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Meet the Oscar-nominated filmmaker at the heart of the Snowden leaks

Meet the Oscar-nominated filmmaker at the heart of the Snowden leaks

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Every time The Guardian releases a new report on the leaked NSA documents provided to it by Edward Snowden, Glenn Greenwald's name is listed on the byline. But there's a name behind his that's been standing just out of the spotlight: Laura Poitras, an Oscar-nominated documentary filmmaker who's been his partner in reading through the leaked materials. In an extensive profile of Poitras' involvement with the leaks, The New York Times reports that she hasn't simply been along for the ride with Greenwald — she was actually responsible for bringing him into the loop.

According to the Times, Snowden was originally interested in speaking with Greenwald, but was unable to securely contact him. He later turned to Poitras, who was able to set up a secure connection and eventually loop Greenwald in on what she'd learned. Since then, the pair has been responsible for meeting with Snowden and sorting through the documents. They reportedly haven't shared the full set of leaked files with anyone else, and they're apparently unlikely to do so.