Snowden Asks Putin on Live TV If He Spies on Russians

In what could be best described as a bizarre PR stunt, Edward Snowden made a surprise appearance on live TV to ask Russian President Vladimir Putin whether he spies on his citizens.

Snowden, who has received asylum in Russia, appeared during Putin's annual call-in show on Russian TV on Thursday, during which Putin answered questions from the public. It's unclear whether Snowden's appearance was staged, but his question gave Putin a chance to poke at his favorite target: the United States.

"Does Russia store, intercept, or analyze, in any way, the communications of millions of individuals, and do you believe that simply increasing the effectiveness of intelligence or law enforcement investigations can justify a place in societies rather than subjects under surveillance?" Snowden asked Putin (see the full exchange in the video embedded below). Read more...