Heavy-handed war on leaks

Opinion: July 25, 2012 at 12:00a.m.

Los Angeles Times: Leaks of confidential government information are nothing new in Washington. But a recent spate of news stories about national security operations has emboldened advocates of new punishments for revealing classified information. Some of these latter-day “plumbers” would target not just the leakers but also journalists. At the risk of seeming to defend our own vested interests, we would caution against such an escalation in the war on leaks.

At a recent hearing of a House Judiciary subcommittee, Rep. Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., suggested that federal prosecutors should subpoena journalists and demand the names of their sources who provide classified information. “Put them in front of the grand jury,” Gowdy said. “You either answer the question or you’re going to be held in contempt and go to jail, which is what I thought all reporters aspire to do anyway.”

At the same hearing, a retired Army intelligence officer named Kenneth Allard fulminated about a New York Times reporter who disclosed that the U.S. had engaged in cyber attacks on Iran’s nuclear program. Allard called for an investigation of whether Sanger had violated the Espionage Act.

Government can and does strive to keep secrets. And in many cases, that’s reasonable: It’s hard to run an intelligence service or fight a war without holding back some information. But when confidential information does come into the possession of a free press, both the courts and the executive branch often (though not always) have recognized that legal action against journalists poses a threat to the 1st Amendment.