source: nahj.org
NAHJ Urges Approval of Bill to Create Federal Shield Law
House to Vote on the Bill on Tuesday
The
National Association of Hispanic Journalists urged House Speaker Nancy
Pelosi and the leadership of the House of Representatives to pass a
bill to create a federal shield law that would protect journalists from
attempts to try to force them to reveal their confidential sources. A
vote on this bill has unexpectedly been scheduled for next Tuesday,
Oct. 16.
The
District of Columbia and 49 states have recognized an absolute or
qualified privilege for working journalists, but there is no federal
shield law to protect journalists in the federal courts. After the
jailing of former New York Times reporter Judith Miller and the
conviction of Rhode Island television reporter Jim Taricani for
refusing to reveal the source of an undercover tape made during a
federal corruption probe that showed an official taking a bribe, the
calls for a federal shield law have become louder.
Why?
More
than 40 reporters have been subpoenaed or questioned about their
confidential sources, their notes, and their work product over the last
few years in criminal and civil cases in federal court. The
need for this legislation was underscored again when, on August 13, a
federal judge ordered five more reporters from major news organizations
to reveal their confidential sources in the privacy lawsuit filed by
Dr. Steven Hatfill against
the federal government. Dr. Hatfill is suing the government under the
federal Privacy Act for being named a “person of interest” in the 2001
anthrax investigation.
Reporters
are now becoming the first stop, rather than the last resort, for civil
litigants and prosecutors attempting to obtain the identity of
confidential sources.
For
the full text of the letter and accompanying information, background
and talking point, visit:
www.nahj.org
