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Vladimir Putin during the nationwide phone-in in Moscow.
(Photograph: RIA Novosti/Reuters)
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Vladimir Putin during the nationwide phone-in in Moscow.
On Thursday, I questioned Russia's involvement in mass surveillance on live television. I asked Russia's president, Vladimir Putin, a question that cannot credibly be answered in the negative by any leader who runs a modern, intrusive surveillance program: "Does [your country] intercept, analyze or store millions of individuals' communications?"
I went on to challenge whether, even if such a mass surveillance program were effective and technically legal, it could ever be morally justified.
The question was intended to mirror the now infamous exchange in US Senate intelligence committee hearings between senator Ron Wyden and the director of national intelligence, James Clapper, about whether the NSA collected records on millions of Americans, and to invite either an important concession or a clear evasion. (See a side-by-side comparison of Wyden's question and mine here.)
Clapper's lie - to the Senate and to the public - was a major motivating force behind my decision to go public, and a historic example of the importance of official accountability.
Read the rest of this article at The Guardian...
Edward Snowden Asks Vladimir Putin About Surveillance | The New York TimesEdward J. Snowden, the former United States government contractor, asked President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia a question ...
* Edward Snowden wrote for the Guardian through the Freedom of the Press Foundation
The world is a pretty dark place right now. Economic inequality off the charts. The climate emergency. Supreme Court corruption in the U.S. and corporate capture worldwide. Democracy in many nations coming apart at the seams. Fascism threatens. It’s enough to make you wish for some powerful being to come along and save us. But the truth is this: no heroes are coming to save us. The only path to real and progressive change is when well-informed, well-intentioned people—fed up with being kicked around by the rich, the powerful, and the wicked—get organized and fight for the better world we all deserve. That’s why we created Common Dreams. We cover the issues that corporate media never will and lift up voices others would rather keep silent. But this people-powered media model can only survive with the support of readers like you. Can you join with us and donate right now to Common Dreams’ Mid-Year Campaign? |
On Thursday, I questioned Russia's involvement in mass surveillance on live television. I asked Russia's president, Vladimir Putin, a question that cannot credibly be answered in the negative by any leader who runs a modern, intrusive surveillance program: "Does [your country] intercept, analyze or store millions of individuals' communications?"
I went on to challenge whether, even if such a mass surveillance program were effective and technically legal, it could ever be morally justified.
The question was intended to mirror the now infamous exchange in US Senate intelligence committee hearings between senator Ron Wyden and the director of national intelligence, James Clapper, about whether the NSA collected records on millions of Americans, and to invite either an important concession or a clear evasion. (See a side-by-side comparison of Wyden's question and mine here.)
Clapper's lie - to the Senate and to the public - was a major motivating force behind my decision to go public, and a historic example of the importance of official accountability.
Read the rest of this article at The Guardian...
Edward Snowden Asks Vladimir Putin About Surveillance | The New York TimesEdward J. Snowden, the former United States government contractor, asked President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia a question ...
* Edward Snowden wrote for the Guardian through the Freedom of the Press Foundation
On Thursday, I questioned Russia's involvement in mass surveillance on live television. I asked Russia's president, Vladimir Putin, a question that cannot credibly be answered in the negative by any leader who runs a modern, intrusive surveillance program: "Does [your country] intercept, analyze or store millions of individuals' communications?"
I went on to challenge whether, even if such a mass surveillance program were effective and technically legal, it could ever be morally justified.
The question was intended to mirror the now infamous exchange in US Senate intelligence committee hearings between senator Ron Wyden and the director of national intelligence, James Clapper, about whether the NSA collected records on millions of Americans, and to invite either an important concession or a clear evasion. (See a side-by-side comparison of Wyden's question and mine here.)
Clapper's lie - to the Senate and to the public - was a major motivating force behind my decision to go public, and a historic example of the importance of official accountability.
Read the rest of this article at The Guardian...
Edward Snowden Asks Vladimir Putin About Surveillance | The New York TimesEdward J. Snowden, the former United States government contractor, asked President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia a question ...
* Edward Snowden wrote for the Guardian through the Freedom of the Press Foundation