On Jan. 24, 2003, a new law enforcement and investigatory agency whose duties include functions taken from as many as 22 other federal agencies came into existence. The reorganization of these operations reportedly marks the biggest government bureaucratic shake-up since the creation of the Department of Defense half a century ago.
Even before the new Department of Homeland Security opened its doors, controversies arose over not just how it would operate and exercise its powers, but what level of access to information it would allow, and how it would respond to news media requests. Will new exemptions be carved out of the FOI Act, either by law or by practice? Will officials and agents feel free to tap phones of journalists, or subpoena their records during investigations? Will the new director consider procedural safeguards, like those adopted years ago by the Department of Justice, to ensure that freedom of the press will not be denied? And will those practices be followed?

But "homeland" security is not the only concern for journalists covering anti-terrorism initiatives; military actions abroad often present a greater challenge, as questions over disclosure of information, access to troops, and restraints on reporting seem to resurface anew with each conflict.

Questions and issues like these led the Reporters Committee to launch this "weblog," so that there will be a centralized site on the Internet for journalists who want to follow these issues and pass along information they learn while covering — or worse, being covered by — the new department and other anti-terrorism actions. Please submit comments and pass along tips to make this project as useful, thorough and up-to-date as possible.

A few words about what this project will not do. We do not intend to cover many of the issues that will undoubtedly come up as the Department takes shape, even if those issues are the ones generating headlines. We will cover information access and free press issues, but will not follow debates over many civil liberties issues that, while important, are outside of our domain.

Funding for the launch of this site was provided by The Robert R. McCormick Tribune Foundation.

Feb. 28, 2007

WALTER REED SOLDIERS TOLD NOT TO SPEAK TO PRESS. On the heels of The Washington Post's investigation into conditions at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, soldiers there have been ordered not to speak to the media. Army Times reports that they also are subject to daily room inspections, which one soldier said is believed to be punishment for members of the military who have talked to reporters. — Posted at 11:20 am

DESPITE ORDER, STUDY SHOWS FOIA RESPONSE TIMES LAG, BACKLOG REMAINS. A study by the Coalition of Journalists for Open Government details how President Bush's 2005 FOIA executive order has done nothing to speed up FOIA response times, and that a massive backlog of requests remains. — Posted at 11:19 am

Feb. 27, 2007

SPECIAL ON INJURED ABC ANCHOR TO AIR. A TV special airing tonight will recount the recovery of ABC anchor Bob Woodruff, who was seriously injured by a roadside bomb in Iraq about a year ago. In the special, Woodruff details his recovery from the January 2006 incident, which also injured camerman Doug Vogt, and examines the care that injured U.S. soldiers receive. — Posted at 3:01 pm

DECLASSIFICATION BOARD TAKES UP ISSUE OF SECRET INTELLIGENCE BUDGET. Steven Aftergood of Secrecy News reports the latest meeting of the Public Interest Declassification Board was dominated by a discussion of the classification of the annual intelligence budget, with some board members skeptical of the need for secrecy. The first annual report of the PIDB was released last month. — Posted at 11:32 am

AL-JAZEERA CAMERAMAN HELD AT GITMO FOR FIVE YEARS. Sami al-Jajj, a Sudanese-born cameraman for the Al-Jazeera TV network, was stopped at the Pakistan-Afghanistan border in 2001 and has been held at the Guantanamo Bay ever since, The Associated Press reported. The 38-year-old, who says he is not a threat to the United States, is believed to be the only journalist from a major news organization detained at Guantanamo. The military did not acknowledge his existence until last year, when it released a list of detainees at the prison camp in Cuba in response to an AP Freedom of Information Act request. — Posted at 11:31 am

SENATOR PROPOSES LAW THAT WOULD CRIMINALIZE THE PUBLICATION OF CERTAIN CLASSIFIED INFORMATION. Sen. John Kyl (R-Ariz.) is set to propose a law that would criminalize the disclosure of classified information "concerning efforts by the United States to identify, investigate, or prevent terrorist activity." Violators of the proposed law could be imprisoned for up to 20 years. Critics say Kyl's law amounts to an Official Secrets Act that will stifle whistleblowers and chill the news media's attempts to report on the effectiveness of the government's couterterrorism efforts. — Posted at 11:30 am

IRAQI JOURNALISTS SAY U.S. MILITARY RAIDED HEADQUARTERS. The Iraqi Union for Journalists has demanded an apology and compensation from U.S. military officials for a raid on its headquarters last week. Reporters Without Borders said a U.S. Army unit fired at the headquarters before Iraqi soldiers stormed the premises, detained armed guards and seized computer equipment. The U.S. military said American troops were not involved in the raid. — Posted at 11:29 am

