primary sources: the vice news foia blog
Too Many Secrets: The Fight to Make the US Government More Accountable in 2015
The Obama administration calls itself the most transparent in history — yet remains extraordinarily secretive. Still, this year saw several victories in the fight for greater government transparency.
'Khan Is Gone': New Details Emerge About the US Blogger Killed in a CIA Drone Strike
For the first time, documents obtained by VICE News show that the FBI knew radical US blogger Samir Khan was planning on fleeing to Yemen.
Death Threats, Child Porn, and War Crimes: Inside CIA Investigations of Its Own Employees
Declassified reports from the CIA's Office of Inspector General shed light on cases involving alleged criminal wrongdoing and violation of agency policies.
Here's Every Email the NSA Got After Asking Americans for Tips on How to Protect Privacy
Shortly after the Edward Snowden leaks in 2013, the NSA asked all Americans for suggestions on how it could better protect civil liberties. The agency received 14 emails.
How Many More FBI Documents Contain the Phrase 'Mohammed Raghead'?
Heavily redacted FBI documents obtained by VICE News shed light on the FBI's response to a report revealing the derogatory name had been used on an agency form.
Chelsea Manning Is Suing the Government to Get Her FBI File
The government has insisted that the documents are related to ongoing law enforcement work, and are therefore not subject to FOIA requests.
Emails Show the FBI and JSOC Discussing an American Blogger Later Killed by the US
Months before Samir Khan was killed in a US drone strike in Yemen, the FBI reached out to the Joint Special Operations Command about the radicalized North Carolina blogger.
NSA Finds New Snowden Emails — But They're Not About His 'Concerns' With Surveillance
The NSA said it found three emails Edward Snowden sent to the agency's Oversight and Compliance Office before he leaked documents — but they didn't express any relevant concerns.
Here's the CIA's Letter to Congress Saying the Agency Was Quitting the Torture Business
A 2009 letter written by then-CIA director Leon Panetta and obtained exclusively by VICE News explained the CIA's new approach.
The DHS Planned to 'Plug' Federal Officers Into the Ferguson Protests, Documents Show
The Department of Homeland Security planned to have the officers perform surveillance and collect intelligence while in the crowds of protesters.
Why the US Refuses to Release a Draft of a Speech Hillary Clinton Gave 6 Years Ago
The State Department almost entirely redacted the draft, citing an oft-abused exemption contained in the Freedom of Information Act.
Fearing a 'Catastrophic Incident,' 400 Federal Officers Descended on the Baltimore Protests
Department of Homeland Security documents obtained exclusively by VICE News reveal details about the agency's reaction to unrest following Freddie Gray's death.