Then why didn't they tell him that when he called the CIA before printing the article? And why isn't he in jail?
"And why isn't he in jail?"
Because Novak was not cleared to know about Plame's status, and so is not liable. In this case, the leakee is not the criminal, although publishing was an ethical lapse of stomach-churning proportions. The leakers, on the other hand...
Traitors.