New Podcast: How the Intelligence World Came to Rely on Contractors

June 27, 2013

Edward Snowden, the most recent National Security Agency whistleblower, was part of a secretive private intelligence workforce that has grown dramatically in the last decade. Private government contractors like Booz Allen Hamilton, Snowden’s former employer, now provide a wide range of services to U.S. intelligence agencies.

Why did the United States start outsourcing so many of its intelligence activities? What risks and costs does this pose to the government?

In POGO’s latest podcast, our general counsel Scott Amey and our legal intern Aimee Thomson try to answer those questions and more about the world of intelligence contractors. Also in the conversation are Joe Newman, POGO’s Director of Communications, and Jana Persky, a POGO intern.

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• Previous podcasts

Image by Flickr user Aural Asia.

Topics: Contract Oversight

Related Content: Contractor Accountability, Government Privatization, Government Secrecy, Intelligence, Podcasts

Authors: Andre Francisco

Submitted by Dfens at: June 28, 2013

This is one of the main ways the defense contractors maintain their American political power base. They have access to intelligence being collected on every government official in the US. Do you think the tapping of domestic phone calls is all about keeping us safe from terrorists? It's all about making sure defense contractors have access to plenty of dirt on our politicians. Dirt they can use when it comes time to vote.

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