PRISM

[ZenGum]

I now understand that I named this thread badly.

PRISM is a program to monitor suspects outside the US.

There is also the NSA's storing and collation of metadata on (presumably) all US citizens. I don't know if this has a catchy name, but it isn't PRISM.

And this Snowden fellow has been very strategic, first in decloaking in China, then flying to Russia (yet not, apparently, crossing the border, apparently in transit). So of two countries in the world that can (and like to) look the US in the eye and say no, Snowden has managed to entangle both - thereby both thwarting the US government's attempts to pursue him, and getting the story to the public attention in those countries. I'm sure the people of China and Russia have seen the story and most assumed their own governments were doing likewise.