While watching Brian Williams' interview with Ed Snowden, I actually agreed with Glenn Greenwald about something. Back in 2012, Greenwald referred to Williams as "NBC News' top hagiographer," using "his reverent, soothing, self-important baritone" to deliver information in its "purest, most propagandistic and most subservient form."
It's worth noting at the outset that Greenwald flew all the way to Moscow specifically for the NBC News interview, and he appeared on camera with Snowden and Williams, answering questions from this so-called "hagiographer."
Now, I'm not a Brian Williams hater. I think he's a fine news anchor. But his interview with Ed Snowden was yet another in a long, long line of deferential, uninformed, unchallenging genuflections before a guy whose story and motivations are more than a little specious. But it's not a stretch to presume that Greenwald, the man who once aimed all of his wordy, caustic vitriol in Williams' general direction, referring to him as possessing "child-like excitement" over gaining access to a source, probably loved every minute of it. However, don't break out the champagne just yet, NBC News, Greenwald will immediately shift gears sometime very soon and continue to indict any and all mainstream news outlets, including NBC, as being impotent, pernicious, drooling shills for President Obama and the D.C. elite.
So what about the telecast itself? Here are the 13 most bizarre things from Snowden's NBC News interview.
1) Snowden claimed he has "no relationship" with the Russian government and that he's "not supported" by it. That's odd, given how the Russian government has twice offered him asylum and one of his lawyers, Anatoly Kucherena, is an attorney with the Russian intelligence agency, the FSB (formerly the KGB). Tell me again why anyone should trust this guy?
2) "Sometimes to do the right thing you have to break a law." So it's really up to each of us individually to decide whether our own interpretation of "doing the right thing" necessitates breaking the law? A lot of awful things have occurred with that exact justification. Also, what if NSA feels the same way, Ed?
3) Snowden said that no one has been harmed by his disclosures. Yet. Already, though, one of his documents escalated tensions between Australia and Indonesia, and another document endangered lives in Afghanistan to the point where Greenwald refused to publish the name of that country. It's only a matter of time, sadly.
4) Early on, Snowden said, "I'm not a spy." Later he famously confessed to being "trained as a spy." Huh?
5) Snowden said he destroyed his documents before going to Russia. This is really strange. I have no idea whether he really destroyed his NSA files, but he did in fact meet with Russian officials in Hong Kong, when he reportedly celebrated his birthday at the Russian consulate. Did he still have his documents at that point? Earlier, he said his goal was to fly to Latin America, so why did he anticipate being in Russia to the point where he destroyed his documents to prevent Russians from acquiring them? These are all follow-up questions that a journalist who was informed about the details of Snowden's timeline would've asked. Williams was not and therefore did not.
6) NSA can "absolutely" turn on your iPhone, which is "pretty scary." This section was like whiplash. Snowden started out by sounding reasonable by defining that NSA only acquires data when "targeting" drug dealers or terrorists. And then, BLAM!, this shitola about NSA being able to turn on your phone. If true, why hasn't this been disclosed from Snowden's NSA documents?
7) Snowden said that by googling the score of a hockey game, NSA can find out whether you're cheating on your wife. Someone's been wearing his tinfoil hat a wee bit too tightly.
8) NSA can observe people drafting a document online and "watch their thoughts form as they type." Let's assume for a second this is true. Reading your thoughts (IEEEEE!!!) is a hyperbolic internet-age method of essentially describing a wire-tap. A police detective can get a court order to have a suspect's phone tapped and listen to that suspect forming thoughts on the phone, too. But to call it a "wire-tap" is too ordinary and familiar, so Ed went with mind-reading.
9) Snowden didn't deny turning over secrets that would be damaging or harmful. He only said journalists have a deal with him not to do it. Just a reminder: we really have no idea how many reporters or organizations have copies of the documents or the total number of documents (it's a Greenwald/Snowden secret), but we do know that Snowden documents have been reported by so many publications that the question arises: who doesn't have Snowden documents?
10) Snowden's watching HBO's The Wire. The second season, he said, isn't so good. He's right.
11) Snowden said he can't speak out on Russian issues because he can't speak the language. Hey Ed, here. Free shipping, too. You're welcome.
12) "People have unfairly demonized the NSA to a point that is too extreme." Why is Snowden an apologist for the surveillance state? Drooling! Vast!
13) Snowden said he can "sleep at night" because of his actions. Well, good for him.
Ultimately, Snowden is his own worst enemy and his ongoing ability to say crazy things in a calm, collected voice continues. What's abundantly clear at this point is that no one will ever land an interview with Snowden who will be as adversarial against the former NSA contractor as Greenwald has been in his own reporting in defense of Snowden. It'll never happen.
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