Citizens Quote by Noam Chomsky
“Long before the technology revolution there was declassification of documents and I've spent quite a lot of time studying declassified internal documents and written a lot about them. In fact, anybody who's worked through the declassified record can see very clearly that the reason for classification is very rarely to protect the state or the society from enemies. Most of the time it is to protect the state from its citizens, so they don't know what the government is doing.”
About This Quote
Source Interview: The Intercept Podcast, 2020
Classifications often shield governments from citizens, not enemies.
In simple terms: Secrecy protects the state from its own people.
Key Takeaway
Demand transparency, question secrecy.
Themes
politics
transparency
power
citizen rights
Mood
critical
inquisitive
Type
political
analytical
When to use this quote
- journalism
- activism
- policy analysis
- public debate
Key Concepts
state control
information ethics
Questions to Reflect On
- What information should remain classified?
- How can citizens hold governments accountable?
A Different Perspective
Security concerns sometimes justify secrecy.
![“I wrote an article about the marine landing [in Haiti] right away, but barely mentioned the oil, because my article would come out two months later and I assumed by then, "of course, everybody knows." Nobody knew. There was a news report in the Wall Street Journal, in the petroleum journals, and…” quote by Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/dc5/noam-chomsky-42_articles_i-wrote-an-article-about-the-marine-land_13341.jpg)
