LICENSE TO MARVEL: Marvel’s upcoming Disney+ spy thriller “Zodiac” has recruited Israeli writers Amit Cohen and Ron Leshem, Deadline reports. The pair know the territory. Their credits include “8200,” named for Israel’s signals intelligence unit (roughly its answer to the NSA), and “Traitor.” Leshem also created the original Israeli version of “Euphoria.” The series will reportedly follow two spies hunting people with extraordinary abilities. Marvel Television chief Brad Winderbaum gave away little more at New York Comic Con earlier this month, The Playlist reported. He called it “a globetrotting, international espionage show about secrets and lies and betrayals and secret acts of loyalty and an insane cast of characters,” then said he had to stop talking. Production is expected to begin in London in spring 2027, with a 2028 premiere planned. Apparently, even superpowers won’t keep you off a watch list.
SENSITIVE COMPARTMENTED INFATUATION: A CIA contractor allegedly shared classified intelligence with his girlfriend. She happened to run a newsletter. The FBI arrested Ian Brinksman, 42, on Friday after searching his Washington home, the Justice Department said. Brinksman held a Top Secret clearance with access to Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI), the control system for the government’s most closely guarded intelligence. Prosecutors say he reached well outside his own duties to pull intelligence reports. An FBI affidavit reported by Reuters alleges that on at least five occasions this year, her Substack newsletter published articles that mirrored classified reports, some at the Top Secret level. The affidavit identifies her only as “Individual 1.” Reuters and The Hill matched its excerpts to Capital & Empire, a newsletter written by journalist Aída Chávez. Her September fundraising appeal told readers she had published reporting based on classified assessments. Her social media profile was more direct: “I also accept leaks.” Brinksman is charged with unlawfully transmitting national defense information and is presumed innocent. Only Brinksman has been charged. A security clearance is not a couples’ subscription plan.
PRESS RELEASE YOURSELF: As rumors swirled that she was on her way out of the State Department, Kristi Noem found a solution. She apparently wrote her own press release. On Oct. 16 the former Homeland Security secretary posted an official-looking State Department statement on X. It said her six-month stint as President Trump’s special envoy for the Shield of the Americas, a Western Hemisphere security initiative, had ended. It also said that “Secretary Noem remains at the State Department as a Senior Advisor.” Two people familiar with her work told Politico the department never authorized the release. One said Noem “went rogue and created a fake letterhead.” The release did get the facts right. A State Department official had already told CBS News that her envoy status had expired and that she now advises Deputy Secretary Christopher Landau. Neither Noem nor the department responded to Politico’s requests for comment. If this latest advisory position doesn’t work out, maybe she can get a gig working in the press office. But for now, in Washington, apparently, even your job title can become an unauthorized disclosure.
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