The Case of Edward Snowden

Vocabulary questions:
1. What does “whistleblower” mean? “After Deep Throat and Daniel Ellsberg, one of the whistleblowers at the top of American minds is Edward Snowden.” Use the word in a sentence. Give a synonym or similar expression. – Sentence” The whistleblower revealed a big corruption case within our company. Synonym: Informant.
2. What does “to be used to the injury of (someone/something)” mean? “With its broad language, the Espionage Act prohibits the publication of information by anyone to be used to the injury of the United States.” Use the phrase in a sentence. Give a synonym or similar expression. to be used to cause damage to. The leak of government employees’ personal data was used to the injury of Spain
3. What does “to be in someone’s interest” mean? “Originally designed to prosecute spies bringing military secrets back home, this Act has been used against whistleblowers, not spies, who release information that they believe is in the American interest.” Use the phrase in a sentence. Give a synonym or similar expression. It means to be important or have an impact on someone or something. It is in your interest to study for the exam

1. In your opinion, is Snowden’s disclosure of the classified information an act of espionage or free speech? Discuss.In my opinion, it is not an act of espionage because that is not what the law specifies. His case has such important public relevance due to the type of information he leaked. He leaked secret information about the U.S. that affected its public opinion. If he had leaked information about Spain or another country with less impact, probably nothing would have happened. I think he just wanted to uncover unethical behaviors carried out by the U.S., and more specifically by the NSA.
2. Share your thoughts, “With intelligence whistleblowers still facing retaliation from superiors and even from sitting presidents, their protection is paramount.” I totally agree that whistleblowers are exposed to a high risk of retaliation because they usually leak critical information about how major institutions use people’s data. They must be protected by stronger laws; otherwise, no one would expose illegal behaviors performed by governments.
3. What are your thoughts on this, “The benefit to the public from a disclosure must outweigh the government’s need for secrecy.”? I believe there must be a fair balance between the two. Disclosures must not negatively affect innocent people, and the government’s need for secrecy should not serve only the interests of people in positions of authority.
4. Share your insights on this, “Originally designed to prosecute spies bringing military secrets back home, The Espionage Act has been used against whistleblowers, not spies, who release information that they believe is in the American interest.” I think it is unfair to use a law created to fight against foreign spies against whistleblowers, who, in my opinion, try to act in the public interest and, in most cases, are not seeking any financial gain.
5. Talk about a whistleblower you know of and their story. One whistleblower I know of is Ana Garrido Ramos from Spain. She was a city council employee in a village near Madrid, and discovered corruption in public contracts . Ana reported the irregularities internally, but when nothing changed, she went to the authorities and the media. Her disclosures helped uncover the Caso Gürtel, one of Spain’s largest political corruption scandals. Despite facing professional retaliation, Ana received international recognition