"... even in this country, where press freedom is protected under the First Amendment, journalists have been turned into targets for doing their jobs."

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Going after journalists
August 25, 2014

These are tough times for journalists — and for Americans who depend on the information they provide. Last week, Islamist terrorists released a propaganda video capturing the savage beheading of photojournalist James Foley. But even in this country, where press freedom is protected under the First Amendment, journalists have been turned into targets for doing their jobs.

Case in point: Two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times reporter James Risen is facing jail time for the “crime” of committing an act of journalism. This month, outraged over his continued prosecution, he labeled President Obama “the greatest enemy to press freedom in a generation.”

The case dates to 2006, when Risen wrote a book, “State of War,” which describes various aspects of the U.S. government’s espionage activities. In reporting the book, it is alleged that Mr. Risen used Jeffrey Sterling, a former Central Intelligence Agency agent, as a source. Mr. Sterling stands accused of leaking confidential information regarding U.S. efforts to curtail Iran’s nuclear weapons program.

The government has for six years attempted to compel Mr. Risen to testify against Mr. Sterling, a process that began under President Bush and has continued under Obama’s Department of Justice. (The Obama administration has also engaged in spying on reporters.) But Mr. Risen refuses to compromise the identity of his source. He would “rather go to jail than give up everything he believes in,” Mr. Risen has said in explaining his steadfastness.

Mr. Risen is defending an important principle. The free press depends on journalists being able to protect the identity of their sources. Otherwise, who knows what kinds of terrible secrets would remain sheltered from the public view? Indeed, whistleblowers have historically played a very important role in revealing governmental and corporate malfeasance, from the Pentagon Papers to Enron’s egregious cooking of the books.

This is a position endorsed by 14 Pulitzer Prize-winning journalists, who this month issued a statement supporting Mr. Risen. As the reporter Dana Priest eloquently put it, “As Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama classified more and more of the government’s actions over the last 14 years, denying the public critical information to judge how its democracy is faring, it has fallen to reporters like Risen to keep Americans informed and to question whether a gigantic government in the shadows is really even a good idea. We will all be worse off if this case proceeds.”

Meanwhile, more than 100,000 Americans have signed a petition demanding that the government halt all legal actions against Mr. Risen. Readers of The Providence Journal could do worse than to add their names to this important document. They can find the petition here: http://act.rootsaction.org/p/dia/action3/common/public/?action_KEY=9775
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