This article is an excerpt from the Shortform summary of "Permanent Record" by Edward Snowden. Shortform has the world's best summaries of books you should be reading.
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What are the major events in Edward Snowden’s life? What does the Edward Snowden timeline cover? When did he enter his career and then become a leaker?
The Edward Snowden timeline covers key events that shaped the future whistleblower. It also covers timing of his discovery and eventual leaking of government documents.
Learn more about the key events in this Edward Snowden timeline.
Edward Snowden Timeline
Edward Snowden was born on June 21, 1983, in Elizabeth City, North Carolina. Ed was part of the last generation whose childhood wasn’t digitized.
Edward Snowden Timeline: Childhood and Exposure to Technology (Ages 6-9)
Ed liked spying when he was a child. His father often had access to new technology in his work with the Coast Guard. Sometimes, he would bring technology home. One day, Lonnie brought home a Commodore 64, one of the first home computers. Ed spied on his father while he played Choplifter! In 1989, when Ed was six, his family got a Nintendo (8-bit NES).
Ed and his family moved to Crofton, Maryland when Ed was nine. His father continued to work for the Coast Guard. His mother took a new job at the National Security Agency (NSA). She made retirement arrangements for spies.
Hacking and Addicted to the Internet (Ages 12-15)
When Ed was approximately 12, he decided to spend as much time as he possibly could online. The Internet became an obsession. He became paler, sedentary, and slept at school instead of at night. His grades fell again. He didn’t mind because he was getting an education online and his parents were happy enough with this reasoning—for a while.
As Ed entered his teenage years, he encountered the same struggle all teenagers have to deal with—feeling like they’re adults but being treated like children. This was where he really started questioning the rules—if there wasn’t a good justification for a rule to be followed, it was just a power trip. At this time in his life, Ed thought in terms of black and white—binary is only 0 or 1, false or true. He hadn’t developed nuance. Ed’s teenage rebellion consisted of hacking.
First Tech Job (Age 16-17)
When Ed was attending college, he met Mae in Japanese class. Mae was a published artist who also owned a web-design business. Ed was infatuated with her and started working as a web designer for her company.
9/11 (Age 18)
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Like what you just read? Read the rest of the world's best summary of Edward Snowden's "Permanent Record" at Shortform .
Here's what you'll find in our full Permanent Record summary :
- What Ed Snowden discovered that caused him to completely lose faith in the government
- How Snowden led the bombshell reports of US mass surveillance
- How Snowden is coping with his treatment as both patriot and traitor
