The Reporter’s Privilege Essay Example for Free

The news show someones Privilege EssayFor the last 34 geezerhood, over a thousand subpoenas were lotd to incubateers of various word media organizations in the united States compelling them to testify and put out their starts in entirely kinds of court fictional characters. In 1999 alone, thither were 1,326 subpoenas delivered to 440 news outlets according to the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press (RCFP). This epidemic has threatened to destroy the liberty of the foment, which is saved under the outgrowth A manpowerdment of the U.S. Constitution. The rise possesses valuable breeding and is the bearingblood of newsgathering. There will be no floor without the reference.Professional ethics demands that journalists should safeguard their root words even if it means facing jail terms and always hold the promise of confidentiality they make to the source. The Ameri enkindle Society of Newspaper Editors Statement of Principles, Article VI takes that Pl edges of confidentiality to news sources moldiness be honored at all costs, and in that locationfore should not be given lightly. On the other(a) hand, the Radio-Television News managing directors Association figure of Ethics and Professional Conduct cite that Journalists should keep all commitments to nurse a confidential source.Therefore, it is imperative that journalists should not be forced to disclose their sources because it would undermine their original function to inform the deal and even destroy the American surplus urge on philosophy that the normal has the right to know. Subpoenaing a journalist threatens to transform the in numberent press into an investigative arm of the authorities it silences potential drop confidential sources, which reduces the flow of information to the citizenry and it on that pointby enthrals the First Amendment. (Bates, 2000, p. 4, 2).If it will give meaning to the First Amendment and the freedom of the press, then the reporters allow moldiness be kept sacred. RCFP decision maker Director Lucy Daglish, in an interview with Newsweek in 2004, said that democracy operates because the media provides information to the citizenry. Columbia news media Review Executive Director Mike Hoyt describes the press as the oxygen of democracy. However, at presents trends of attacking the source depend unlikely when journalists ar getting dr throwed in a sea of subpoenas and fount a ritual of jailing. The courts commence been contesting the reporters exemption in over coke years but the press continues to take hold the test of time whether in the court rooms or in the corridors of power.When the government subpoenas journalists in evil cases, additional concerns are raised. The media is said to serve many functions critical to a democracy. Among these are the tasks of informing the universal, dishing as watchdogs by checking government abuse, and holding individuals in a position to affect the habitual ri ce beer accountable for their actions. To fulfill these functions, journalists must remain independent of government. Subpoenas naturally reduce this independence, thus undermining the medias function in a democracy. (Schmid, 2002, Proponents Of the Journalists Privilege, 4).Court Rulings. Unlike the attorney-client, doctor-patient, spousal, and therapist privileges, the judicial system still does not credit the reporters privilege. A number of cases take for already challenged and continue to challenge this controversial privilege resulting in high profile landmarks of court rulings. The first Supreme Court case that answered whether the First Amendment protects journalists from not bring out their source was the Branzburg versus Hayes in 1972. In 1969, Paul Branzburg of the Louisville Courrier-Journal wrote an article about the views of hippies and their plan to formulate and sell marijuana. He used fictitious key outs to protect the identities of his source. He was subpoenae d to testify in a state gravitational constant instrument panel that was investigating a local drug trade.He refused to name the men who were in possession of marijuana and was held in contempt. Not worried he wrote another expose detailing a pot session in Frankfort, Kentucky. He was brought back before a grand jury and asked to describe the criminal acts he had observed but he refused to testify. The case went on for two years that ended up with a Supreme Court ruling.In a 5-4 decision, the court did not recognize such privilege saying that the First Amendment does not protect journalists from not revealing their sources. The Court say that journalists, like to the highest degree citizens, must respond to relevant questions put to them in the course of a binding grand jury investigation or criminal trial. (Schmid, Supreme Court Precedent, 2). In the course of news gathering, the reporter becomes an eyewitness to a crime, he or she is liable to testify before a grand jury. B ranzburg was sentenced to six months in jail.But in a short concurrence by legal expert Lewis Powell, he hoped that in the future the legality might give way to a court-recognized privilege. In his argument Justice Potter Stewart gave a three-way test for qualified privilege that a reporter possesses information relevant to the crime, that there is no other way to get the information and that there is a convincing and normal interest in the information. The court left the issue to congress whether to enact laws that would protect reporters from not testifying.As a result of Justices Powell and Stewart arguments that in one way or the other the press has some shelter under the First Amendment shield laws were instituted by various states. Currently there are 31 states including the regulate of Columbia that institute this law. The law however varies in detail and scope according to state laws and has specific limits. Generally, only journalists working full-time in a recognized media organizations are covered and not freelancers or book writers. There are certain events that journalists are excluded from covering.Another threat to press freedom is the case of Judith Miller of the New York Times. After a series of court battles in 2004, Miller spent 85 days in prison for not divulging her source on the Palme leak. The case originated when Valerie Palme wife of a origin ambassador Joseph Wilson was named in a series of articles revealing her true identity as a CIA agent. Her name was leaked by an official of President George Bushs administration to the media. The leakage was considered a criminal offense. chthonian the Intelligence Identities Protection Act, a person who learns the identity of a covert agent like Plame from classified information can get ten years in jail for intentionally disclosing the agents identity. (McCollam, 2005, Out of Africa, 3).Many reporters were subpoenaed including Miller. Refusing to testify she was found in contempt. She invoked her First Amendment right but was denied. She was only released when the source voluntary waived his right to confidentiality and came out. It was learned that Scooter Libby, the chief of staff of Vice President Dick Cheney, was the source of the leakage. There are so many other similar cases that hound American press freedom