Time editor: Cooper's tip wasn't worth a promise of confidentiality

AP ^ | August 16, 2005, 5:03 PM EDT | DAVID B. CARUSO

[SolidSupplySide]

NEW YORK -- An anonymous tip that nearly landed Time magazine reporter Matthew Cooper in jail probably wasn't valuable enough to justify a promise of confidentiality, his editor said Tuesday.

Speaking at a panel discussion in New York sponsored by Court TV, Norman Pearlstine, editor in chief of Time Inc., lamented that reporters covering Washington have become too quick to offer total anonymity in exchange for information.

Confidentiality should be reserved for special circumstances, he said.

"A 90-second conversation with the president's spin doctor, who was trying to undermine a whistle-blower, probably didn't deserve confidential source status," Pearlstine said.

[SolidSupplySide]

"A 90-second conversation with the president's spin doctor, who was trying to undermine a whistle-blower, probably didn't deserve confidential source status," Pearlstine said.

This is amazing. *Rove* was the whistleblower! Wilson lied about his government service. Rove corrected that false information.

[At this moment, Newsday is the only one to have this article according to Google News. Sorry about the excerpt of an AP story.]

[Darkwolf377]

Karl Rove talked to a reporter. At that point, the world had no idea who Valerie Plame was. (I know, but let's just play along with THEIR idea for the moment.)

Several reporters--Novak, Cooper and David Corn (or was it Joe Conason, I get my ferret-looking liberal propagandists confused)--reported this information, letting millions know about it.

And ROVE is the whistleblower, and the three who revealed this "fact" are mere innocents? Uh huh, sure.

[marlon]

BTW is that reporterette still in jail? What with Cindy Sheehan 24x7 the Rove is a traitor story kinda got moved to the side.

[Darkwolf377]

Coincidentally I saw the very end of an interview about Miller--she is still cooling her heels.

[mewzilla]

And she will. Until the grand jury is done. And she ain't covering for a Pubbie.

[Darkwolf377]

You know, I was reluctant to believe that at first but I do believe you're correct. I thought she MIGHT be covering for a member of the administration from her own self-interest, but now I'm thinking it's Powell or someone else at state, or someone who's hostile to the Bush administration. Or herself, Plame or Wilson.

But we shall see...

[Homer1]

IOW, we, the leftist media, will rat out conservative sources, but keep liberal sources secret. It's On.

[lrb111]

That's solid BS.
Rove signed a waiver for Cooper a long time ago. Cooper claiming he was protecting a source was only an instrument for insinuating Rove had some sort of guilt.
Charade is up, and Cooper is so over..

[MainFrame65]

Karl Rove publicly released all claims of confidentiality with regard to this matter, so no reporter can claim that he (or she) is protecting him as a source. But I am sure he has good notes about any such conversations, and is untouchable EXCEPT by the kind of innuendo they have been trying to smear him with.

Either she had another source - probably a democrat mole from whom she earns her keep - or she relied on the rumor mill and cocktail party chatter that had full knowledge about Plame, and did the dirty deed herself.