Author: jorndorff

Miller, Our Holy Saint of Reporter Ethics, Testifies For a Federal Shield Law

[From the diaries by susanhu, who hopes you’ll also take part in BuzzFlash’s “Name Judy’s Book” Contest. The grand prize is, like, wow! Deadline: October 28.]

Yesterday, Our Holy Saint of Reporter Ethics™, Judith Miller, testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee during hearings considering a federal shield law to further protect journalists. The only problem is the law she’s arguing for would still have led to her incarceration. But, Miller’s never been much for accuracy and details.

From Miller’s written statement:

Good morning, I am Judith Miller, a reporter for The New York Times. That statement, in and of itself, is extraordinary. Reporters don’t usually testify at Congressional hearings. But the circumstances that in July forced me to spend 85 days in the Alexandria Detention Center in Virginia highlight the urgent need for a Federal shield law to protect journalists and their sources.

I am here today to urge you to enact the Free Flow of Information Act so that other journalists will not be forced, as I was, to go to jail to protect their sources. I’m here because I hope you will agree that an uncoerced, uncoercable press, though at times irritating, is vital to the perpetuation of the freedom and democracy we so often take for granted.

Cross-posted at DailyKos … Analysis inside.

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