Classification of Government Documents
Yale Law School professor and former Pentagon special counsel Oona Hathaway discusses the classification system of government documents and how they should be handled at each level of classification.
Description
Yale Law School professor and former Pentagon special counsel Oona Hathaway discusses the classification system of government documents and how they should be handled at each level of classification.
Bell Ringer Assignment
- Summarize Oona Hathaway's "background and experience" with classified documents. What was one of the "most striking" reflections that Hathaway had?
- Compare the levels of classification, as stated in the clip. What criteria is used to make a classification determination?
- What is "derivative classification authority?" How and why has this impacted the classification process over time?
- According to Hathaway, how much classified material gets produced on a yearly basis? What should be occurring "at roughly the same pace?"
Additional Resources
- Video Clip: Classified Biden Documents Found
- Video Clip: Ongoing Mar-a-Lago Investigation and Classified Documents
- Video Clip: Whistleblower Rules and the Intelligence Community
- Bell Ringer: The Pentagon Papers and New York Times v. United States
- Bell Ringer: The Pentagon Papers and the New York Times Company v. United States
- Bell Ringer: The JFK Records Act
- Bell Ringer: Freedom of Information Act
- Lesson Plan: Landmark Supreme Court Case - New York Times v United States (1971)
- Lesson Plan: 1st Amendment and Classified Leaks
- On This Day: WikiLeaks Release
Participants
Vocabulary
- Classified
- Confidential
- Counsel
- National Security
- Pentagon
- Security Clearance
- Top Secret