Hello Reddit!

As some of you may know, I am passionate about the Freedom of Information Act, or FOIA, as it’s better known. Signed into law on July 4, 1966 by Lyndon B. Johnson during the Cold War, the FOIA was designed to be a check on power by granting citizens the right to request documents from executive branch agencies. Without FOIA we’d never know about the FBI’s illegal spying on Americans in the 1970s; details about the Federal Reserve Board’s secret loans during the 2008 financial crisis; and revelations about the CIA’s post-9/11 interrogation program.

Over the past decade, I’ve filed more than 9,000 requests on a wide-range of subjects and more than 100 lawsuits against government agencies to compel the release of records. An FBI officer called me a "FOIA terrorist" while the DOJ labeled me part of a "FOIA posse." Documents I brought to light have made history and fueled controversies, revealed horrific abuses by intelligence officers, uncovered secret photographs of rap music’s holy grail, and even forced former President Donald Trump’s chief of staff to submit a sworn declaration stating that Trump doesn’t mean what he tweets.

I also write a weekly newsletter called FOIA Files, that brings readers behind the scenes as I battle government agencies, challenge their culture of secrecy, and unshroud documents they would prefer never saw the light of day. The last few editions looked at the Fed's response to Fed transparency, a missing Obama letter, and an FBI agent's reaction to the Mar-a-Lago raid. I still have many more requests out, and new documents constantly pouring in.

Ask me anything!

PROOF: https://www.reddit.com/media?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpreview.redd.it%2Fjason-leopold-ama-proof-v0-cv5vm4mso1yc1.jpg%3Fwidth%3D1080%26crop%3Dsmart%26auto%3Dwebp%26s%3D4825d3271a4539278ef3c9b387ab2dbff399b93f

https://old.reddit.com/r/politics/comments/1cil85o/im_jason_leopold_investigative_journalist_at/

14 comments

  1. What is the most shocking secret you have discovered through FOIA requests?

  2. What is the most “Malicious Compliance” response you’ve gotten from a FOIA request? (By which I mean “they *technically* answered your question, but the answer was frustratingly useless or patently unhelpful.”)

  3. Which federal agencies are the most difficult to deal with?

  4. What government agencies or types of agencies are most likely to respond positively to FOIA requests? Why do you think that is?

  5. What state FOIA law do you think is the best for transparency and requesters?

  7. Hey Jason,

    Thanks for doing the AMA!

    1) What would you say to reporters who don’t utilize FOIA requests and what are some useful tips for people to get started.

    2) Can you talk a little bit about your early career experience? How did you come to learn the value of FOIA requests and what path did you take to end up working for Bloomberg?

    Thank you!

  8. What is your take on how nontransparent Sarah Huckabee Sanders is? It appears she had tried or was at least somewhat successful at limiting how transparent her government operates. What are the long-term implications for this?

  9. How are FOIA requests handled, what circumstances are they granted and denied?

  10. No question. Just want to thank you for your courageous service during a period of time that credible news sources like Bloomberg are under attack!

    Many folks do not realize, or take for granted, that credible news organizations like Bloomberg are essential to our US democracy.

    Thanks again kind Sir!

  11. Could you provide background on FOIA requests that have unexplained withholdings?

    Am currently reading *Hell Above Earth* by Stephen Frater, a wartime biography of Werner Goering. Werner served as an American bomber pilot in WW2 and although he was born and raised in Utah he was a relative of Nazi leader Hermann Göring. After an extensive FBI background check the US allowed Werner to fly bombing runs over Germany but assigned Werner’s copilot secret orders to assassinate Werner if he ever tried to defect. Werner flew two combat tours honorably and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross, surviving the war and living into his mid-nineties.

    The biography relies heavily on FOIA information yet the author mentions portions of the US Government’s files on Werner Goering were withheld in spite of the request. A follow-up letter requesting an explanation went unanswered. Stephen Frater speculates those portions may have been withheld in spite of the FOIA because they contained information which might embarrass the US government. Frazer published in 2012, long after most of the people involved had passed away.

    Are unexplained and possibly illegal withholdings commonplace in spite of FOIA? What recourse do writers and the public have in this type of situation? Have you encountered similar stonewalling, and if so what do you do?

  12. How do you know which particular documents to request?

  13. What advice do you have for FOIA’ing message services like Teams or Slack now that so many govt agencies use them?

  14. how often do you get threatened/harassed/blackmailed out of following a lead or publishing a story?

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