The Reporter and the China Trap Tom LoBianco @24sight.news answered an ad for a writer and then things went south. New #SpyTalk 🕵🏼♀️ podcast with hosts @spytalker.bsky.social & @misikoff.bsky.social #KarenGreenberg #MSWMedia Listen: redcircle.com/shows/d7fabf...
"So here's my question for a start up. You're a political reporter. You're not primarily national security or intelligence. You've never served as far as I know in the government and had access to classified information. Why would they be reaching out to you if their goal is to get classified information that would give them an edge in their competition with the U.S.? You know, that's a great question. I wondered about that. It is a great question. I mean, you know, in some sense, I guess it's high praise, you know, that they figure out that whatever I'm reporting on, whoever I'm talking to is like, you know, worth trying to include an intelligence operation. I don't know entirely. I mean, you know, given what I cover, I was covering more of it back then, but you know, inside Trump world, inside Pence world, the Republican primaries, the presidential, you know, I always kind of assume, especially if I'm going out in Washington and I'm going to go meet with anybody, whoever it is, news source, old source, that brings some friends, we're up cocktails or whatever. I just assume that the ears are everything. Everyone's always listening. I don't think everybody is a Russian or a Chinese spy, but I'm always kind of like, all right, you never know, right? You never know where this information is gonna go. I don't know, but I don't know why they would pick me of any journalist. I don't think they really did in a way. I think Chinese, their MO is to cast a wide name electronically. It could have been generated by AI and they just put out millions of these things on LinkedIn and, you know, job sites all over the world and they just wait for a fish to swim in. And so a certain percentage of people are going to answer. Yeah, and we should say that in the FBI affidavit that justified this action where they seized and took down these internet domains, they did include other sources of information who did have access to classified information. So that goes under the category of the wide net, you know, from you, perhaps political intelligence or just some sort of legitimacy with a mainstream political reporter that somehow they could use."
💬 Discussion
The Reporter and the China Trap Tom LoBianco @24sight.news answered an ad for a writer and then things went south. New #SpyTalk 🕵🏼♀️ podcast with hosts @spytalker.bsky.social & @misikoff.bsky.social #KarenGreenberg #MSWMedia Listen: redcircle.com/shows/d7fabf...
