Snowden’s on‑camera security rituals before meeting journalists

92 | HOW AMERICA LOST ITS SECRETS evidently set off alarm bells at Booz Allen and the NSA. Snowden expressed anger to the journalists in the room at the NSA’s intru- sions on the privacy of his girlfriend. Snowden also performed his security procedures on camera, including stuffing bed pillows under the door to block any eaves- droppers and throwing a red blanket over his head, which he called jokingly his “magical cloak of power.” He explained to Greenwald that he donned his “cloak” when he turned on his laptop to prevent any hidden cameras in the room from spotting his password. He also checked the hotel phone for bugs. It was not without irony that he went through these security rituals to protect his data as he allowed Poitras to film NSA data on his computer screen. Because he planned to use these journalists as his outlets to go public in a few days, the security measures he performed while on camera would only serve a temporary purpose. The centerpiece of the planned video would take the form of an interview with Greenwald. Snowden himself provided the talking points. The filming would eventually provide Poitras with a feature- ® length documentary, Citizenfour, which would be commercially © released in October 2014 and win an Academy Award for her. The next day, Ewen MacAskill, whom Poitras had not wanted Greenwald to bring to the initial meeting, joined Poitras and Green- wald in Snowden’s room. Snowden insisted that MacAskill also go through the ritual of stowing his cell phone in the minibar refrigera- tor. Not without irony, Snowden’s own phone can be seen on his bed recharging. Although MacAskill was sent by Gibson to the event to verify the source’s bona fides, he had apparently hardly been briefed. The questioning went as follows: MACASKILL: Sorry, I don’t know anything about you. snowpen: OK, I work for— MACASKILL: Sorry, I don’t know even your name. snowben: Oh, sorry, my name is Edward Snowden. I go by Ed. MacAskill went on to ask him to enumerate the various positions he held during his career in intelligence. Snowden was not entirely | | Epst_9780451494566_2p_all_r1.z.indd 92 ® 9/29/16 5:51 Pa | | HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_019580