Ex-disinformation chief told to ‘be as vague as possible’ amid board collapse: Transcript

Nina Jankowicz, the former face of the short-lived Disinformation Governance Board, revealed to Congress that the Department of Homeland Security was intentionally opaque in the face of overwhelming criticism that led to the board’s collapse.

Jankowicz spoke to lawmakers during a deposition about the department’s internal decisions to address widespread concerns about the floundering board. The deposition took place last April, but after it was broached during a hearing this week, House Judiciary Committee members agreed to release a transcript of it on Friday.

Jankowicz said during the closed-door interview that her superiors prohibited her from taking a transparent approach when she repeatedly asked to give on-the-record details about the board.

“The guidance from up above was that we were to be as vague as possible, which I found very frustrating,” Jankowicz said.