Jail for Judith Miller

The Washington Times ^ | July 8, 2005 | Op-Ed

[andyk]

You don't have to like newspapers -- and a lot of people don't -- to understand that the jailing of Judith Miller for keeping her word to a source is a sad day for all of us, including those who think it's a good idea to put reporters in their place.

<snip>

Forty-nine of the states, together with the District of Columbia, have laws in place to protect such sources. These laws were not enacted for the convenience of newspapers, but to buttress the guarantees of the First Amendment that are the heritage of all of us.

<snip>

Every one of us, including Judge Hogan and Prosecutor Fitzgerald, are in her debt. She is clearly the best and biggest man in this sordid episode of justice having run off the rails.

[andyk]

Was she in a jumpsuit?

[clarissaexplainsitall]

Bingo.

[jpl]

President Bush hasn't thrown any reporters in jail. The judge did that. Furthermore, Robert Novak, hardly someone I'd call a liberal, as just as deeply involved in this case as the liberal reporters. We don't know everything that happened in the grand jury proceedings.

And frankly, I don't know where this idea ever came from that journalists are a sacred protected class that should be completely above the law and have a right to destroy people's lives.

[PhiKapMom]

Total joke! Why would anyone defend a source when that source has lifted confidentiality is what I want to know?

[johnny7]

She's holding out for the 'leakee'... 'Lyin Joe Wilson.

[YaYa123]

I think the point was, Judith Miller's got bigger balls than Matt Cooper.

[Sacajaweau]

I just see an "undisclosed source" as providing news but "not the whole truth". An FBI agent reporting to a newspaper man?? (Nixon). That's not for the good of the country, that's a "game" with half of the info perceived.

[Gipper08]

No,MY point is when we have a liberal(Marxist) president I want whistle blowers to come forward about corruption.

[PhiKapMom]

A few lies -- how about made up lies. Did Clinton throw reporters in jail -- no way. Bush didn't throw this reporter in jail either and neither would Hillary or any other President. Some of you on here give Hillary way too much credence as becoming the next President.

I don't put up with lies by the media for any reason. Their job is to report the facts not lies and if they cannot report facts, then shut up!

[andyk]

Also the original intent wasn't for the media to report an anonymous source as fact when a lot of time it is spin or outright lies and then have them shielded by the 1st amendment.

You got that right. There's way too much reliance on the use of anonymous sources. I don't know when reporters started incorporating the concept of being shielded from revealing sources into their interpretation of first amendment protection, but it always smelled fishy to me.

[Gipper08]

No,MY point is when we have a liberal(Marxist) president I want whistle blowers to come forward about corruption.

[Montfort]

Why should freedom of the press be the only part of the First Amendment that survives.

McCain-Feingold ended freedom of political speech (excpet for members of the media), which was what the founders were most concerned about protecting. The right of free exercise of religion has become the right to be free from religion and teh right of religious people to shut the heck up.

[YaYa123]

andk, our # 15 is absolutely correct. The left msm hates Miller, in fact some of them blame her reporting as responsible for us going to war in Iraq.

I hope many on this thread will read the following:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1437951/posts

[mysterio]

wait till Hillary is POTUS and she starts throwing conservative writers in jail.

Yep. And the short sighted around here just don't get it. But they will.

[PhiKapMom]

And frankly, I don't know where this idea ever came from that journalists are a sacred protected class that should be completely above the law and have a right to destroy people's lives.

And neither do I. In fact ethics is sorely missing in journalist of today so why should they be above the law. We saw perfect examples in the last election cycle of outright lies reported as fact.

[Gipper08]

Hillary or not I want to get info on corruption in government.Clinton tried to start investigations on conservative reporters(Gertz)he was not successful.China,China,China.

[andyk]

wait till Hillary is POTUS and she starts throwing conservative writers in jail.

If they're refusing to testify based on anything other than self-incrimination protections of the 5th amendment, then I'll lock them in myself.

[tx_eggman]

This case is not about the first amendment - it's about being an accessory to a crime. What if one of them had interviewed a murderer then wrote an article all about the murder, then they refuse to reveal their "source". Same thing - they have knowledge of a leak that revealed the name of an undercover operative. That is a crime according to the US Code. Their refusal to reveal their source is the same as protecting a murderer in the example above.

Ding, ding, ding ... we have a winner.

Ms Miller needs to say where she is until she gives up the criminal ... this IS NOT a First Amendment case

[PhiKapMom]

Always smelled fishy to me as well. Anonymous sources have become the standard instead of the exception.