Glenn Greenwald, the Guardian journalist, commentator and lawyer who worked with Edward Snowden to publish stunning details about the National Security Agency's massive online surveillance program earlier this year, announced on Tuesday that he is leaving The Guardian to start his own venture.
eBay founder Pierre Omidyar confirmed that he is backing the project. Documentary filmmaker Laura Poitras, who worked with Greenwald on the NSA revelations, and The Nation's national security correspondent Jeremy Scahill, are reportedly in talks to join the organization as well.
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In a statement, Greenwald, who is based in Brazil, wrote that his partnership with The Guardian has been "extremely fruitful and fulfilling." He added that "the decision to leave was not an easy one, but I was presented with a once-in-a-career dream journalistic opportunity that no journalist could possibly decline."
News of Greenwald's departure was first reported by BuzzFeed on Tuesday.
So what kind of venture is Greenwald leaving for? Little is known this point, though I wouldn't be surprised if Greenwald was on his way to set up an independent venture under his own name, à la Andrew Sullivan's The Dish. What else could lure Greenwald away from The Guardian, which gave him a wide-reaching platform and, more valuably, the protection of an established, multinational journalistic organization?
Omidyar, who has an estimated net worth of about $8.5 billion, is well-positioned to back Greenwald — and not just because he has deep pockets. In recent years, the Washington area native has funded local news sites with an investigative bent, most notably the three-year-old site Honolulu Civil Beat and the now-defunct Backfence, a network of 13 neighborhood news sites in the Washington area.
The new venture is being officially funded by Omidyar's philanthropic investment firm, Omidyar Network, which is co-operated by his wife Pamela and currently funds Honolulu Civic Beat.
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