How can a journalist request Federal Bureau of Investigation files on an individual? It can get tricky if you’re trying to obtain the FBI file of a living person without a privacy waiver; an alternative could be to get records of an organization or case they were involved with to see what you can find there. JPat Brown, executive editor at GIJN member MuckRock, prepared a useful step-by-step flowchart guide for all scenarios to help ensure you’ve gathered everything you need before filing that FOIA.