Curbing the Press
Why the government and the media haven't been this antagonistic since the Pentagon Papers case
Says Stone: "All speech has consequences, and if that becomes the test, then they can prosecute all speech." Has all this cast a chill on reporters and their sources? Pincus insists it hasn't. "People who worry about cooling of sources don't deal in this area." However, although most publishers have dug in their heels, there is evidence that some are thinking twice about running stories based on leaked documents: The Cleveland Plain Dealer last year held back a story based on a leaked FBI memo because of the pursuit of reporters in the Plame case.
Ellsberg believes there will be no turning back if Bush lawyers start prosecuting sources and journalists and criminalizing leaks. He says he'll continue agitating to convince leakers to come forward, particularly those with knowledge of Bush's Iran strategy. Ellsberg knows the stakes are high: Branded a traitor by Nixon, he faced up to 115 years in prison for violating the Espionage Act. The charges were dismissed when it was revealed that government agents had broken into his psychiatrist's office to search for documents to discredit him. "I was saved," he says, "by their crimes." Reporters may not be so lucky.
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