How surveillance crept up on us

After 9/11, the NYPD built one of the most sophisticated surveillance systems in the country using billions in tax dollars, all without standard public oversight. Decisions about what tech to adopt and how much to spend were made entirely within the department—the City Council and public were never consulted. For over a decade, the only records of these purchases were kept in offline filing cabinets, inaccessible to the public. The episode traces how this happened and the ongoing fight to force police departments to disclose how they're watching the public.