
 |
|
May 24, 2013
May 22, 2013
John Thorne:
They launched the 'Arab Spring' but now yearn for the good old days of a strongman
May 20, 2013
Richard A. Serrano: Is Meir Kahane's assassin now a changed man?
Melissa Healy: Genetic copies of living people from embryos no longer science fiction
Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom : Jews Inducted into Rock Hall of Fame; Anton Yelchin co-stars in New "Trek" film; Kutcher (but not Kunis) visits Israel; Jewish TV Star Praises Jewish Rap Star
The Kosher Gourmet by Cathy Pollak: WARNING: This WALNUT CAKE WITH PRALINE FROSTING, perfect for afternoon coffee, is addicting
May 13, 2013
Rabbi Nathan Lopes Cardozo: Why the giving of the document that would permanently change the world could only be done in desolation
David G. Savage: Church-state, literally? Supreme Court weighing public school graduation in a church
May 10, 2013
Rabbi Berel Wein: Be all that you should be
May 8, 2013
Peter Ford: Why China is welcoming both Israel's Netanyahu and Palestinians' Abbas
Warren Richey: Obama administration quietly backs out of appeal over new contraceptive mandate
Fred Weir: At Kerry-Putin meeting, US-Russia relations thaw --- a tad
The Kosher Gourmet by Leela Cyd Ross : Almost too pretty to eat, this colorful salad with Sicilian inspiration will tickle the taste buds and delight your visual sensibility
May 6, 2013
May 3, 2013
Kids, kittens the Same? With employee perks at struggling Internet pioneer Yahoo! it's hard to tell
Sandy Kleffman: Artificial kidney offers hope to patients tethered to a dialysis machine
April 29, 2013
Roy Gutman: Poland's new Jewish museum celebrates life, doesn't revisit Holocaust
Mark Clayton: Terrorism in America: Is US missing a chance to learn from failed plots?
Kim Murphy: Boston Bomber's 'Svengali' Revealed
Pete Spotts: Tiny satellites + cellphones = cheaper 'eyes in the sky' for NASA
April 26, 2013
Clifford D. May: Defense in the Age of Jihadist Terrorism
Sharon Palmer, R.D.: How to feel your best -- with plenty of energy, a healthy weight and optimal mental and physical function -- without driving yourself batty
April 24, 2013
|
| |
Jewish World Review
May 13, 2008
/ 8 Iyar 5768
The Leaker Shield Act
By
Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.
| 
|
|
|
|
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
There is something unique about what has come to be called the War on
Terror. In this conflict, as the U.S. government struggles to defeat
the enemy and keep our people safe, it is up against not only those who
overtly and unambiguously seek to destroy us. It also confronts those
who are prepared to reveal classified information and programs, even
when doing so makes it harder to vanquish our foes and protect this
country.
The latter fall into four principal categories:
-
Some call themselves "journalists" who work for traditional
news organizations, notably the New York Times. On occasion, they win
Pulitzer Prizes for compromising the Nation's secrets.
-
Some are members of what has come to be called the "new media"
or "alternative media." Most traditional journalists detest the idea
that their trade is being practiced by people who find in outlets like
on-line publications, the Blogosphere, YouTube and FaceBook vehicles to
disseminate information worldwide and instantaneously. But the reach of
the world-wide web is, well, world-wide and so is the impact of its
"journalists."
-
Among those making use of these "New Age" tools are some who
use the guise of journalism as a cover for our enemy's disinformation
and propaganda. In fact, some of the most capable users of the Internet
routinely engage in information warfare on behalf of Islamofascist
terrorist organizations like Al Qaeda, Hezbollah, Hamas and their
state-sponsors.
-
Then there are the individuals who hold positions of trust in
the federal government itself. They have been given access to secret
data and capabilities on the promise not to reveal such knowledge
without authorization. Yet, some choose to violate their oaths in the
furtherance of divergent policy agendas. Of course, folks in this
category are not journalists. They are called "sources."
It is imperative to consider these four categories as the U.S. Senate
prepares to consider legislation with the unobjectionable-sounding name
of the "Free Flow of Information Act (FFIA) of 2007." The bill, S.
2035, is better known as the "media shield" law. It would be more
accurate to call it the "Leaker and Other Enemies Shield Act."
Freedom of the press is, of course, one of the bedrock principles upon
which this nation was founded. And those who dare criticize the media
and its efforts to expand privileges it enjoys under the rubric of press
freedoms - notably, officials responsible for prosecuting journalists'
"confidential government sources" for the illegally revelation of
classified information - generally are subjected to very bad notices.
Still, it is a terrible idea - particularly in time of war - to be
providing "media shields" to anyone who can claim to be a journalist and
to their law-breaking sources in government. Yet, that is precisely
what S.2035 would do.
The FFIA creates a highly problematic journalist's privilege. It would
effectively prevent the federal government from compelling anyone
"engaging in journalism" to give testimony or produce any document
revealing that journalist's source, if the source gave the information
under cover of confidentiality.
Were S.2035 to become law, investigators and prosecutors charged with
bringing to justice sources who have engaged in criminal leaks would
have to prove all of the following to the satisfaction of a federal
judge: (1) The government has first exhausted all other avenues besides
the journalist to obtain a source's identity; (2) there are reasonable
grounds to believe that a crime has taken place; (3) the source's
identity is "essential" to the investigation; (4) the information that
was disclosed was "properly classified" to begin with; (5) the person
who leaked the information had authorized access to it; (6) the source's
unauthorized disclosure "has caused or will cause significant, clear,
and articulable harm to the national security; and (7) non-disclosure of
the source's identity would be contrary to the public interest when
weighed against the other public interest in "gathering news and
maintaining the free flow of information."
As a practical matter, as an array of Cabinet and subcabinet officers
responsible for keeping us safe and enforcing the law have warned the
Senate, no source is going to be held accountable under this law. For
example, Attorney General Michael Mukasey and Director of National
Intelligence Mike McConnell advised the Senate's leadership they would
be hobbled by myriad Catch-22s inherent in the FFIA.
Consider two of these cited by the AG and DNI: How can a prosecutor show
that a person who leaked information had authorized access to it
(Requirement 5), without first knowing the identity of the source? How
can a prosecutor show that a leak "has caused or will cause significant,
clear, and articulable harm to the national security" (Requirement 6),
without first having to offer evidence to a judge that will reveal even
more classified information?
By assuring "journalists" - the bill's definition is broad enough to
cover all of the first three categories described above - they need not
fear having to divulge the source of a leak, sources will feel even less
compunction than they do today to break their promises and leak with
impunity.
In short, the Free Flow of Information Act is not about freedom of the
press. It is about freeing government officials of their legal
responsibilities and enabling those who would do us all harm - whether
intentionally or in the name of "the people's right to know." The
President's senior advisors have rightly indicated that they will
recommend his veto should this bill make it to his desk. Senators should
ensure that the Leakers and Other Enemies Protection Act never gets
there.
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
JWR contributor Frank J. Gaffney, Jr. heads the Center for Security Policy. Comments by clicking here.
Archives
BUY FRANK'S LATEST
"War Footing: 10 Steps America Must Take to Prevail in the War for the Free World"
America has been at war for years, but until now, it has not been clear with whom or precisely for what. And we have not been using the full resources we need to win.
With the publication of War Footing, lead-authored by Frank Gaffney, it not only becomes clear who the enemy is and how high the stakes are, but also exactly how we can prevail.
War Footing shows that we are engaged in nothing less than a War for the Free World. This is a fight to the death with Islamofascists, Muslim extremists driven by a totalitarian political ideology that, like Nazism or Communism before it, is determined to destroy freedom and the people who love it. Sales help fund JWR.
|
© 2006, Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.
|
|

