAO’s record of no loss or compromise of […]
U.S. Marine Corps personnel who are responsible for protecting classified information should consult a variety of sources including Secrecy News in order to maintain their professional awareness, a new Marine Corps newsletter advised (pdf). To begin with, “you should read every security-related regulation/article you can get your hands on,” including the executive order on classification, […]
A management crisis in the State Department Office of the Historian threatens the future of the official “Foreign Relations of the United States” (FRUS) series that documents the history of U.S. foreign policy, according to a newly disclosed report on the situation. “We find that the current working atmosphere in the HO [Historian’s Office] and […]
A recent DNI Open Source Center publication presents a guide to the Iraqi provincial elections that took place on January 31. The report was prepared prior to the elections and does not reflect their important results, but it does provide an informative overview of the electoral process, the Iraqi provincial council structure, and the thirty-six […]
Noteworthy new reports from the Congressional Research Service that have not been made readily available to the public — despite the widely–noted publication and republication of other CRS reports by wikileaks.org this week — include the following (all pdf). “Iran’s Economic Conditions: U.S. Policy Issues,” updated January 15, 2009. “U.S. Foreign Aid to the Palestinians,” […]
David W. Ogden, who has been nominated to be the next Deputy Attorney General, last week expressed strong support for government whistleblowers who help to expose corruption or malfeasance. “I am a big believer in whistleblowers,” he said at his February 5 confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, “and in the need to make […]
Technology for detecting nuclear weapons and materials “appears to be advancing faster than many have expected,” according to an exceptionally informative new report from the Congressional Research Service. The 97-page report (pdf) by CRS analyst Jonathan Medalia explains the basics of nuclear detection — what is to be detected and how — and introduces nine […]