Andrew Blake

Honest Ads Act, anti-election meddling bill, reintroduced with bipartisan support

A bipartisan group of senators announced efforts Wednesday to pass a bill regulating online political advertisements appearing on platforms including Facebook and Twitter.

May 8, 2019

NSA asked to provide public update on phone data collection program, ‘resolve the current confusion’

Democratic members of the Senate Intelligence Committee sought details Tuesday on the status of the National Security Agency's controversial phone data collection program.

May 7, 2019

Intel community watchdog asked about apparent ‘leaks’ cited in Strzok-Page texts

The inspector general for the U.S. intelligence community was pressed by Republicans on Monday to probe whether agencies other than the FBI leaked to reporters about the government's investigation into Russian election interference.

May 7, 2019

Chinese spies used NSA hacking tools to target U.S. allies: Reports

Chinese hackers acquired cyber weapons used by the U.S. National Security Agency and repurposed them to attack American allies, reports said Monday.

May 7, 2019

Paul Whelan, former Marine jailed in Moscow, calls espionage case retaliation for U.S. sanctions

Paul Whelan, a former U.S. Marine jailed in Moscow, has described the Russian espionage case against him as retaliation for U.S. sanctions, a report said Tuesday.

May 7, 2019

Wall Street Market, dark web marketplace, targeted in international takedown

Law enforcement officials in the U.S. and abroad have touted the takedown of Wall Street Market, an illegal dark web marketplace regarded as one of the world's largest.

May 4, 2019

Pete Buttigieg repeatedly heckled by homophobic protesters during fundraiser

Pete Buttigieg, the first openly gay U.S. presidential candidate, was repeatedly heckled by homophobic protesters during an event Friday evening in Dallas, Texas.

May 4, 2019

Hunting group’s Google ad mistakenly rejected as ‘animal cruelty’

Google has reversed course after rejecting a hunting advertisement for being in violation of the company's rule against promoting animal cruelty.

May 4, 2019

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez supports taking ‘antitrust approach’ to break up big tech monopolies

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, New York Democrat, has signaled her support for breaking up big tech firms as proposed by presidential hopeful Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Massachusetts Democrat.

May 4, 2019

Donald Trump ‘monitoring and watching’ social media censorship after Facebook bans Alex Jones

In the wake of Facebook banning right-wing radio host and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, President Trump on Saturday questioned why mainstream news outlets critical of his administration are permitted to operate on social networking services like Twitter and Facebook.

May 4, 2019

Maria Butina prison sentence protested as ‘unlawful’ by Russian embassy in appeal to State Dept.

Russia has lodged a formal complaint with the U.S. State Department over the 18-month prison sentence recently imposed on Maria Butina, the Russian Embassy in D.C. said Friday.

May 3, 2019

Trump admin. tested over ‘fatally flawed’ immigration policy as marijuana workers risk deportation

Democrats representing Colorado in Congress have complained to the Trump administration about a new policy affecting immigrants employed in the state's legal marijuana industry.

May 3, 2019

Ola Bini, friend of Julian Assange, loses bid to be released from Ecuadorian prison

Ola Bini, a Swedish friend of WikiLeaks publisher Julian Assange, was rebuffed Thursday in his bid to be released from an Ecuadorian prison.

May 3, 2019

UN group slams WikiLeaks publisher Julian Assange’s ‘disproportionate’ sentence for breaching bail

United Nations experts spoke out Friday against WikiLeaks publisher Julian Assange receiving a 50-week prison sentence as a result of taking refuge inside Ecuador's London embassy.

May 3, 2019

Ben Sasse, GOP senator, asks DOJ to clarify if candidates can campaign using hacked material

Sen. Ben Sasse has asked the Department of Justice to clarify whether political candidates can legally campaign for office using stolen material sourced by hackers.

May 2, 2019

Facebook bans Louis Farrakhan, Alex Jones

Facebook on Thursday said the site was banning several high-profile users for violating the social network's rules against dangerous individuals and organizations, including Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan and Infowars publisher Alex Jones.

May 2, 2019

FBI asked to brief Florida congressional delegation about 2016 hack revealed in Mueller report

Members of Congress sought answers Thursday about an apparently successful breach by the Russian government of a Florida county's computer network during the 2016 U.S. presidential race.

May 2, 2019

D.C. mayor pitches bill to legalize recreational marijuana sales in nation’s capital

D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser pitched legislation Thursday to allow for the sale of recreational marijuana in the city.

May 2, 2019

Julian Assange: ‘I do not wish to surrender myself for extradition for doing journalism’

Efforts to put wanted WikiLeaks publisher Julian Assange on trial in the U.S. are likely to linger following an initial extradition hearing held Thursday in London.

May 2, 2019

WikiLeaks voices ‘grave concerns’ over efforts to extradite Julian Assange to U.S. ahead of hearing

WikiLeaks expressed pessimism Wednesday on the eve of the first extradition hearing held in connection with the U.S. criminal case against the website's publisher, Julian Assange.

May 1, 2019