CIA probes publication review board over allegations of selective censorship(Waterboarding good!)

Washington Post ^ | May 31, 2012 | Greg Miller and Julie Tate

[Seizethecarp]

The CIA has begun an internal investigation into whether a process designed to screen books by former employees and protect national security secrets is being used in part to censor agency critics, U.S. officials said.

The investigation coincides with the publication of a flurry of books from CIA veterans, and it is largely aimed at determining whether some redactions have been politically motivated.

Among the publications expected to get particular scrutiny is a memoir by the former head of the CIA’s clandestine service, Jose A. Rodriguez Jr., who used his book, “Hard Measures: How Aggressive CIA Actions After 9/11 Saved American Lives,” to mount a vigorous defense of interrogation methods that were widely condemned but that he asserts provided critical intelligence about al-Qaeda.

U.S. officials familiar with the inquiry said that it reflects growing concern in the intelligence community that the review process is biased toward agency loyalists, particularly those from the executive ranks. The officials spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the investigation.

CIA critics said the disparities in the review process are particularly apparent in books that deal with controversial subjects, including the agency’s use of waterboarding and other harsh interrogation measures in the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

A book released last year by former FBI agent Ali Soufan — who questioned al-Qaeda prisoners held by the CIA and has said he became dismayed by the agency’s tactics — was so heavily redacted that he published “The Black Banners: The Inside Story of 9/11 and the War Against al-Qaeda” with black marks across many of its pages to show readers how much he was forced to withhold.

[Seizethecarp]

Obama political appointees in CIA are investigating why one book backing the effectiveness of waterboarding got through CIA internal (non-political appointee) review with minimal redactions while a book denouncing waterboarding was heavily redacted. But you won't get that from the WaPo article title.