FOIANate

How D.C. allowed ‘completely inappropriate’ spending by anti-violence group D.C. officials say spending of public funds by Life Deeds — including trips to a New Jersey shopping mall, lavish meals and a pool party with alcohol — should not have been allowed.

Free link: wapo.st/4qWcoRO

Power of FOIA.

Homeland Security is targeting Americans with this secretive legal weapon Under Trump, the Department of Homeland Security has weaponized administrative subpoenas to attack free speech, according to privacy and civil rights groups.

A man wrote an email to a government official. DHS told Google to give them his records using an administrative subpoena, bypassing the courts.

Free link: wapo.st/4rtfCw8

Requester: Jordon Hudson

Jordon Hudson FOIA request to UNC regarding top comms official's communications with CBS

Is your head coach's girlfriend filing FOIA requests on your school's top comms official a good look? Asking for a friend

SHAFR Executive Director @rimmerma.bsky.social quoted in this piece about the recent disappearance of FRUS records.

Analysis | State Department erases 15 pages of nuclear history — with no warning Key historical records about the incident during the Reagan administration, known as the Able Archer 83 War Scare, were removed without explanation.

Free link: wapo.st/4hUdZUA

Collectors edition looking good!

😂

Analysis | State Department erases 15 pages of nuclear history — with no warning Key historical records about the incident during the Reagan administration, known as the Able Archer 83 War Scare, were removed without explanation.

wapo.st/4hUdZUA

Getting to the bottom of why the State Department quietly deleted 15 pages of history on the risk of inadvertent nuclear war.

Free link below.

😂

According to author @foianate.bsky.social, the State Department told him in July it had deleted the documents after he used the Freedom of Information Act (and then sued the CIA) to obtain a copy of a one key record that had been transcribed but not reproduced in the 2021 FRUS volume.

Analysis | State Department deleted records about risk of inadvertent nuclear war Key historical records about the incident during the Reagan administration, known as the Able Archer 83 War Scare, were removed without explanation.

Nothing to see here (literally!). Just the US State Department secretly deleting 15 pages of declassified official documents published in 2021 in the Foreign Relations of the United States series about a 1983 NATO nuclear weapons exercise that unexpectedly increased the risk of a nuclear war.

Analysis | State Department deleted records about risk of inadvertent nuclear war Key historical records about the incident during the Reagan administration, known as the Able Archer 83 War Scare, were removed without explanation.

My friend @foianate.bsky.social with a must-read story about how the State Dept scrubbed an online historical study (FRUS) of key records about the 1983 Able Archer nuclear scare after he sued the CIA for its records on the near-disaster.

sure thing!

Analysis | State Department deleted records about risk of inadvertent nuclear war Key historical records about the incident during the Reagan administration, known as the Able Archer 83 War Scare, were removed without explanation.

wapo.st/4hUdZUA

State Department Deletes Key Historic Records on risk of inadvertent nuclear war, Blames FOIA Requester (me😬).

Free link below:

🚨 New DC FOIA exemption snuck into draft DC budget!🚨

FOIA delays aren’t always about funding — agencies often spend resources reviewing exemptions they’re not even required to.

Watch @washingtonpost.com’s @foianate.bsky.social explain how to get around these hurdles and effectively access public records

I'm selfishly really looking forward to today's FOIA panel!

I have tons of questions lined-up for @foianate.bsky.social, @mirandaspivack.bsky.social, and @morisy.bsky.social, and know I'll learn a lot from our conversation.

If you haven't already RSVP'd, please join @freedom.press at 1 eastern!

🔔 Join us tomorrow for a conversation about using public records to push back on government secrecy, featuring
@foianate.bsky.social, @morisy.bsky.social, @mirandaspivack.bsky.social, and FPF's Lauren Harper.

🕒 1 p.m. EDT/10 a.m. PDT

RSVP: freedom.press/fight-gov-se...

🔔 Join us tomorrow for a conversation about using public records to push back on government secrecy, featuring
@foianate.bsky.social, @morisy.bsky.social, @mirandaspivack.bsky.social, and FPF's Lauren Harper.

🕒 1 p.m. EDT/10 a.m. PDT

RSVP: freedom.press/fight-gov-se...

Welcome! You are invited to join a webinar: Using public records to fight government secrecy and improve communities. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email about joining the webinar... Welcome to “Using public records to fight government secrecy and improve communities,” a virtual webinar event with Freedom of the Press Foundation. Federal agencies are closing their Freedom of Info...

On Tuesday, June 24, at 1 PM ET, @morisy.bsky.social will be joining @freedom.press’ Lauren Harper as well as @foianate.bsky.social and @mirandaspivack.bsky.social to talk about using public records to fight government secrecy. zoom.us/webinar/regi...

🔔 Join us for a conversation about using public records to push back on government secrecy, featuring @foianate.bsky.social, @morisy.bsky.social, @mirandaspivack.bsky.social, and FPF's Lauren Harper.

🗓️ June 24, 1 p.m. EDT/10 a.m. PDT

RSVP: freedom.press/fight-gov-se...

Police secretly monitored New Orleans with facial recognition cameras Following records requests from The Post, officials paused the first known, widespread live facial recognition program used by police in the United States.

sometimes a headline is all you need to know that @foianate.bsky.social got some docs

Announcing the Inaugural Awardees of the Collier Awards for Ethics in Journalism - Ethics and Journalism We are honored to recognize these extraordinary journalists and grateful for the opportunity to celebrate with them in New York City this week.

Fine, harrowing work by Jessica Contrera, Jenn Abelson, @jdharden.bsky.social, Carolyn Van Houten, @byhayden.bsky.social, @foianate.bsky.social and Lynda Robinson

ethicsandjournalism.org/2025/04/11/a...

Hah! Thank you!

Analysis | Classified information is out in the open. There’s no need to panic. The discovery of apparently classified records can set off alarm bells. But often, the federal government rules that the records can remain public.

If only Jeffrey Goldberg read my Revealing Records column!! If he had, maybe he would have provided the classified information to the Information Security Oversight Office, rather than publish it! wapo.st/3FK3jJq

Ty. Tried my dardnest to meet him but never could.