The National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) began in 1961, but operated in secret for decades before it was officially acknowledged. Before the existence was declassified, in 1974, they evaluated numerous incidents where the agency was talked about within the press. The concern was how the Soviets, or the media, would react.
This document was first released to the National Security Archive (also archived below) and was heavily redacted. In August of 2019, I filed a Mandatory Declassification Review (MDR) request to have it reviewed. To my surprise, all redactions were lifted and it was released in full minus one name at the end of the report.
Original Release to the National Security Archive
Follow The Black Vault on Social Media:
This post was published on July 3, 2020 3:09 pm
In January 2025, President Donald J. Trump signed Executive Order 14176, titled "Declassification of Records…
Nearly five years ago, The Black Vault filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request…
A newly released set of U.S. Army intelligence records offers a rare glimpse into behind-the-scenes…
In 1999, the Department of Defense Polygraph Institute (DoDPI) released a bibliography of audiovisual training…
Background The assassination of John F. Kennedy, the 35th President of the United States, is…
A newly released batch of documents, obtained through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), reveals…