I just finished reading O’Reilly’s new book about the killing of JF Kennedy. In the book, he mentioned the surveillance carried out by J. Edgar Hoover, of Martin Luther King. This included tapes made of King’s affairs with prostitutes, compromising photos, etc. the book mentions that all of this stuff would be made public, in the year 2027.
I assume the date was selected , as being a time in which anybody directly associated would be dead. But, since these documents and files are government property-and hence belong to all of us, why can’t you get access to them, under the FOIA? 99% of the American public know nothing about these events anyway-so how is the time for hiding such documents arrived at?
It depends on the government
Generally
- Statute. Most countries have a statute which lays down how long a documents will be classified. 30 years is a common number. The time typically starts when the document is closed, not from when the events in it occurred.
In certain cases this might be extended, especially when it is determined that the release of the document will have deleterious effects.
Moreover, as documents may cross reference each other, this period can be extended.
For certain documents the answer is “never” . The exact details of the first atomic bomb and the workings of the Hydrogen bomb are still classified.
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When leaks occur. Usually these are political in nature. Oftentimes its not a whistleblower but the Gov itself which leaks.
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When ordered to as part of an inquiry or by some Freedom of Information request. Many Iraq War docs fall into this category.
Note that in general, there’s some gentleman’s agreement or tacit understanding. You don’t reveal the last administration’s dirty laundry or else the same will happen when you leave office. So usually there’s some 30-year or 50-year expiry.
You sound so casual about it.