Interesting story by Scott Shane in the New York Times today (Feb. 21, 2006), 
"U.S. Reclassifies Many Documents in Secret Review."   

This story is probably of greatest interest to historians and archivists but 
I'm posting it here as "somewhat OT" for RIM since some of you have history 
and archives training and/or interests

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/21/politics/21reclassify.html?ei=5094&
en=aefb4d8fc1e315bc&hp=&ex=1140584400&partner=homepage&pagewanted=all

or

http://shrinkster.com/c9h

[began extract]

WASHINGTON, Feb. 20 — In a seven-year-old secret program at the National 
Archives, intelligence agencies have been removing from public access thousands of 
historical documents that were available for years, including some already 
published by the State Department and others photocopied years ago by private 
historians.

.  , , ,After . . . historians complained, the archives' Information Security 
Oversight Office, which oversees government classification, began an audit of 
the reclassification program, said J. William Leonard, director of the 
office. Mr. Leonard said he ordered the audit after reviewing 16 withdrawn documents 
and concluding that none should be secret."If those sample records were 
removed because somebody thought they were classified, I'm shocked and 
disappointed," Mr. Leonard said in an interview. "It just boggles the mind."

[end extract]

Maarja's note:  Bill Leonard came to NARA from the Department of Defense and 
has a good rep.  To read his bio, see 
http://www.archives.gov/isoo/about/director.html
Some of his testimony statements, speeches and articles are available 
online.  I especially recommend one from June 2004, "The Importance of Basics," at:  
http://www.archives.gov/isoo/speeches-and-articles/ncms-2004.html


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