Not publishing newsworthy leaks isn’t journalistic integrity, it’s timidity
AP Photo/Jon Elswick
Reporting on leaked information informs the public, while claims of harm are often overblown.
Journalists routinely rely on leaked information to inform the public. Without leaks, we’d be left in the dark about vital information involving the government, corporations, and powerful individuals, who often act in secret.
When government information is leaked, the U.S. routinely claims, without proof, that the leak damages national security. We should be skeptical of claims that leaks cause harm, and of broad leak investigations that can lead to the surveillance of journalists and sources and the chilling of reporting.
Featured Items
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If David Petraeus is actually charged, all of DC will finally find out how incredibly unjust the Espionage Act is
In a surprising development, the New York Times reported late Friday that the FBI and Justice Department have recommended felony charges against ex-CIA director David Petraeus for leaking classified information to his former biographer and mistress Paula Broadwell. While the Times does not specify, the most likely law prosecutors would …
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Government wants to know potential Sterling jurors’ opinions about whistleblowers
We're republishing Marcy Wheeler's coverage of the trial of CIA whistleblower Jeffrey Sterling. The following post first appeared at ExposeFacts. “Do you have any positive or negative beliefs or opinions regarding the term ‘whistleblower’ or individuals who act in the role of a ‘whistleblower’?” the government wants to have …
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A preview of the trial of ex-CIA officer Jeffery Sterling, accused source of journalist James Risen
In the coming weeks, we will be republishing Marcy Wheeler's coverage of the trial of CIA whistleblower Jeffrey Sterling. The following post first appeared at ExposeFacts. Next Monday, the jury selection for the Jeffrey Sterling case will start. After a jury is selected, the trial is expected to take …
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Here's why you should go see Laura Poitras' new Snowden documentary 'Citizenfour'
Director Laura Poitras’ highly anticipated new documentary on Edward Snowden and the NSA, entitled Citizenfour, debuted at the New York Film Festival over the weekend. The film is an extraordinary look inside the mind and motivations of whistleblowers, and enthrallingly captures how the NSA disclosures transformed the world’s view …
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Pentagon Papers whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg on the similarities between Vietnam and the war against ISIS
The following article by Barbara Koeppel was originally published at Consortiumnews.com. At a recent talk at the National Press Club in Washington DC, Daniel Ellsberg, who released the Pentagon Papers in 1971, says he believes there’s not one person in the Pentagon who would agree that President Obama can …
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Happy July 4th/FOIA anniversary!
This post is adapted from CJ Ciaramella's weekly Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) newsletter, which you can subscribe to here. FOIA anniversary Forty-eight years ago today, in 1966, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Freedom of Information Act into law with this statement: "This legislation springs from …
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Why Won’t Any Senators Pick Up Rep. Grayson’s Important Journalist Shield Bill?
Three weeks ago, Rep. Alan Grayson convinced the House to pass a bill that would go a long way to protect journalists from being subpoenaed for their sources, yet hardly anyone noticed. Attached to its annual appropriations bill, the House voted 225-183 to pass a simple provision that read …
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'Journalist' Argues In NY Times That Publishing Decisions Should Ultimately Be Made By Government
Glenn Greenwald spends the last third of his excellent new book, No Place to Hide: Edward Snowden, the NSA, and the US Surveillance State, exposing the mentality and function of pseudo-journalists like David Gregory, who are in fact better understood as courtiers to power. So it was kind of …
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The Lie About Edward Snowden That Just Won't Die
We’ve fact-checked statements in the media about Edward Snowden and the NSA before, but by far the biggest falsehood being spread by government advocates is the alleged fact that he took 1.7 million documents from the NSA. All the parties involved—Snowden, the journalists, and even the government—either deny it or …
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Obama Administration Proves Why the Public Needs Someone to Leak the CIA Torture Report
It’s now been over a month since the Senate Intelligence Committee voted to force the Obama administration to declassify parts of the Committee’s landmark report on CIA torture, and the public still has not seen a word of the 6,000 page investigation. Despite both the White House and CIA …
