This morning at 10:00 am EST, the Executive Editor of the Washington Post, Leonard Downie Jr., was on-line fielding questions about Bob Woodward’s source and the CIA leak case in general.
Here is the link to the story:
Post Executive Editor Discusses Woodward
Reporter’s Silence in CIA Leak Case Scrutinized
Well, I read through this and what struck me were his very specific references to the blanket waiver surrounding the confidentiality between Woodward and his secret “source”. Below are both references from the article:
Leonard Downie Jr.: This casual part of a long interview for Bob’s book was part of an overall confidential source agreement that cannot be broken or taken apart in any way without the source’s permission. So far, the source has agreed only to Bob testifying about their conversation in the Fitzgerald investigation.
Leonard Downie Jr.: Excellent question. The interview that was taking place when the gossipy exchange took place was entirely covered by a confidential source agreement. Therefore, the gossipy exchange was, too. It wasn’t as though it had occurred in some other casual conversation outside the confidential source agreement.
So it looks to me that whoever this source is, he had a very complex confidentiality agreement with Woodward and he spent hours with him in an interview for the book which is when he spewed forth the interesting gossip about Wilson’s wife.
So my question is this, would all 75 of the offficials he interviewed have THAT complicated a confidentiality agreement? Or would that type of agreement fit more closely with a very important figure?
I know most of you will think I’m being crazy, but my money is still on George himself being Woodward’s source.
