Truthdigger of the Week: Daniel Ellsberg

BLANK Jun 16, 2013 Pentagon whistle-blower Daniel Ellsberg remains a steadfast example of the courage he recognizes in Edward Snowden and others in the current generation of whistle-blowers. Dig deeper ( 7 Min. Read )

The Two Centers of Unaccountable Power in America and Their Consequences

Robert Reich / Truthdig Jun 16, 2013 There are two great centers of unaccountable power in the American political-economic system today -- places where decisions that significantly affect large numbers of Americans are made in secret, and are unchecked either by effective democratic oversight or by market competition. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Old-Fashioned Detective Work, Not NSA Snooping, Solved Terror Cases

Alexander Reed Kelly / Truthdig Jun 12, 2013 The Obama administration says NSA surveillance data collected by programs like the secret one revealed last week helped make arrests in two important anti-terrorism cases. Critics say that simply isn't true. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

Chris Hedges on Edward Snowden: Hero or Traitor?

Alexander Reed Kelly / Truthdig Jun 12, 2013 Is Edward Snowden a criminal for leaking information about secret NSA spying to The Guardian newspaper? "I suppose in a technical sense it was criminal," Truthdig columnist Chris Hedges told "Democracy Now!" on Wednesday as he debated law professor Geoffrey Stone. "But set against the larger crime that is being committed by the state," his strictly technical crime is trivial."Set against the larger crime that is being committed by the state," the Truthdig columnist told "Democacy Now!" on Wednesday, Snowden's strictly technical crime is trivial. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

Sales of Orwell’s ‘1984’ Soar Amid NSA Surveillance Disclosure

Tracy Bloom / Truthdig Jun 12, 2013 In the wake of the National Security Agency snooping revelations, George Orwell's dystopian novel is experiencing a renaissance. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

The NSA Black Hole: 5 Things We Don’t Know About the Agency’s Snooping

By Justin Elliott and Theodoric Meyer, ProPublica Jun 11, 2013 Last week saw revelations that the FBI and the National Security Agency have been collecting Americans’ phone records en masse and that the agencies have access to data from nine tech companies. But secrecy around the programs has meant even basic questions are still unanswered. Here’s what we still don’t know. Dig deeper ( 4 Min. Read )

SCOTUS Rules for Rumsfeld, Maher Slams ‘Original Teabagger’ Reagan, and More

Tracy Bloom / Truthdig Jun 11, 2013 A look at the day's political happenings, including a petition to pardon NSA whistle-blower Edward Snowden is created and a former colleague of Fox News host Sean Hannity has some tough criticism for him. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Whistle-Blower Edward Snowden Opens Up About NSA Leak

Tracy Bloom / Truthdig Jun 10, 2013 In an interview with The Guardian, the man who was revealed Sunday to be the source behind the British newspaper's recent NSA stories explains to Glenn Greenwald and Ewen MacAskill why he became a whistle-blower, when he decided to leak the documents, what he expects to happen to him now and whether he sees himself as another Bradley Manning. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

Rand Paul Wants to Sue Government Over NSA Surveillance

Tracy Bloom / Truthdig Jun 10, 2013 During an appearance on "Fox News Sunday," the Kentucky Republican said he was looking into filing a class-action lawsuit against the federal government over the National Security Agency's surveillance of phone records and Internet data. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Glenn Greenwald Suggests More Revelations Are Coming

Tracy Bloom / Truthdig Jun 9, 2013 On the heels of breaking the bombshell stories about the National Security Agency's secret phone surveillance and data-mining programs, the Guardian columnist hinted on ABC's "This Week" on Sunday that these reports were just the beginning. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

Truthdigger of the Week: NSA Whistle-Blower Edward Snowden (Updated)

BLANK Jun 9, 2013 The Guardian notes, "Snowden will go down in history as one of America's most consequential whistleblowers, alongside Daniel Ellsberg and Bradley Manning." Dig deeper ( 5 Min. Read )

‘Left, Right & Center’: The Surveillance State and the China Summit

Staff / Truthdig Jun 8, 2013 Truthdig Editor-in-Chief Robert Scheer and the other "Left, Right & Center" panelists ask whether there is any privacy left after revelations that National Security Agency programs are collecting data about citizens' daily communications. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )