Buzzfeed interview
In an interview with Buzzfeed, Keys talks about his time in prison, where he spent his time refurbishing computers.
The case was serious enough to convict me, only for me to wind up refurbishing computers so the government can make money. The irony is not lost on me…I always assumed that I would be on the front lines when the shit did finally hit the fan. That’s not what wound up happening. Instead I ended up sitting back and watching the world burn.
Wants to return to journalism
In an interview with Ars Technica, Keys says there will be no further appeal, that he did not commit the crime for which he was convicted, and that he wants to return to journalism.
I hope that I’m privileged enough to find work in journalism. I work hard, and I’m smart, but I do have an uphill battle going forward…I came to terms with the fact that I suffer from mental illness. Being online and constantly throwing myself into work—I wasn’t getting help. [Now] I’m eating better, I look better, I feel better. I still struggle with depression and anxiety…I would like to go back into journalism. I’ve had a very small number of people come up to me with leads and with prospective job opportunities. I’m currently tiptoeing around [Bureau of Prison] rules with respect to what I can and cannot do while I’m still here. So I am open to all offers; it’s a matter of when I can act on them. I think I could start acting on them now, but a lot of it is trial and error.
Pleads for help from Obama
Keys sends a five-page letter (source) to President Obama, asking him to intercede in his case, arguing that federal statute is being misapplied and that a sentence of two years in prison over such an event is excessive.
Although I do not understand the nuances of law, I am aware that at this point only presidential intervention in the form of a commutation of sentence or a presidential pardon can prevent the execution of this draconian sentence. Therefore, I respectfully request your assistance in advocating on my behalf for President Obama to review my case and consider using any and all executive powers afforded to him in preventing my scheduled incarceration and any other provision of the sentence for his he feels is unjustified and unwarranted. Doing so would not only reverse what many consider to be an unwarranted sentence triggered by an overzealous prosecutor based on a draconian and outdated law, it will allow me to continue serving the public as a journalist.
‘Keys is innocent’ letter
Ars Technica reports that hours before Keyes was sentenced, they received a letter (link) from an anonymous source, called “Sam Snow”, saying that Keys was wrongfully accused. In the letter, Snow described himself as someone who met Keys on a dating website in 2009. The pair dated briefly, but they eventually decided to just be friends. Eventually, Snow says, Keys gave him a key to his apartment, with an open invitation to come by anytime he wanted. Snow then describes how he did the actions Keys is accused of.
[Keys] never gave a username and password for any computer system to any hacker or hacking group. He never conspired to hack his former employer, and he never sent e-mails to any of his co-workers or the audience of the TV station where he worked. I know he did not do any of the things for which he has been accused—because I did them, and again this is something I can prove.
Keys tells Ars that he did not send the letter and declines further comment. Keys’ lawyers say that they had received a copy of the letter in January 2016 (it is dated January 3, 2015), but that it was far too late and contained far too little verifiable proof to be useful in Keys’ defense.
Guardian interview
Keys is interviewed by The Guardian.
It’s fairly common knowledge at this point that this was a very heavy-handed prosecution. We have a real shot of narrowing the applicability of the law so that this doesn’t happen to anybody else. Regarding assertions that his crimes constituted terrorist acts, he added, “I think that anybody who has met me, anybody that’s followed my work would highly dispute that. I didn’t ask for this fight, this fight came at my door. It was an opportunistic prosecutor that seized the moment…Being able to continue working is very important to me. I’m not going away soon.
Case review
Motherboard’s Jeong reviews the case and interviews both Keys and the prosecutor about the outcome. Keys:
[My] only crime is committing the act of journalism…Everything I’ve done since Day 1 as a journalist has been in the interest of the public. That hasn’t changed. The charges didn’t change that, the conviction won’t change that, either.
US Attorney:
The evidence at trial was that Matthew Keys gave a malicious online hacking group super-user credentials to the Los Angeles Times, and told them to… mess stuff up [actually “go f-ck some shit up]. And what he did after that when they didn’t mess stuff up enough to his liking, is that he took a link to an article that the Los Angeles Times had published, and said that this is why the Los Angeles Times must be ‘demolished.’ I don’t understand how any person, journalist or not, could consider that journalism or promoting the First Amendment. That is a serious threat to all the things that the First Amendment is supposed to protect.
Statement
Keys posts a statement about his firing to Tumblr.
Reuters claims that during my coverage of the Boston Marathon bombings, I violated a grievance aired by the company in a written warning issued in October 2012, explicitly that the company “must see immediate improvement in your communication with managers and more discretion in your social media practices.” (The company does not define what “more discretion” is)…Reuters said they particularly disagreed with my decision to continue tweeting scanner traffic after several other news organizations had reported a request from the Boston Police Department to not tweet information heard on scanner traffic.
Accuses DeRosa of copying Tweets
Keys accuses De Rosa, his boss, of copying his tweets.
.@AntDeRosa please don't copy/paste from my tweets – pic.twitter.com/YKsoErlkoR
— Matthew Keys (@MatthewKeysLive) April 17, 2013
Reuters final warning
Keys receives a final written warning from Reuters about using a parody account to mock Larry Page, while employed at the company.
Although you eventually revealed yourself as the owner of the account, this series of actions displayed a serious lack of judgement and professionalism that is unbecoming of a Reuters journalist…Reuters journalists are never to misrepresent themselves. The creation of a fake account that did not identify you as the author clearly violates our Social Media Policy. The parody account, which disparages a public figure, also undermines our goal to provide an unbiased and reliable news service to our clients…Furthermore, the fake account embarrassed our News reporting team, and has possibly damaged our relationship with a company that we have covered aggressively.
Creates parody Twitter account
Keys creates a parody account called @PendingLarry which mocks the early release of financial data by Google’s Larry Page. The account is mentioned widely in the press, including on Reuters own wire service.