Sharyl Attkisson Testifies to Senate Homeland Security Committee on Government Surveillance of Journalists
On December 3, 2020, Sharyl Attkisson testified before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee at a hearing on 'Examining Irregularities in the 2020 Election' and related surveillance issues, describing her own experience with alleged government computer intrusions and urging Congress to strengthen protections for journalists against warrantless federal surveillance.
Attkisson has been called as a witness in multiple congressional and executive-branch proceedings tied to journalist-surveillance and press-freedom concerns. In prepared testimony before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee on December 3, 2020, she recounted the CBS-commissioned and independent forensic findings regarding her computers, the trajectory of her federal lawsuit, and public reporting on Justice Department seizure of reporter records under successive administrations. She urged expanded statutory protections for journalists and independent oversight of federal surveillance of members of the press. Her testimony was widely reported and is part of the congressional record; she has also submitted written statements and appeared before House committees examining DOJ press-record subpoenas and FISA abuse.