Category Archives: Agency issues

Issues with records from specific agencies (NSA, CIA, etc)

CIA redactions as of Feb 2025

This note is the second in a series which looks at redacted records in the JFK ARC as of February 2025. This new note specifically looks at redacted CIA records, which make up the majority of the 2500+ records that still have some information held back.

The main points of this note:

  • The majority of CIA redactions are short
    • About 60 CIA documents redact whole pages
    • The majority of CIA redactions have specific, labeled content
    • The majority of CIA documents have only one or two redactions
    • The subjects of these redacted documents are very miscellaneous

    The point of this note is not to argue that it is okay if ARC redactions are not released.…

    New FBI docs at MFF

    Heads up! More FBI docs have been added to the Mary Ferrell Foundation collection. These docs were previously unavailable online. They date from early in the investigation and offer much interesting detail and atmosphere, well worth a look!

    The Dallas Field Office file

    The new additions to the MFF collection are from FBI casefile 89-43, compiled by the FBI’s Dallas field office.…

    New CIA docs at MFF

    More ARC docs are up on the MFF website, straight from the vaults of the AARC. The latest additions: over 160 CIA records, including some very interesting docs on Cuban matters.

    What’s in the docs?

    The new docs at MFF are in two sets: 84 records from CIA’s Latin American Division (JFK-Work Files), and 85 miscellaneous records, mostly from the hard copy JFK records in the HSCA-CIA segregated collection, as well as three docs from the HSCA-CIA staff records, and a handful from the CIA microfilm docs.…

    New HSCA docs at MFF

    The Mary Ferrell Foundation continues to dig out ARC records from its vaults. The latest find is a box of HSCA docs which fill some gaps and add a deposition from Bruce Solie.

    HSCA-CIA boxes

    This set of docs comes from several boxes in the HSCA-CIA segregated collection. Like the recent release of several sections of the HSCA-FBI liaison file, the box sat uncatalogued in the AARC vaults for who knows how long, but MFF is finally digging this stuff out and putting it on line.…

    The FBI-Church Committee liaison file

    This note discusses the FBI-Church Committee liaison file, FBI file number 62-116395. The liaison file uses “SSC” as its abbreviation for the Church Committee, since their official title was the “Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Activities.” In the discussion below, I will therefore use SSC to refer to the Committee.

    The SSC conducted a major inquiry into the United States intelligence community from 1975-1976.…

    CIA working files and DCI minutes

    This note concludes my survey of CIA record categories in the JFKARC. It is the fourth and last note in the series. Links to the series are available here. The two categories summarized below include fewer than 540 records, but some of these are quite interesting.

    The DCI morning meeting minutes

    From the early days of the CIA, the DCI (head of the CIA) held a meeting every morning with CIA executive officers, a practice that lasted up until the mid-1970s.…

    CIA files on Oswald

    This is another long-overdue note giving a brief overview of CIA files on Lee Oswald, the man who shot President Kennedy. It is the second in a series of notes on CIA records in the JFKARC. The first note, on CIA docs in HSCA records, is available here.

    Note the plural in the title of this post; there were multiple CIA files devoted to Oswald over the years, as well as files where Oswald was mentioned, but was not the main subject.…