Jailing Reporters

washingtonpost.com ^ | Saturday, November 27, 2004 | Editorial

[crushelits]

YET ANOTHER reporter is facing jail at the hands of a federal judge for doing his job. Jim Taricani, a reporter for WJAR television in Rhode Island, was convicted last week of criminal contempt of court for refusing to identify the person who leaked him an FBI videotape of a public official in Providence taking a bribe.

The story clearly was important. Several local officials, including the one on tape, went to prison in connection with the federal corruption investigation that produced the tape. But Chief Judge Ernest C. Torres of federal district court in Providence appointed a special prosecutor to investigate the leak.

Mr. Taricani honorably has refused to violate the promise of confidentiality he had to give his source to get important information to the public. As a consequence, Mr. Taricani, who has a history of heart trouble, could face up to six months in jail.

Mr. Taricani's case is unusual in one key respect. When courts lean on journalists to give up their sources, they normally hold them in civil contempt -- a device designed to force people into compliance with court orders through fines or jail time.

But coercive fines haven't loosened Mr. Taricani's tongue, and Judge Torres has now gone the wholly unwarranted extra step of convicting him of criminal contempt that is, the crime of disobeying a court order for which he will be punished as a lawbreaker.

[GSlob]

Good. In olden days this scoundrel of a reporter would have been thrown to lions, and now it's only time in a cooler.

[pete anderson]

I think Robert Novak is in the same situation.

I wonder if the lions would spit him out?

[TexasTransplant]

Time to research Judge Torres, see where he is from and why he feels that his OX was Gored, anyone in Pajamas out there up to it?

[garyhope]

Why do I think most "journalists" are hard left wing, anti-American flacks? And why don't I care if they throw them all in jail? Is that so wrong? Have I been deceived? Why are there so many left wing martyrs?

[eagle11]

I just like the sound of the story title. Yeah!

[TexasTransplant]

Why is the Reporter a scoundrel?

He got the goods, the deed was done, the doers of the deed that was done went to Jail and now the Judge wants to know where the reporter got the goods? Why?

[Boiler Plate]

Did someone nab Rather?

[GSlob]

"Why is the Reporter a scoundrel?
He got the goods, ..."
Because, if the article is to be believed, the reporter got "hot" goods. And a person dealing in "hot" goods IS a scoundrel.

[IncPen]

Jail?

Hell.

How about a blindfold and an unlit cigarette?

A cheap cigarette

And an admonition not to 'bogart' - be considerate of the next guy

[NY Attitude]

I tell you it is hell getting old. I believe that I read somewhere that the FBI was already investigating this case and were allowing it to proceed further in order to find out who else was involved. I also believe that what the reporter did was to halt any further investigation by the FBI because their investigation had been discovered.

[TexasTransplant]

Define "hot" goods.
If he (the reporter) got information that put away bad guys, why is that bad?

What did I miss, the only information that I have is what is in the story, do you have information that is not related in the article?

He got "privileged information"? and reported it? If that is it I hate to be the first one to break it to you but that is what reporters are supposed to do, if it was an ongoing investigation and more arrests were to be made or if he blew the cover of an undercover agent, hey that's different, but this sounds pretty much after the fact. Example We still don't really know who Deepthroat is, do we have Judges trying to throw Woodward and Burns in Jail for not revealing their sources?

[TASMANIANRED]

If a reporter interferes with an ongoing investigation and jeopardizes prosecution they need to be jailed.

[TexasTransplant]

Didn't know that, but that being said, most dead ends are simply the start of many new trails, (I was an analyst in a different type of war) when you have to develop new sources always remember you have the history and I seriously doubt that there was only (1) active trail anyway.
An optimist can smell opportunity while being eaten by a skunk. (Dan Rather school of FR posting, classes start next Wednesday, seats still available)

[TexasTransplant]

^^If a reporter interferes with an ongoing investigation and jeopardizes prosecution they need to be jailed^^

I agree, but it doesn't say anything like that in the News Article, if you have more or different information could you site a source or link?

[TexasTransplant]

Burns = Bernstein sp?

[NY Attitude]

Sounds good to me. Thanks for the response.