Bloggers on the left , right and center are slamming Time's decision to turn over Matthew Cooper's notes in the Valerie Plame case. Gotta say, as a former member of the MSM myself, I am surprised with the reaction, and the hewing to "journalistic principles" involved in Cooper and Judith Miller's refusal to name their source(s). Cooper and Miller aren't protecting some good-egg Whistleblower in the Bush White House, they're shielding a potential felon and in my opinion, a two-bit traitor who cared more about political advantage than America's national security. And Time is simply protecting its bottom line, its reporter, and -- well -- upholding the rule of law. If the two reporters had known the identity of the Unabomber and refused to give that up to authorities, even with a court order and a Supreme Court ruling backing up the prosecutors, would it then be OK for one of their publications to give up the goods? It would be different if there were a federal privilege, but there isn't, which is why the SupCo refused to hear Cooper and Miller's case. Jeff Jarvis makes some good points on the subject of privlege here.
Either way, I'll bet somewhere in a D.C. drink spot, Matt Cooper is downing a fifth of scotch and thanking God Time gave him up so he doesn't have to marry some guy with jailhouse tats. Previous post: What about Bob? |
