THE IG: FBI FOLKS – WHO WEREN'T AUTHORIZED TO CONTACT REPORTERS – WERE LEAKING LIKE CRAZY IN 2016
>“FBI employees received tickets to sporting events from journalists, went on golfing outings with media representatives, were treated to drinks and meals after work…"
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/unauthorized-fbi-leaks-hillary-clinton-email-case-under-investigation
So many FBI officials are talking to the press and attending "social events" with the media that it's impossible to say who might have leaked confidential information to the media during the investigation into Hillary Clinton's private emails, according to a report from the Justice Department's Office of Inspector General.
That report said the IG has
>"profound concerns about the volume and extent of unauthorized media contacts by FBI personnel that we have uncovered during our review.”
One mission of the IG was to see who might have leaked information from the FBI during the Clinton email probe. But it said that investigation had to continue, in part because so many FBI officials are talking to the press.
>“WE FREQUENTLY FIND THAT THE UNIVERSE OF DEPARTMENT AND FBI EMPLOYEES WHO HAD ACCESS TO SENSITIVE INFORMATION THAT HAS BEEN LEAKED IS SUBSTANTIAL, OFTEN INVOLVING DOZENS, AND IN SOME INSTANCES, MORE THAN 100 PEOPLE,” THE IG SAID.
Despite FBI policy limiting the employees who are authorized to speak to the media, the IG found the policy was “widely ignored."
>"We identified numerous FBI employees, at all levels of the organization and with no official reason to be in contact with the media, who were nevertheless in frequent contact with reporters,” the IG said.
>“The large number of FBI employees who were in contact with journalists during this time period impacted our ability to identify the sources of leaks.”
IG REPORT: FBI AGENTS REGULARLY RECEIVED FREE HANDOUTS FROM JOURNALISTS
http://dailycaller.com/2018/06/14/ig-report-fbi-agents-bribed-journalists/
The Department of Justice inspector general identified a number of instances where FBI employees regularly spoke with members of the media and received a number of free perks from journalists including meals and tickets to various events.
On page XII in the report, the IG says the department
>“identified numerous FBI employees, at all levels of the organization and with no official reason to be in contact with the media, who were nevertheless in frequent contact with reporters.”
The IG expressed
>“profound concerns bout the volume and extent of unauthorized media contacts by FBI personnel that we have uncovered our review.”
The contact between FBI agents and the media extended to receiving
>“improperly receiving benefits from reporters, including tickets to sporting events, golfing outings, drinks and meals, and admittance to nonpublic social events.”
In the following paragraph, the IG implies that such benefits could have encouraged various agents to leak information to the press
>“The harm caused by leaks, fear of potential leaks, and a culture of unauthorized media contacts is illustrated in Chapters Ten and Eleven of our report, where we detail the fact that these issues influenced FBI officials who were advising Comey on consequential investigative decisions in October 2016,” the report states.
THE IG IS UNAMBIGUOUS IN ITS OPINION THAT THE PROBLEM WITH LEAKING IS NOT
>“WITH THE FBI’S POLICY, WHICH WE FOUND TO BE CLEAR AND UNAMBIGUOUS.”
INSTEAD, THE LEAKING PHENOMENON
>“APPEARS TO BE A CULTURAL ATTITUDE AMONG MANY IN THE ORGANIZATION.”
ACCORDING TO CHARTS PROVIDED IN THE IG REPORT, ONE REPORTER HAD CONTACT WITH 12 FBI OFFICIALS, INCLUDING AN FBI EXECUTIVE AND UNIT CHIEF.