There is very little new about this NSA "scandal". This was widely reported starting back in 2002 when it was discovered that they had set up this program without any oversight... "Warrantless Wiretapping". Remember?
Here is an article that pretty much has everything except the program name "PRISM" in it from May 2006.
http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/...
The National Security Agency has been secretly collecting the phone call records of tens of millions of Americans, using data provided by AT&T, Verizon and BellSouth, people with direct knowledge of the arrangement told USA TODAY.
The NSA program reaches into homes and businesses across the nation by amassing information about the calls of ordinary Americans — most of whom aren't suspected of any crime. This program does not involve the NSA listening to or recording conversations. But the spy agency is using the data to analyze calling patterns in an effort to detect terrorist activity, sources said in separate interviews.
In my opinion, Glenn Greenwald has had an agenda for some years now... not sure what it is exactly... but it isn't as pristine as some people are making it out to be. I am not the only one that shares this opinion. Here is an opinion piece by Bob Cesca that I think is entirely on point.
http://thedailybanter.com/...
I’m going to put it all out there and let the chips fall where they may: I’m increasingly convinced that Glenn Greenwald’s reporting on the NSA story is tainted by his well-known agenda, leading him to make broad claims for the purposes of inciting outrage. Yes, this is only a theory. But there continues to be a growing number of questions key to the NSA surveillance story that remain unanswered by Greenwald.
Greenwald has flat out refused to offer any sort of revisions or clarifications on his reporting, even though many of the questions have come from other publications and other NSA sources. And that strongly indicates to me that he’s sticking with his reporting and refuses to shed any more light — transparency, if you will — onto some of the rough edges that continue to be uncovered by various other outlets, including CNET, TechCrunch, TPM, The New York Times, ZDNet, the Los Angeles Times and so forth.