Difference between revisions of "Duncan Campbell"

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|birth_date=1952
 
|birth_date=1952
 
|wikipedia=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duncan_Campbell_(journalist)
 
|wikipedia=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duncan_Campbell_(journalist)
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|facebook=https://www.facebook.com/duncancampbell.IJ
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|website = http://www.duncancampbell.org/
 
|image=Duncan_Campbell.jpg
 
|image=Duncan_Campbell.jpg
 
|image_width=200px
 
|image_width=200px
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|constitutes=journalist
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|image_caption=At RAF Menwith Hill, eavesdropping base
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|exposed=ECHELON
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|constitutes=journalist, author
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|exposed=ECHELON, GCHQ
 
|description=Celebrated investigative journalist.
 
|description=Celebrated investigative journalist.
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|historycommons=http://www.historycommons.org/entity.jsp?entity=duncan_campbell_1
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|birth_place=Glasgow, Scotland, United Kingdom
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|nationality=British
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|employment={{job
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|title=Associate editor
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|employer=New Statesman
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|start=1988
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|end=1991
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|description=Investigations
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}}{{job
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|title=Staff writer
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|employer=New Statesman
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|start=1978
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|end=1991
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|description=
 
}}
 
}}
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}}
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'''Duncan Campbell''' is a British freelance [[investigative journalist]], author and television producer, who revealed [[GCHQ]] and the [[ECHELON]] program in the course of his work.
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==Career==
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Since 1975 he has specialised in the subjects of intelligence and security services, defence, policing, civil liberties and, latterly, computer forensics. From 1978-91, he was a staff writer at the ''[[New Statesman]]'' and associate editor (Investigations) from 1988-91.
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In 1977-78, Duncan Campbell was prosecuted under the [[Official Secrets Act 1911|Official Secrets Act]] in the [[ABC Trial]] and made the series ''[[Secret Society]]'' for the [[BBC]] in 1987. Before the programme ran, however, the BBC became nervous about the nature of its content and approached the [[Margaret Thatcher|Thatcher]] government for advice. Their reaction was to raid the BBC’s Scottish headquarters and then Campbell’s home. [[Special Branch]] seized the film in what became known as the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zircon_affair Zircon affair.]<ref>''[http://www.duncancampbell.org/content/biography#panorama "Duncan Campbell biography"]''</ref>
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===GCHQ===
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Duncan Campbell has exposed state snooping for nearly 40 years. In 1976, he revealed for the first time the existence of [[GCHQ]] ([[Government Communications Headquarters]]) in a piece for ''[[Time Out]]'' magazine called, "The Eavesdroppers". This led to his arrest in February 1977 with [[Crispin Aubrey]] and [[John Ashley Berry|John Berry]], and their being charged under Sections 1 and 2 of the [[Official Secrets Act 1911]] (Berry was charged with "communicating classified information to unauthorised persons", and Campbell and Aubrey with "unauthorised receipt of classified information").<ref>''[https://theintercept.com/2015/08/03/life-unmasking-british-eavesdroppers/ "GCHQ and Me: My Life Unmasking British Eavesdroppers"]''</ref>
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===ABC Trial===
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[[File:ABC_Trial.jpg|300px|right|thumb|Duncan Campbell, [[Crispin Aubrey]] and [[John Ashley Berry|John Berry]] convicted at the [[ABC Trial]] ]]
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On 5 September 1978, the resulting [[ABC Trial]] opened at the [[Old Bailey]] in front of Mr [[Justice Willis]] but was stopped two weeks later after the jury foreman was exposed as a former [[SAS]] officer. Three weeks after the second trial opened in front of Mr [[Justice Mars-Jones]] on 3 October 1978, all Section 1 charges were dropped. On 17 November 1978, [[Crispin Aubrey]], [[John Ashley Berry|John Berry]] and Duncan Campbell were found guilty and received non-custodial sentences. The [[ABC Trial]] was described by defence witness [https://www.facebook.com/ewen.carmichael Ewen Carmichael] as "a farcical romp of political stupidity, as prosecution witnesses, testifying anonymously under letters of the alphabet – in particular witness B, Colonel [[Hugh Johnstone]], head of [[SIGINT|Signals Intelligence]] – were identified to the public outside the courts, and later by [[NUJ]] members at their annual conference." To [[Crispin Aubrey]], the prosecution's attempts at secrecy were "the security services trying to cloak their witnesses in anonymous letters and make the whole affair appear more sinister."
  
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'''Duncan Campbell''' is a British freelance [[investigative journalist]], author and [[television producer]]. Since 1975 he has specialised in the subjects of intelligence and security services, defence, policing, civil liberties and, latterly, computer forensics. He was a staff writer at the ''[[New Statesman]]'' from 1978–91 and associate editor (Investigations) from 1988-91. He was prosecuted under the [[1911 Official Secrets Act]] in the [[ABC trial]] in 1978 and made the series ''[[Secret Society]]'' for the BBC in 1987 (see the [[Zircon affair]]). In 1988, he revealed the existence of the [[ECHELON]] surveillance program.<ref>[http://www.duncancampbell.org/ "Duncan Campbell, investigative journalist and forensic expert"]</ref>
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In [[Official Secrets Act 1989|1989]], Section 2 was amended to make it an offence to divulge information only in relation to six specific categories.
  