MADRID BOMBING TRIAL STREAMED OVER INTERNET. A high-tech legal services company in Spain is providing streaming video of the trial of 29 men accused in the deadly Madrid train bombings, which killed 191 people in 2004. The New York Times reports that Datadiar has streaming live coverage on its Web site and is posting archived video testimony from the trial. — Posted at 11:19 am

SECRECY AND INTELLIGENCE OVERSIGHT OTHER HOT TOPICS ON CAPITOL HILL. Steven Aftergood at Secrecy News has cataloged some of the legislation and other proposals under discussion in the House of Representatives dealing with excessive government secrecy and other intelligence matters. — Posted at 11:15 am

FOIA REFORM A HOT TOPIC ON CAPITOL HILL. Rep. Lacy Clay (D-Mo.) is considering introducing FOIA reform legislation that will make government information more widely available, according to The Associated Press. Clay said his bill would go further than last year's OPEN government bill. Last week, the House Subcommittee on Information Policy, Census, and National Archives held a hearing on the subject. — Posted at 11:13 am

MEMBERS OF CONGRESS KEEP INTERNAL RESEARCH SECRET. A Washington Post story takes a look at the secrecy surrounding the 6,000 reports generated each year by the 500-person staff of the Congressional Research Service. Despite the fact the reports are neither classified nor copyrighted, and that taxpayers spend $100 million annually to generate them, members of Congress refuse to make the widely available to the public. — Posted at 11:12 am

STATISTICS ON TERRORISM CASES FLAWED, INSPECTOR GENERAL REPORTS. A Justice Department Inspector General report has found that terrorism-related statistics gathered by FBI and federal prosecutors are seriously flawed. Sen. Charles E. Grassley (R.-Iowa) criticized agency management for the problem: "[I]t's high time the Justice Department, the FBI and the U.S. attorneys come to the Hill with solid numbers instead of sugar-coated stories." — Posted at 11:11 am

Feb. 26, 2007

JUROR DISMISSED FROM LIBBY TRIAL. The judge overseeing the trial of former White House aide I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby dismissed a juror after learning she had been exposed to media coverage of the case over the weekend. The deliberations will continue with 11 jurors. — Posted at 11:28 am

Feb. 22, 2007

AIDE: MEDIA MUST CHANGE STANDARD FOR NATIONAL SECURITY REPORTING. White House communications chief Dan Bartlett said the media must use a different standard of what could "harm the national interest" when reporting on national security matters, such as The New York Times, story exposing the domestic wiretapping program. In an interview for the PBS "News War" series, Bartlett ducks questions about whether the Times should be prosecuted for espionage but said "it's an important debate for the country to have .. because we are in a new paradigm, where the enemies our country use the very technology and comforts of our lifestyle against us." Bartlett also said, "We're not the type of administration . . . who leaks to the press," which Editor & Publisher notes is "odd" given the trial of I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby. Other interviews are on the Frontline Web site. — Posted at 11:23 am

MILITARY OFFICIALS SAID DOWNED CHOPPER MADE 'HARD LANDING.' Military officials who initially told the press that a helicopter made a "hard landing" north of Baghdad on Wednesday now say that the helicopter appears to have been brought down by "small arms fire and rocket-propelled grenades." CNN first reported the helicopter was shot down. — Posted at 11:21 am

Feb. 21, 2007

SCOOTER LIBBY'S FATE NOW RESTS WITH JURY. After closing arguments, a jury will decide whether I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby lied to FBI investigators and a grand jury looking into the possibility that former CIA agent Valerie Plame's covert status was improperly disclosed. The New York Times has put together an excellent graphic on the trial, describing who testified when and to what. Much ink has been spilled over what this case tells us about the state of American journalism, politics and law. — Posted at 11:16 am

Feb. 20, 2007

COURT RULES THAT GUANTANAMO DETAINEES HAVE NO RIGHT TO HAVE THEIR CASES HEARD IN CIVILIAN COURTS. In a 2-1 decision, a panel for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia ruled that Congress's 2006 Military Commissions Act firmly blocked detainees from trying to appeal the adminstration's decision to hold them indefinitely without charges. Under this decision, the Gitmo detainees do not have the right to have their cases heard by an open, civilian court in a manner that would be accessible to the public. Senate Democrats have introduced a bill that would strike down segments of the Military Commissions Act and restore habeas corpus rights to all detainees in U.S. custody. — Posted at 3:16 pm

