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The Source: Calls For NSA Reforms Go Corporate | Veterans Heal Through Comedy In New Documentary

National Security Agency

In the first segment:

On Monday, the largest tech companies in the world, including Apple, Microsoft, and Facebook, began a campaign to influence lawmakers to curb the government's power to snoop.  On their new website, they lay out five principles they would like to see in the reforms from transparency and oversight to codified limitations to compel service providers to provide user data.

"Reports about government surveillance have shown there is a real need for greater disclosure and new limits on how governments collect information. The US government should take this opportunity to lead this reform effort and make things right." —Mark Zuckerberg, CEO, Facebook

Most people hope to be anonymous on the Internet, according to a recent Pew poll:

Over half (55 percent) of all people admit to trying to avoid observation from individuals, groups or the government online.

Even more (86 percent) have taken steps to erase their digital footprints. 

What do these new developments in the campaign for greater online privacy mean to advocates working through the court systems?  We talk with David Greene, senior attorney for the Electronic Frontier Foundation on what how this week's news affects their efforts.

In the second segment:

131211-source-comedy-warriors.mp3

When Robert "Bobby" Henline came back from the war in Iraq he was burned over almost half of his body and he would lose his left hand. He was the only survivor when his Humvee drove over an improvised explosive.  Going into comedy doesn't sound like the next step for someone with that kind of trauma, but that is exactly what he did.  In 2008 Texas Public Radio met Henline and told his storyand then followed up when he started taking his traumatic experiences on stage to get laughs.

A new documentary paired five wounded veterans with top-level comic writers and performers like "The Office's" B.J. Novak and "The Hangover's" Zach Galifianakis.  They were to train and prepare for a full scale comedic event. "Comedy Warriors: Healing Through Humor" debuted on Showtime last week, but don't worry if you missed it--because in addition to being broadcast again, we have director John Wager and Bobby Henline on to tell you more about the experience.

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Paul Flahive can be reached at Paul@tpr.org