Russian Targeting of Election Infrastructure During the 2016 Election (Federal Bureau of Investigation)
| Tracking # |
1405752-001 DOJ-AP-2018-007258, 1405752 DOJ-AP-2018-007258 |
| Multi Request | Russian Targeting of Election Infrastructure During the 2016 Election |
| Submitted | May 8, 2018 |
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Communications
From: Emma North-Best
To Whom It May Concern:
Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, I hereby request the following records:
Records relating to or mentioning Russian Targeting of Election Infrastructure During the 2016 Election, including but not limited to emails, memos, drafts, assessments, communications with local and state officials, as well as communications with, briefings for and reports to Congress.
I am a member of the news media and request classification as such. I am freelance writer who has previously written about the government and its activities for MuckRock, Motherboard, Unicorn Riot, AND Magazine and Glomar Disclosure. My articles have been widely read, with some reaching over 100,000 readers. My work has been further discussed in outlets including the New York Times, the Washington Post, and BBC. As such, as I have a reasonable expectation of publication and my editorial and writing skills are well established. In addition, I discuss and comment on the files online and make them available through the non-profit Internet Archive, disseminating them to a large audience. While my research is not limited to this, a great deal of it, including this, focuses on the activities and attitudes of the government itself. As such, it is not necessary for me to demonstrate the relevance of this particular subject in advance. Additionally, case law states that “proof of the ability to disseminate the released information to a broad cross-section of the public is not required.” Judicial Watch, Inc. v. Dep’t of Justice, 365 F.3d 1108, 1126 (D.C. Cir. 2004); see Carney v. U.S. Dep’t of Justice, 19 F.3d 807, 814-15 (2d Cir. 1994). Further, courts have held that "qualified because it also had “firm” plans to “publish a number of . . . ‘document sets’” concerning United States foreign and national security policy." Under this criteria, as well, I qualify as a member of the news media. Additionally, courts have held that the news media status "focuses on the nature of the requester, not its request. The provision requires that the request be “made by” a representative of the news media. Id. § 552(a)(4)(A)(ii)(II). A newspaper reporter, for example, is a representative of the news media regardless of how much interest there is in the story for which he or she is requesting information." As such, the details of the request itself are moot for the purposes of determining the appropriate fee category. My primary purpose is to inform about government activities by reporting on it and making the raw data available and I therefore request that fees be waived. Per DOJ FOIA guidance, "a requester should be granted a fee waiver if the requested information (1) sheds light on the activities and operations of the government; (2) is likely to contribute significantly to public understanding of those operations and activities; and (3) is not primarily in the commercial interest of the requester." As this FOIA meets all of those requirements (see above regarding the subject and how I will apply the information), a fee waiver is warranted.
The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.
In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.
Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 20 business days, as the statute requires.
Sincerely,
Emma Best
From: Federal Bureau of Investigation
There are eFOIA files available for you to download.
From: Federal Bureau of Investigation
There are eFOIA files available for you to download.
From: Emma North-Best
I am appealing the integrity of the review of the materials, as the Bureau's claim that no information is releasable contradicts other statements on the matter, which have disclosed the existence of the investigation as well as some details of it. The Bureau's failure to review the documents to affirm that there is no segregable information is in violation of the FOIA statute and relevant caselaw.
From: Federal Bureau of Investigation
This message is to notify you of a new appeal submission to the FOIAonline application. Appeal information is as follows:
* Appeal Tracking Number: DOJ-AP-2018-007258
* Request Tracking Number: 1405752-000
* Requester Name: Emma Best
* Date Submitted: 07/20/2018
* Appeal Status: Submitted
* Description: FBI Appeal
From: Federal Bureau of Investigation
The FOIA appeal DOJ-AP-2018-007258 has had its Tracking Number changed to DOJ-AP-2018-007258. This is normally due to the appeal being transferred to another agency (for example, EPA to Dept. of Commerce) or to a sub-agency to process it. Additional details for this appeal are as follows:
* Old Tracking Number: DOJ-AP-2018-007258
* New Tracking Number: DOJ-AP-2018-007258
* Requester Name: Ms. Emma Best
* Date Submitted: 07/30/2018
* Long Description: FBI Appeal
From: Federal Bureau of Investigation
see attachment
From: Muckrock Staff
To Whom It May Concern:
I wanted to follow up on the following request, copied below. Please let me know when I can expect to receive a response.
Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.
From: Federal Bureau of Investigation
DOJ-AP-2018-007258 has been processed with the following final disposition: Completely Reversed/Remanded.
From: Federal Bureau of Investigation
The request has been rejected by the agency.
From: Federal Bureau of Investigation
There are eFOIA files available for you to download.
You can download the files at:
**Please Note:**
The above link(s) are only active for 48hrs. After the link expires you will
have the option to reactivate the link(s) for an additional 48hrs. The max
renewal limit is two (2) times. Thereafter, the links can no longer be
accessed.
You can renew the download files by logging into the efoia system and clicking
the "Renew" button in the file list.
From: Federal Bureau of Investigation
There are eFOIA files available for you to download.
You can download the files at:
**Please Note:**
The above link(s) are only active for 48hrs. After the link expires you will
have the option to reactivate the link(s) for an additional 48hrs. The max
renewal limit is two (2) times. Thereafter, the links can no longer be
accessed.
You can renew the download files by logging into the efoia system and clicking
the "Renew" button in the file list.
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