Feb. 14, 2007

ALL HOUSE MEMBERS GAIN ACCESS TO CLASSIFIED INTELLIGENCE ON EVE OF DEBATE. All House members may access the classified version of the National Intelligence Estimate to prepare for the Iraq War debate. According to The Politico , members "will be required to review the document in the [House Intelligence] Committee's secure offices in the Capitol and sign a secrecy oath." — Posted at 11:00 am

Feb. 13, 2007

SECRETIVE BRIEFING HELD ON IRAN'S ALLEGED TIES TO MILITANTS. Defense and intelligence officials on Sunday held a briefing for reporters under unusually secretive circumstances to make the case that Iran is providing weapons to Shiite militants in Iraq, according to the Los Angeles Times. Newsweek reports that the officials could not be identified by name, no cameras or tapes were allowed in the briefing, and reporters' cellphones were confiscated before they entered the briefing room. Editor & Publisher notes that many newspapers' follow-up stories are more skeptical of the claims than the original reports. — Posted at 6:03 pm

TEN JOURNALISTS HAVE TESTIFIED AT LIBBY TRIAL. The jury in Lewis "Scooter" Libby's perjury trial - now in its sixteenth day - has heard the testimony of ten members of the news media. Former New York Times reporter Judith Miller, former Time reporter Matthew Cooper and NBC's Tim Russert have testified for the prosecution; news media witnesses for the defense include the Washington Post's Bob Woodward and Walter Pincus, along with columnist Robert Novak, who revealed former CIA agent Valerie Plame's identity in a 2003 column. — Posted at 5:23 pm

Feb. 8, 2007

BILL WOULD DISCLOSE ROLE OF PRIVATE CONTRACTORS IN IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN. An Illinois congresswoman has introduced legislation that would require government agencies to provide Congress with information on military contractors such as the number working in Iraq and Afghanistan, casualty rates, and instances where disciplinary action is taken against them. — Posted at 4:33 pm

Feb. 6, 2007

U.S. AGREES TO RELEASE COCKPIT VIDEO. The U.S. military will release a classified cockpit video showing two American pilots after they killed a British soldier in Iraq during a friendly fire incident. British authorities originally said the video did not exist, but it was leaked to The Sun newspaper, which published it Tuesday. — Posted at 2:31 pm

Feb. 5, 2007

TAPES OF LIBBY'S GRAND JURY TESTIMONY TO BE RELEASED. Tape recordings of Lewis "Scooter" Libby's grand jury testimony will be released to the news media and the public after they are presented at the former White House aide's perjury trial, a federal judge ruled today. Libby's attorneys said that releasing tapes would compromise his right to a fair trial, but attorneys for several news media organizations successfully argued that Libby's own words are far less sensitive than "prejudicial evidence" that has been released in other federal cases. The tapes are expected to be released later this week. — Posted at 1:41 pm

Feb. 2, 2007

JUDGE EXPLAINS DISMISSAL OF HATFILL DEFAMATION LAWSUIT. In an opinion released Thursday, a federal judge in Virginia explained why he dismissed the defamation lawsuit brought by biological weapons expert Steven Hatfill against the New York Times. The judge wrote that Hatfill was a public figure, which means Hatfill would have to prove that Times columnist Nicholas Kristof knowing wrote false statements about Hatfill in columns about the 2002 anthrax attack investigation. The opinion said that Hatfill would simply not be able to meet this burden of proof. — Posted at 12:41 pm

JOURNALISTS AND THEIR METHODS "SCRUTINIZED" AT LIBBY TRIAL. JDefense attorneys in the perjury trial of Lewis "Scooter" Libby questioned former New York Times reporter Judith Miller and former Time reporter Matt Cooper this week about their note-taking methods, the accuracy of their memories and even their methods dealing with confidential sources. These questions - and their answers - were "exactly what journalism groups feared" when both the prosecution and defense indicated weeks ago that they would call on reporters to testify. — Posted at 11:45 am

Feb. 1, 2007

SENATORS PUSH FOR RELEASE OF INTERNAL CIA REPORT ON AGENCY'S FAILURE TO PREVENT ATTACKS. Three members of the Senate Intelligence Committee have renewed efforts to have an internal CIA report on pre-9/11 agency failures released to the public. Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) signed the letter sent to outgoing Director of National Intelligence John Negroponte, and told Newsweek: "I do not believe there is a national-security case for keeping this under wraps." — Posted at 2:52 pm