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foianate.bsky.social
FOIANate
@foianate.bsky.social
6.5K followers 940 following 77 posts
FOIA Director at Washington Post. Lawyer. Fellow at @NSArchive. Author of Revealing Records column. Wrote book on 1983 Able Archer Nuclear War Scare.
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foianate.bsky.social
😂
conelrad6401240.bsky.social Bill Geerhart @conelrad6401240.bsky.social · 8h
Longtime fan of Nate Jones and his Able Archer 83 research. Here's my unboxing pic from Oct. 29, 2016. So far the State Department hasn't asked for my copy.
November 13, 2025 at 11:20 PM
Reposted by FOIANate
atomicanalyst.bsky.social
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.
November 13, 2025 at 5:28 PM
Reposted by FOIANate
atomicanalyst.bsky.social
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.
wapo.st
November 13, 2025 at 5:28 PM
Reposted by FOIANate
laurenleharper.bsky.social
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.
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.
www.washingtonpost.com
November 13, 2025 at 4:55 PM
foianate.bsky.social
State Department Deletes Key Historic Records on risk of inadvertent nuclear war, Blames FOIA Requester (me😬).

Free link below:
November 13, 2025 at 4:38 PM
foianate.bsky.social
🚨 New DC FOIA exemption snuck into draft DC budget!🚨
July 24, 2025 at 1:59 PM
Reposted by FOIANate
freedom.press
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
June 27, 2025 at 8:55 PM
Reposted by FOIANate
laurenleharper.bsky.social
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!
freedom.press Freedom of the Press Foundation @freedom.press · Jun 23
🔔 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...
June 24, 2025 at 1:44 PM
Reposted by FOIANate
freedom.press
🔔 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...
June 23, 2025 at 8:03 PM
Reposted by FOIANate
freedom.press
🔔 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...
June 23, 2025 at 4:30 PM
Reposted by FOIANate
muckrock.com
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...
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...
zoom.us
June 20, 2025 at 2:13 PM
Reposted by FOIANate
freedom.press
🔔 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...
June 17, 2025 at 9:36 PM
Reposted by FOIANate
laurenleharper.bsky.social
sometimes a headline is all you need to know that @foianate.bsky.social got some docs
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.
www.washingtonpost.com
May 19, 2025 at 8:32 PM
Reposted by FOIANate
matthewhaybrown.bsky.social
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...
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.
ethicsandjournalism.org
April 14, 2025 at 5:15 PM
foianate.bsky.social
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
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.
wapo.st
March 26, 2025 at 8:36 PM
Reposted by FOIANate
jacobbogage.bsky.social
Through FOIA (cc @foianate.bsky.social), I obtained the IRS memo to the Trump transition team that warned the administration this exact thing would happen if it tore up the IRS.

And now it is happening.

www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...
“Aggressive reductions to budget and personnel capacity risk backlogs, delays, reduced receipts, and diminished capacity to build next generation digital capabilities,” according to a January presentation given by tax officials to the incoming Trump administration’s Treasury Department team. The presentation — a 68-slide deck — included recommendations for how the Trump administration could gradually decrease IRS staff numbers without disrupting tax administration. It called for digitizing tax-filing processes and automating the work of some employees in the customer service and compliance divisions. “The IRS is pursuing a vision of digitalization and automation which will increase the speed and quality of its processes while reducing the overall IRS footprint,” the presentation states. “In the past we have increased our staffing levels to improve taxpayer assistance, tax assessments, and collection processes. However, once modernized, our staffing footprint can be reduced while maintaining performance.”
March 22, 2025 at 3:20 PM
foianate.bsky.social
Happy Sunshine Week!!
March 21, 2025 at 2:51 PM
Reposted by FOIANate
npcinstitute.bsky.social
"Always request records, not 'information.' Describe the record as specifically as possible including date created, title, and custodian of the records."
@foianate.bsky.social shares important #FOIA tips in honor of #SunshineWeek. www.pressclubinstitute.org/2025/03/20/f...
Sunshine Week: ‘FOIA Nate’ on open access issues, narrowing records requests - Journalism Institute
We asked FOIA Nate to reflect on the current state of FOIA and to share some tips for making more efficient public records requests.
www.pressclubinstitute.org
March 21, 2025 at 2:38 PM
foianate.bsky.social
The Department of Justice Office of Information Policy which is supposed to ensure that all federal agencies comply with FOIA *itself* takes an average of 650 days to process "complex" FOIa requests, the third longest of any agency. Not great!
March 9, 2025 at 8:52 PM
foianate.bsky.social
🚨🚨I just beat Elden Ring🚨🚨
March 4, 2025 at 1:21 AM
foianate.bsky.social
www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/202...
Opinion | Here’s the real threat to ‘personal liberties and free markets’
The rapidly spreading authoritarianism coming from this administration threatens all of our freedoms.
www.washingtonpost.com
February 28, 2025 at 4:34 PM
foianate.bsky.social
Radically improved transparency could me realizing that DOJ OIP is the failing FOIA watchdog/beat cop and forcing them to crack the whip so other agencies greatly improve the speed and amount of info released. Not happening.

www.poynter.org/reporting-ed...
Firing of FOIA officers leaves experts worried about public records access under Trump - Poynter
‘Anytime that whole FOIA offices are getting fired, it portends terrible things’
www.poynter.org
February 27, 2025 at 7:04 PM
foianate.bsky.social
February 24, 2025 at 5:31 PM
foianate.bsky.social
Not sure AI is quite ready for prime time.
February 23, 2025 at 7:49 AM
foianate.bsky.social
Interesting FOIA stat from the Department of State...
January 31, 2025 at 8:46 PM