Our Lips Are Sealed? Journalists and Confidential Sources
Linda Foley, President of The Newspaper Guild, and Irwin Gratz, President of Society of Professional Journalists
On July 6, 2005, New York
Times reporter Judith Miller was jailed by a federal judge for refusing
to testify before a grand jury investigating the leak of CIA operative
Valerie Plame’s identity. Time magazine’s Matthew Cooper was spared
jail when his confidential source in the White House rescinded his
demand for anonymity.
The U.S. Supreme Court’s refusal to hear an appeal from Miller and
Cooper has sparked a national debate about journalism and the use of
confidential sources. Recently in our own community, The Plain Dealer’s
Doug Clifton revealed that he had withheld two articles from
publication for fear they would lead to a leak investigation by
prosecutors.
According to a May 2005 poll commissioned by the First Amendment
Center and the American Journalism Review, 69% of Americans feel
journalists should be allowed to keep a news source confidential, and
74% of Americans endorsed the media’s role as a watchdog. However, an
equally high percentage of journalists and the public question the
accuracy of a news story that relies on an unnamed source.
What is the future of the use of confidential sources in news
stories? Is the First Amendment strong enough to protect journalists
pursuing stories and reporting them? Is a federal shield law needed in
order to ensure an independent media?
Linda Foley, president of The Newspaper Guild, and Irwin Gratz,
president of Society of Professional Journalists, will discuss the
current debate and the impact it has on reporters and editors. Tim
Smith, professor of news at Kent State University, will moderate.