The previously undisclosed detail about [screenwriter Mark] Boal's phone call to the CIA was included in more than 100 pages of internal CIA documents obtained exclusively by VICE News in response to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit. The documents contain the most detailed information to date about the controversial role the CIA played in the production of Zero Dark Thirty (ZDT).Included in the trove of redacted agency records is a March 2014 CIA Office of Inspector General report titled "Alleged Disclosure of Classified Information by Former D/CIA"— D/CIA refers to the director of the Central Intelligence Agency, Leon Panetta — and a separate September 2013 report from the inspector general's office titled "Potential Ethics Violations Involving Film Producers."
The ethics report contains remarkable details about how [ZDT director Kathryn] Bigelow and Boal gave CIA officers gifts and bought them meals at hotels and restaurants in Los Angeles and Washington, DC—much of which initially went unreported by the CIA officers—how they won unprecedented access to secret details about the bin Laden operation, and how they got agency officers and officials to review and critique the ZDT script. [...]Within days of bin Laden's death, Boal secured meetings with CIA officials and counterterrorism officers. According to the inspector general's report about potential ethics violations by CIA officers, Boal also sent a letter to George Little, then the director of the CIA's Office of Public Affairs, shortly after news broke about bin Laden's death.
Boal wished to discuss his new plan: Scrapping the script for Tora Bora and instead telling the story of how the CIA managed to find and kill bin Laden. Less than three weeks after bin Laden's death, Boal and Michael Feldman, a public relations representative for Tora Bora, met with CIA officials to discuss the new project.
Blast from the Past. At Daily Kos on this date in 2012—The Chronicles of Mitt: Sept 13, 2012:
Hello, human diary. It is I again, Mitt Romney, your better.My only substantive obligation today was appearing at a rally to demonstrate how much women approve of me. We acquired a decent number of women for the event, easily two dozen or so, which should be sufficient to prove the point. I then spoke to them about women things, such as the woman entrepreneur I once met. She started an upholstery business—I believe I have mentioned her before. Then I spoke at length about foreign policy again, since my foreign policy ideas seem to be especially popular of late.
I have not yet heard back from the staffer who promised to provide me a copy of Clint Eastwood's speech endorsing me. Come to think of it, I have not seen him since he agreed to fetch me the tape.
Monday through Friday you can catch the Kagro in the Morning Show 9 AM ET by dropping in here, or you can download theStitcher app (found in the app stores or at Stitcher.com), and find a live stream there, by searching for "Netroots Radio."
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