Final answer:
The Espionage and Sedition Acts, originally established during WWI to suppress opposition to the war, were largely repealed in the 1920s but have had lasting impacts and are still used to prosecute modern government whistleblowers who disclose classified information (option B).
Step-by-step explanation:
The correct answer to the question regarding the relevance and application of the Espionage and Sedition Acts is option B) It was applied recently to convict government whistleblowers who disclosed to the public classified information. The acts, passed in 1917 and 1918 respectively, were designed to suppress opposition to World War I and have since had lasting impacts on laws relating to free speech and national security in the U.S.
Although Congress repealed most provisions of these acts in the early 1920s, aspects of the Espionage Act have indeed been used in modern times to charge government whistleblowers. The acts made it illegal to interfere with military operations, support U.S. enemies during wartime, promote insubordination in the military, or to interfere with military recruitment. Over time, the Espionage Act has been used to target not just spies, but also individuals deemed to have improperly disclosed sensitive information to the public.
Despite originally being passed to target anti-war efforts during World War I, the Espionage Act's language is broad enough that it has remained relevant over 100 years later, as in the cases of whistleblowers like Julian Assange, Chelsea Manning, and Edward Snowden, which have shed light on the continued application of the act in the context of national security and classified information disclosure.