Disclosure

One Christmas, Matt dashed off a letter to the FBI’s FOIA office: Please search your old investigation files for the name Santa Claus, he requested, and send me the first few pages you find. What a simple holiday wish taught us about one agency’s spirit of giving. The Disclosure podcast is available on Apple, Spotify, iHeart or wherever you get your podcasts. For early and ad-free access to episodes, subscribe at www.bloomberg.com/subscriptions/podcasts.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ask the US government for public records, and your request will go to a federal employee who holds the keys to what gets released and what doesn’t. Jason and Matt get a rare look inside a government Freedom of Information Act operation from Michael Sarich, who worked his way up from a FOIA post at the Bureau of Land Management to FOIA director at the Department of Veterans Affairs. In this episode, they discuss weird requests, big backlogs and the latest challenges to government transparency. For early and ad-free access to this episode on Apple, subscribe at www.bloomberg.com/subscriptions/podcasts. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The new Epstein Files Transparency Act requires the government to release a trove of documents from its Jeffrey Epstein investigations – minus whatever documents the Justice Department determines need to be withheld from the public. Jason and Matt dig into the FBI’s massive review of the Epstein files earlier this year, unearth an inventory of the government’s Epstein records and explore an alternate way the files could go public -- via a long-running, under-the-radar court battle. For early and ad-free access to this episode on Apple, subscribe at www.bloomberg.com/subscriptions/podcasts. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Exclusivity was the point of Wu-Tang Clan's Once Upon a Time in Shaolin. Only one copy was produced. A few minutes of it were played -- once -- in public. It sold at auction, with the condition it be heard only in private. And the album may have remained shrouded in mystery, were it not for a pharma bro, a Justice Department seizure... and the power of the Freedom of Information Act. Thanks to Open Mike Eagle for reading this week's Justice Department documents. For access to episodes early and ad-free, subscribe at www.bloomberg.com/subscriptions/podcastsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Earlier this year, newly minted young workers from the Department of Government Efficiency slashed USAID spending and hobbled the US Institute of Peace. Meanwhile, at the Peace Corps, staffers spent weeks preparing for their own mystery guest from Doge – ensuring that whoever arrived would have computers, a quiet conference room and weekend access, according to public records obtained under FOIA. Special thanks/apologies to Phil Collins, Loverboy, Slayer and Megadeth for this episode’s rich tapestry of musical touchpoints. For access to episodes early and ad-free, subscribe at www.bloomberg.com/subscriptions/podcastsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.