Reporters Face Jail in ‘Outing’ of CIA Agent

Re “Jailing Journalists,” editorial, Feb. 17: Journalistic integrity would seem to rely on individuals to maintain the trust of their sources. If, of course, their sources are inaccurate or willfully misleading, this presents another problem. In the case of the deliberate leak of a CIA agent’s name by “someone of influence” in the White House, accountability seems to reside in the total chain of information.

Protecting sources is essential. What to do in the case of malicious intent requires a deeper scrutiny of journalistic responsibility and accountability in attaining information. Journalists should not be targeted, nor should they be exempt from the law.

Yukie Yamada

Wailuku, Hawaii

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Would someone tell me why reporters Judith Miller of the New York Times and Matt Cooper of Time magazine are being threatened with prison, and columnist “Bobby-boy” Novak, whose outing of CIA operative Valerie Plame would be considered treasonous were he not conservative, is not sitting in federal prison with a bag over his head? This president and his neocon cronies apparently believe they can get away with anything.

Allan Rabinowitz

Los Angeles

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I must take exception to the conclusions drawn in your editorial regarding the jailing of journalists. I am not employed by the news media in any capacity. A free press, flawed though it may be, is the only thing that we have to protect us from our government.

Bill Pyper

San Luis Obispo

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I cannot object to the court of appeals’ 3-0 ruling against Cooper and Miller. Your Feb. 16 article, “Judges Say Reporters Must Name Sources in CIA Case,” asserts that the right to refuse to testify is a 1st Amendment right. I would argue that freedom of the press does not include freedom from justice.

In the case of the CIA leak, these reporters allegedly assisted in a felonious act and are shielding those who should be prosecuted for it. Where journalistic confidentiality is concerned, there is a difference between protecting whistle-blowers and obstructing justice. The judicial sanctions against reporters cited by your article are justified because the reporters themselves have overstepped the bounds of law and journalistic integrity.

We should be gravely concerned by reporters who aid in character assassinations before trial, especially when there is no criminal wrongdoing except for the leak itself in which the reporter took part. We should thank the courts for enforcing some degree of ethics in journalism because it’s increasingly apparent that news media are incapable of policing themselves.

Jonathan Brandt

Calabasas