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==The Guardian==
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===Echelon===
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Duncan Campbell is a freelance writer who worked for ''[[The Guardian]]'' for more than 20 years, as crime correspondent and Los Angeles correspondent. He previously worked for ''City Limits'', ''Time Out'' and ''LBC''. He is the author of two novels, "If It Bleeds", published in 2009, and "The Paradise Trail", (2008) and five non-fiction books, including "The Underworld" and "That Was Business, This Is Personal".<ref>[http://www.theguardian.com/profile/duncancampbell "Profile Duncan Campbell"]</ref>
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In 1988, Duncan Campbell revealed the existence of the [[Echelon]] surveillance program.<ref>''[http://www.duncancampbell.org/ "Duncan Campbell, investigative journalist and forensic expert"]''</ref>
  
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==GCHQ==
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===''New Statesman''===
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Duncan Campbell has exposed state snooping for nearly 40 years. In 1976, he revealed for the first time the existence of [[GCHQ]] ([[Government Communications Headquarters]]) in a piece for ''Time Out'' magazine called, "The Eavesdroppers". This led to his arrest under the Official Secrets Act the following year, when the government attempted to imprison him for 30 years.
+
After the [[ABC Trial|trial]], Duncan Campbell joined the ''[[New Statesman]]'' magazine. During his 15 years, he investigated Britain’s secret phone-tapping centres, corruption in [[GCHQ]], secret war time plans to suspend civil liberties, and the top secret global surveillance programme, [[Echelon]]. Recently, he has produced reports based on the [[Edward Snowden|Snowden]] files for the ''Independent'', including how the British Embassy in Berlin was being used as a covert listening station.
  
−
After the trial, he joined the ''New Statesman'' magazine. During his 15 years, he investigated Britain’s secret phone-tapping centres, corruption in GCHQ, secret war time plans to suspend civil liberties, and the top secret global surveillance programme, [[Echelon]]. Recently, he has produced reports based on the [[Edward Snowden|Snowden]] files for the ''Independent'', including how the British Embassy in Berlin was being used as a covert listening station.
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===2013===
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In 2013, Campbell spoke at an event called [[Brighton CryptoFestival]] that aimed to raise awareness about government [[mass surveillance]] and the availability of countermeasures.<ref>''[https://www.cryptoparty.in/brighton_cryptofestival "Brighton CryptoFestival 2013"]''</ref>
  
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==CryptoFestival==
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===2017===
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Against a backdrop of surveillance by the [[NSA ]]and GCHQ and tracking by companies such as ''Google'' and ''Facebook'', the [https://twitter.com/cryptofestival "CryptoFestival"] explored surveillance culture, and looked at some platforms and projects that are being created with privacy as a principal aim, and offered practical advice on how to protect your data.
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In November 2017, marking the 40th anniversary of the arrests of the ABC three, [[John Ashley Berry|John Berry]] and Duncan Campbell took part in a panel discussion with [[Statewatch]] Director [[Tony Bunyan]] and [[Sarah Kavanagh]], [[NUJ]] Senior Campaigns and communications officer, looking at the events from those involved in 1977 and considering its legacy today. It was organised by Aubrey’s family as part of the [[Crispin Aubrey#Legacy Fund|Crispin Aubrey Legacy Fund]] set up to support aspiring journalists and in conjunction with the University of West of England’s Film and Journalism Department and Bristol Festival of Ideas.<ref>''[https://www.ideasfestival.co.uk/events/abc-secrecy-trial/ "The ABC Secrecy Trial – 40 Years On"]''</ref>
  
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The format was a mixture of talks, workshops, and activities. The "CryptoFestival" was free and intended for everyone; no prior technical expertise or knowledge was assumed. Part of the day involved practical aspects, so many brought along their device of choice!<ref>[http://www.lighthouse.org.uk/programme/brighton-cryptofestival "Brighton CryptoFestival"]</ref>
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===2018===
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In January 2018, Campbell published an article in ''[[The Guardian]]'' entitled ''Why the secret handshake between police and Freemasons should worry us'', arguing that "membership of both bodies is incompatible with public service".<ref>https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/jan/02/secret-handshake-police-freemasons</ref>  
 
{{SMWDocs}}
 
{{SMWDocs}}
 
==References==
 
==References==
 
{{reflist}}
 
{{reflist}}

Latest revision as of 20:26, 4 January 2018

Person.png Duncan Campbell   Facebook WebsiteRdf-entity.pngRdf-icon.png
(journalist, author)
Duncan Campbell.jpg
At RAF Menwith Hill, eavesdropping base
Born1952
Glasgow, Scotland, United Kingdom
NationalityBritish
Exposed • ECHELON
• GCHQ
Celebrated investigative journalist.

Employment.png Associate editor

In office
1988 - 1991
EmployerNew Statesman
Investigations

Employment.png Staff writer

In office
1978 - 1991
EmployerNew Statesman

Duncan Campbell is a British freelance investigative journalist, author and television producer, who revealed GCHQ and the ECHELON program in the course of his work.

