Holder Subpoenas NYT Reporter Over CIA Book

If this doesn't send a chill up your spine, nothing will. Reporters have gone to jail to keep from revealing sources and yet this Attorney General is has issued a subpoena for this reporter to give up his sources.

From the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ):

The SPJ Code of Ethics says our members believe “public enlightenment is the forerunner of justice and the foundation of democracy.” Anonymous sources are sometimes necessary in ferreting out vital information on the operation of our governments, and the integrity of the profession and its mission in informing the public are jeopardized when journalists don’t honor their promises of confidentiality to those sources. The Society believes anonymity should not be bestowed lightly, that sources’ motives must always be questioned before granting anonymity and that the public is entitled to as much information as possible on sources’ reliability. Although we deplore the overreliance on anonymous sources, we nevertheless stand with those principled professionals who refuse to abandon their promises of confidentiality to their sources when the government applies pressure.
Source: SPJ

The SPJ is now supporting Shield Laws in every state to protect journalists and are also pushing for a national Shield Law. It shouldn't be necessary. Why should journalists be subjected to prison for refusing to reveal the names of anonymous sources when sometimes it is extremely necessary to protect their identity for a variety of reasons while the information still needs to be made public.

Obvious to us that this Administration could care less about the "Freedom of the Press" guaranteed in the Constitution or protecting anonymous sources.

Holder Subpoenas NYT Reporter Over CIA Book

The Obama administration is seeking to compel a writer to testify about his confidential sources for a 2006 book about the Central Intelligence Agency, a rare step that was authorized by Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr.

The author, James Risen, who is a reporter for The New York Times, received a subpoena on Monday requiring him to provide documents and to testify May 4 before a grand jury in Alexandria, Va., about his sources for a chapter of his book, “State of War: The Secret History of the C.I.A. and the Bush Administration.”

The chapter largely focuses on problems with a covert C.I.A. effort to disrupt alleged Iranian nuclear weapons research. Mr. Risen referred questions to his lawyer, Joel Kurtzberg, a partner at Cahill Gordon & Reindel L.L.P., who said that Mr. Risen would not comply with the demand and would ask a judge to quash the subpoena. “He intends to honor his commitment of confidentiality to his source or sources,” Mr. Kurtzberg said. “We intend to fight this subpoena.”
Excerpt Read More at Fox News