(CNN) -- President Barack Obama on Friday defended the the "vital role" that intelligence-gathering plays in the nation's security, as he nonetheless announced changes aimed at increasing transparency and protecting privacy and civil liberties.
Presidential guidance released as Obama spoke at the Justice Department said the government will not collect intelligence "for the purpose of suppressing or burdening criticism or dissent, or for disadvantaging persons based on their ethnicity, race, gender, sexual orientation, or religion."
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