Career

Since 1975 he has specialised in the subjects of intelligence and security services, defence, policing, civil liberties and, latterly, computer forensics. From 1978-91, he was a staff writer at the New Statesman and associate editor (Investigations) from 1988-91.

In 1977-78, Duncan Campbell was prosecuted under the Official Secrets Act in the ABC Trial and made the series Secret Society for the BBC in 1987. Before the programme ran, however, the BBC became nervous about the nature of its content and approached the Thatcher government for advice. Their reaction was to raid the BBC’s Scottish headquarters and then Campbell’s home. Special Branch seized the film in what became known as the Zircon affair.[1]

GCHQ

Duncan Campbell has exposed state snooping for nearly 40 years. In 1976, he revealed for the first time the existence of GCHQ (Government Communications Headquarters) in a piece for Time Out magazine called, "The Eavesdroppers". This led to his arrest in February 1977 with Crispin Aubrey and John Berry, and their being charged under Sections 1 and 2 of the Official Secrets Act 1911 (Berry was charged with "communicating classified information to unauthorised persons", and Campbell and Aubrey with "unauthorised receipt of classified information").[2]

ABC Trial

Duncan Campbell, Crispin Aubrey and John Berry convicted at the ABC Trial

On 5 September 1978, the resulting ABC Trial opened at the Old Bailey in front of Mr Justice Willis but was stopped two weeks later after the jury foreman was exposed as a former SAS officer. Three weeks after the second trial opened in front of Mr Justice Mars-Jones on 3 October 1978, all Section 1 charges were dropped. On 17 November 1978, Crispin Aubrey, John Berry and Duncan Campbell were found guilty and received non-custodial sentences. The ABC Trial was described by defence witness Ewen Carmichael as "a farcical romp of political stupidity, as prosecution witnesses, testifying anonymously under letters of the alphabet – in particular witness B, Colonel Hugh Johnstone, head of Signals Intelligence – were identified to the public outside the courts, and later by NUJ members at their annual conference." To Crispin Aubrey, the prosecution's attempts at secrecy were "the security services trying to cloak their witnesses in anonymous letters and make the whole affair appear more sinister."

In 1989, Section 2 was amended to make it an offence to divulge information only in relation to six specific categories.

Echelon

In 1988, Duncan Campbell revealed the existence of the Echelon surveillance program.[3]

New Statesman

After the trial, Duncan Campbell joined the New Statesman magazine. During his 15 years, he investigated Britain’s secret phone-tapping centres, corruption in GCHQ, secret war time plans to suspend civil liberties, and the top secret global surveillance programme, Echelon. Recently, he has produced reports based on the Snowden files for the Independent, including how the British Embassy in Berlin was being used as a covert listening station.

2013

In 2013, Campbell spoke at an event called Brighton CryptoFestival that aimed to raise awareness about government mass surveillance and the availability of countermeasures.[4]

2017

In November 2017, marking the 40th anniversary of the arrests of the ABC three, John Berry and Duncan Campbell took part in a panel discussion with Statewatch Director Tony Bunyan and Sarah Kavanagh, NUJ Senior Campaigns and communications officer, looking at the events from those involved in 1977 and considering its legacy today. It was organised by Aubrey’s family as part of the Crispin Aubrey Legacy Fund set up to support aspiring journalists and in conjunction with the University of West of England’s Film and Journalism Department and Bristol Festival of Ideas.[5]

2018

In January 2018, Campbell published an article in The Guardian entitled Why the secret handshake between police and Freemasons should worry us, arguing that "membership of both bodies is incompatible with public service".[6]

 

Documents by Duncan Campbell

TitleDocument typePublication dateSubject(s)Description
Document:GCHQ and Me: My Life Unmasking British EavesdroppersArticle3 August 2015GCHQ
UKUSA
SIGINT
Edward Snowden
ECHELON
Robert Hannigan
ABC Trial
Transparency International
Menwith Hill
Reiner Braun		No one at the May 2015 conference on intelligence, security and privacy argued against greater openness. Thanks to Edward Snowden and those who courageously came before, the need for public accountability and review has become unassailable.
Document:Memo To Prime Minister - Your Merchants of Death Are Cooking The Booksarticle17 October 1980Arms deal
Margaret Thatcher
Millbank Technical Services
Document:Why the secret handshake between police and Freemasons should worry usArticle2 January 2018Metropolitan Police
Freemasonry
Brian Paddick		Successive Met Commissioners have tried to end the society’s influence. It is as clear as ever that membership of both bodies is incompatible with public service.
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References

  1. ↑ "Duncan Campbell biography"
  2. ↑ "GCHQ and Me: My Life Unmasking British Eavesdroppers"
  3. ↑ "Duncan Campbell, investigative journalist and forensic expert"
  4. ↑ "Brighton CryptoFestival 2013"
  5. ↑ "The ABC Secrecy Trial – 40 Years On"
  6. ↑ https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/jan/02/secret-handshake-police-freemasons
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