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Spectrum — Support shield law

The Spectrum, St. George, Utah
August 19, 2008

Legislation that would help ensure the public has access to important information has hit a wall in the U.S. Senate.

The bill would, in effect, create a federal shield law for journalists so that they wouldn't be requ

The Spectrum, St. George, Utah
August 19, 2008

Legislation that would help ensure the public has access to important information has hit a wall in the U.S. Senate.

The bill would, in effect, create a federal shield law for journalists so that they wouldn't be required to give the names of confidential sources who share information for publication on such important issues as public safety and government waste.

The qualified privilege would be similar to laws already on the books that provide protection for clergy, attorneys and psychotherapists. In other words, in all but the rarest of circumstances, what a source tells a journalist would be protected from interference by the government.

The bill had gotten off to a promising start, but a group of former national security and law enforcement officials has attempted to block the effort because they are fearful of the implications to national security and they are unclear as to who would be covered by the law.

They need not worry about either portion of the bill as it currently reads.

The bill already requires journalists to give the names of anonymous sources if a federal court finds that the information could prevent a specific terrorist act against the United States or if the information presents significant harm to national security that outweighs the public's interest in newsgathering.

The bill also defines a journalist as a person who “regularly gathers, prepares, collects, photographs, records, writes, edits, reports or publishes information of public interest.”

In other words, it protects people who have a vested interest in the First Amendment. That definition has changed in recent years with the creation of blogs, chat features and other forms of media that didn't even exist 10 to 15 years ago.

But the reality is that they do exist, and many people turn to those forms of media for information.

The key component of this bill is the allowance for national security. No realistic, ethical journalist would sit back and allow for some horrible, large-scale event to happen to the country by not divulging information. The bill would not be worthy of support if not for the mechanism including a federal judge's order that would require the names of protected sources to be divulged.

The reality is that the free flow of information is what sets the United States apart from many other countries. Journalists should use anonymous sources sparingly, but those kinds of sources are what help blow the whistle on government waste and practices that create dangers for residents of this country.

The shield law should be supported, and the Senate should pass it when they return from the August recess.

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