(EFF) Secrecy surrounds law enforcement’s communications surveillance practices like a dense fog. Particularly shrouded in secrecy are government demands issued under 18 U.S.C. § 2703 of the Stored Communications Act or “SCA” that seek subscriber information or other user records from communications service providers. When the government wants such data from a phone company or online service provider, it can obtain a court order under the SCA demanding the information from the provider, along with a gag order preventing the provider from disclosing the existence of the government’s demand. More often, companies are simply served with subpoenas issued directly by prosecutors without any court involvement; these demands, too, are rarely made public. (For more background on how the SCA works, see this section of EFF’s Surveillance Self-Defense manual.)

Continued…

Michael Moore’s latest documentary is a critique of capitalism- in mainstream theaters- pretty big deal. “Capitalism: A Love Story” starts off comparing the US to the Roman Empire- a fairly easy task. In addition to other commentary, the documentary seems to be focused on the anti-capitalist stance of various Catholic priests, the consequences of the housing crisis, corporate bailouts and, finally, some alternatives in the form of worker-run workplaces. Read the full story

Perhaps it was a bluff, but sources indicate that even though Hartford Public High School officials planned a virtual lockdown of the school for today’s PBS Newshour visit, the plan to sequester a list of problem students was not implimented.  No word yet as to why this action was not taken as planned.  A list of students was circulated late last week.  These students were to be kept in a designated room all day while the PBS film crew was present.  Read the full story

By George D. Micewicz

In October 2006, Brad Will, an independent and unpaid journalist with the New York City Independent Media Center, was covering a strike by teachers in Oaxaca, Mexico. The strike had the potential to turn violent, and Will knew it. That’s exactly what happened, and Will was shot and killed by Mexican authorities. Read the full story

Marissa Blazsko was fired by the CCSU newspaper for her political beliefs.  Hear what she has to say about it, and about objectivity, journalism and free speech.

Click here to download the MP3

(eff) San Francisco – The Obama administration formally adopted the Bush administration’s position that the courts cannot judge the legality of the National Security Agency’s (NSA’s) warrantless wiretapping program, filing a motion to dismiss Jewel v. NSA late Friday. (con’d)

Former National Security Agency analyst Russell Tice, who helped expose the NSA’s warrantless wiretapping in December 2005, has now come forward with even more startling allegations. Tice told MSNBC’s Keith Olbermann on Wednesday that the programs that spied on Americans were not only much broader than previously acknowledged but specifically targeted journalists. (full story)

The FBI, Alameda County, and the Regents of the University of California are named in a lawsuit filed by the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) on behalf of two activist groups near Berkeley who were recently the targets of a law enforcement raid.

(full story)