Edward Snowden, Glenn Greenwald urge caution of wider government monitoring at Amnesty event

Supporters of Amnesty International cheer and shoot mobile phone videos as accused government whistleblower Edward Snowden is introduced via teleconference during the Amnesty International Human Rights Conference 2014 in Chicago.

A sympathetic crowd of nearly 1,000 packed a downtown Chicago hotel ballroom at Amnesty International USA's annual human rights meeting and gave Mr Greenwald, who dialed in from Brazil, a raucous welcome before Mr Snowden was patched in 15 minutes later to a standing ovation.

The pair cautioned that government monitoring of "metadata" is more intrusive than directly listening to phone calls or reading emails and stressed the importance of a free press willing to scrutinize government activity.

Metadata includes which telephone number calls which other numbers, when the calls were made and how long they lasted. Metadata does not include the content of the calls.

Amnesty International is campaigning to end mass surveillance by the U.S. government and calling for Congressional action to further rein in the collection of information about telephone calls and other communications.

Last year, Mr Snowden, who had been working at a National Security Agency (NSA) facility as an employee of Booz Allen Hamilton, leaked a raft of secret documents that revealed a vast U.S. government system for monitoring phone and Internet data.

The leaks deeply embarrassed the Obama administration, which in January banned U.S. eavesdropping on the leaders of friendly countries and allies and began reining in the sweeping collection of Americans' phone data in a series of limited reforms triggered by Mr Snowden's revelations.

Mr Snowden faces arrest if he steps foot on U.S. soil.

President Barack Obama said last month he plans to ask Congress to end the bulk collection and storage of phone records by the NSA but allow the government to access metadata when needed.

Mr Snowden and Mr Greenwald said that such data is in fact more revealing than outright government spying on phone conversations and emails.

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Edward Snowden, Glenn Greenwald urge caution of wider government monitoring at Amnesty event