NASA Refuses To Accept Its Own News Media Accreditation

[bananas]

http://nasawatch.com/archives/2016/04/nasa-refuses-to.html

NASA Refuses To Accept Its Own News Media Accreditation
By Keith Cowing on April 5, 2016 5:12 PM. 12 Comments

Keith's note: I just got this response from NASA on my FOIA request this morning, among other nonsense, it says:

"You have requested a fee waiver and asserted status as a representative of the news media. Please note that while you are a recognized journalist, qualifying for the FOIA fee category as a representative of the news media requires a distinct multi-factored analysis. Representatives of the news media are not granted a fee waiver based solely on an assertion of that FOIA fee category. Therefore, we are asking you to provide justification to warrant news media status. In accordance with Department of Justice guidance, a representative of the news media is defined as 'any person or entity that gathers information of potential interest to a segment of the public, uses its editorial skills to turn the raw materials into a distinct work, and distributes that work to an audience.' The 'news' must also be of current events or of current interest to the public and the requester must substantiate the current interest in each of the documents requested. Please be advised that merely making the information available to the public is not sufficient to qualify for this category. In your request you have also provided links to various articles. Unfortunately, we do not open links provided by requesters. In accordance with NASA FOIA Regulations, 14 CFR § 1206.506, the burden is on the requester to justify an entitlement to a fee waiver. (See CFR § 1206.507 for a discussion on fee categories.) Requests for a waiver or reduction of fees shall be considered on a case-by-case basis using the criteria in this section. These statutory requirements must be satisfied by the requester before properly assessable fees are waived or reduced under the statutory standard."

This response from NASA on my FOIA request really demonstrates some utter lack of communication inside of NASA. NASA HQ PAO has accredited me as news media since 2000. The issue as to whether I was news media was addressed back in 2000 in a series of letters between NASA. NASA OIG, and Congress. In this 4 February 2000 letter from the NASA OIG to Rep. Sensenbrenner NASA OIG noted that NASA created a new media policy to try and deny me accreditation. I found these old NASA HQ press credential badges in a box. I had to go through a full FBI background check to get them. Years later my personal data was part of that Chinese data breach. Why did NASA put me through that and then grant me accreditation if I was not news media? I guess I'll have to go see if I have any more to refute NASA's claim.

What is equally baffling is that I just sent NASA a long FOIA request that specifically addresses (in advance) the nonsense that they threw back at me the last time I tried to file a FOIA request. That time they did not even allow the waiting period to proceed before determining that I was not news media. including links to my own previous coverage of the topic surrounding my FOIA request plus links to NASA OIG and GAO reports. But they refuse to open the links to the very evidence that they are seeking about my ability to generate news article and the relevance of the information I have requested including a report by NASA's own Inspector General! This is not how an agency that vows to be open and transparent behaves.

RT @NASAWatch: NASA Refuses To Accept Its Own News Media Accreditation https://t.co/MfrOzD6Iyv
— WhiteHousePressCorps (@whpresscorps) April 5, 2016

This is crackers. @NASAWatch has been reporting news for 20 years. @NASA may not like it, but he's the press. https://t.co/fM8P66m3kr
— Dan Vergano (@dvergano) April 6, 2016

Reporters: contact #NASA #FOIA Josephine Sibley [e-mail] 2023582462 to see if you're still "media" pic.twitter.com/PjxtRp4jpQ
— NASA Watch (@NASAWatch) April 6, 2016