Buckling to pressure at Time

Welp, my blog pal over at Cyphering has again beat me to the punch (I was out floating in the pool in the hot Arizona sun instead) on the issue of freedom of the press. Read her entry here. She calls for the real culprit in starting all this, columnist Robert Novak, a mean-spirited man who has carried a lot of water for the conservatives.

Basically what has happened is that SCOTUS declined to hear a case on whether reporters had to reveal sources when federal authorities subpoenaed them. Two reporters, Matthew Cooper for Time and Judith Miller for The New York Times, both resisted and were willing to do the federal prison time of about four months. Time, though, this week said it was clear that reporters also have to follow the laws like everyone else and is forcing its reporter to turn over the notes. Meanwhile, Novak gets off scott-free.

Among all the seedy reasons that this is scary, one is that is prime is the idea that a corporate media organization can force its reporters in the field to turn over their notes. That is unprecedented, and it should not be seen as a model.

National Public Radio's "All Things Considered" had good coverage Thursday afternoon. From the Web site, you can also read and listen to an interview with the Editor in Chief of Time.

-- Peoria, Ariz.