Arnold Ahlert
Mitch Albom
Jay Ambrose
Michael Barone
Barrywood
Lori Borgman
Stratfor Briefing
Mona Charen
Linda Chavez
Richard Z. Chesnoff
Ann Coulter
Greg Crosby
Larry Elder
Suzanne Fields
Christine Flowers
Frank J. Gaffney
Bernie Goldberg
Jonah Goldberg
Julia Gorin
Jonathan Gurwitz
Paul Greenberg
Argus Hamilton
Victor Davis Hanson
Betsy Hart
Ron Hart
Nat Hentoff
A. Barton Hinkle
Jeff Jacoby
Paul Johnson
Jack Kelly
Ch. Krauthammer
David Limbaugh
Kathryn Lopez
Rich Lowry
Michelle Malkin
Jackie Mason
Ann McFeatters
Dale McFeatters
Dana Milbank
Jeanne Moos
Dick Morris
Jim Mullen
Deroy Murdock
Judge A. Napolitano
Bill O'Reilly
Clarence Page
Kathleen Parker
Star Parker
Dennis Prager
Wesley Pruden
Tom Purcell
Sharon Randall
Robert Robb
Cokie & Steve Roberts
Heather Robinson
Debra J. Saunders
Martin Schram
Greg Schwem
Culture Shlock
David Shribman
Roger Simon
Lenore Skenazy
Michael Smerconish
Thomas Sowell
Ben Stein
Mark Steyn
John Stossel
Cal Thomas
Dan Thomasson
Bob Tyrrell
Diana West
Dave Weinbaum
George Will
Walter Williams
Byron York
ZeitGeist
Mort Zuckerman

Robert Arial
Chuck Asay
Baloo
Lisa Benson
Chip Bok
Dry Bones
John Branch
John Cole
J. D. Crowe
Matt Davies
John Deering
Brian Duffy
Everything's Relative
Mallard Fillmore
Glenn Foden
Jake Fuller
Bob Gorrel
Walt Handelsman
Joe Heller
David Hitch
Jerry Holbert
David Horsey
Lee Judge
Steve Kelley
Jeff Koterba
Dick Locher
Chan Lowe
Jimmy Margulies
Jack Ohman
Michael Ramirez
Rob Rogers
Drew Sheneman
Kevin Siers
Jeff Stahler
Scott Stantis
Danna Summers
Gary Varvel
Kirk Walters
Dan Wasserman

Tech Q&A
Mr. Know-It-All
Ask Doctor K
Richard Lederer
Frugal Living
On Nutrition
Bookmark These
Bruce Williams
|