like James Taricani who served six months of house arrest in Rhode Island.In Washington five reporters were in contempt for the stories about nuclear scientist Wen Ho Lee named by the press as the source of giving secrets to the Chinese. Vanessa Leggett went to jail for 168 days rather than giving up her source of information tour writing a book about a Houston murder. She was only released when the term of her appearance before a grand jury expired.These reporters are fighting for a principle that is sanctified by the constitution. Keeping the source is essential for public trust and to serve the interest of the people. Breaking that trust would only kill the insertion of press freedom and its purpose. Disclosing the whistle blowers would endanger lives in acts of retaliation against them especially from the government. The relationship of journalists to their sources comprises one of the most criticalyet perplexingareas of reporting. Without sources, there would be no stories. The better the source, the better the story. (Willis, 1990, p. 75).The subroutine of the Press. Since the beginning of the press in 1690 in Boston, Massachusetts, it has grown dramatically through time. In a democratic form of government the press is therefore necessary as Thomas Jefferson once said The founding of our government being the opinion of the people, the in true statement first object should be to keep that right and were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers, or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter.To serve as check and balance, the constitution creat ed three branches of government, the executive, legislative, and judiciary. However, these branches have now been infected with all sorts of corruptions and abuse of power. Thus the quartern estate was born, the press, to make sure democracy operates as it was envisioned by the founding fathers.In its proterozoic stage, the American press was used for propaganda by those who owned it. It was a lapdog that reported only what the publisher wants and solicits advertisements. What make it an instrument of democracy were the many voices that shaped opinion and caused freedom to fly across the country and the exclusively world. It has become the guardian of U.S. democracy. Today, it takes the role as the watchdog of government investigating anomalies making sure that officials do not violate the rights of the citizenry and become more transparent instead of operating in secrecy.Without the press, we would not have discovered the cheating activities of President Richard Nixon in the Wate rgate scandal or President Bushs misleading tactics to justify the invasion of Iraq. Besides of informing, the press also educates, reforms, entertains, and incites. Far from its origins, the press today carries no ideology and not connected with any political party or government agency. At the turn of century, advocacy moved from news stories to editorial pages, where it has since stayed. News reporters of the twentieth-century claim to be politically set-apart and objective, unlike journalists of the previous era. To modern journalists, objective means an allegiance to the nonpartisan pursuit of factual accuracy. (Soley, 1992, p. 16). in spite of criticisms, the press maintains its objectivity as the number guideline in reporting. The Project for Excellence in Journalism identified major trends in the press reporting style. The Journalism of Verification is the traditional style wherein reporters must substantiate their facts to come up with an accurate story. Then there is the J ournalism of Affirmation where a reporter delivers the news with a point of view. In making its works more professional and transparent, the press empowers the public in judging the stories whether to believe it or not. From watchdog now comes the guide dog concept called civic journalism that focused on the role of the press in building communities.This brand of journalism challenges people to take part in resolving community jobs. It aims to educate citizens about issues and current events so they can make civic decisions, engage in civic dialogue and action, and, generally, exercise their responsibilities in a democracy. (Schaffer, 2001, 25). It reinforces the watchdog role but it does not tell how the public should think or act. This journalism delivers news that help communities cope up with difficult issues concerning their everyday life. The model serves as an alternative style that hopes to address the shortcomings of the press.The Code of Ethics. Journalists are guided by the compute of ethics to ensure professional integrity and credibility in enlightening the citizenry. Different news organizations have their own ethics and standards but maintain common elements such as objectivity, accuracy, and confidentiality of sources. In its 50-page report in 1947, A Free and Responsible Press, the Hutchins Commission laid out the goals of journalistic performance. The report was written by eminent scholars and authors under Robert M. Hutchins, president of the Chicago University and has served as the basis of journalistic practices today.The Hutchins Commission identified five responsibilities, the fulfillment of which could serve as a measure of press performance. The press should (1) provide a truthful, comprehensive, and intelligent account of the days events in a context which gives them meaning, a commitment evidenced in part by objective reporting (2) be a assemblage for the exchange of comment and criticism, meaning in part that papers should be co mmon carriers of public discussion, at least in the limited sense of carrying views contrary to their own (3) project a representative show up of the constituent groups in the society (4) present and clarify the goals and values of the society and (5) provide full access code to the days intelligence, thereby serving the publics right to be informed. (Baker, 2001, p. 154).The Society of Professional Journalists urged its members to always seek the truth by being honest, fair, and report the information rightly. A reporter must be accountable to the public about his news stories. He must act independently by being free from other interests other than serving the publics right to know. He should minimize harm in treating sources. In pursuit of gathering data, the reporter must show compassion by being sensitive to sources that are negatively affected by the coverage. The journalist must recognize that in news gathering he or she can cause harm or discomfort to the source. Arrogance must not be displayed while collecting data and must be cautious in identifying juvenile suspects or victims of trip out crimes.Sources must be treated fairly and professionally without inquiring pointlessly about their personal life nor threaten them if they do not cooperate. Reporters should always introduce themselves truthfully while interviewing their sources and not carry rancid identity just to get the information. Importantly, when the source wants to remain unknow, the journalist must respect that trust of confidentiality.The San Francisco Chronicles code offers one of the clearest treatments on the always-thorny matter of dealing with sources that want confidentiality. It reads in part A reporter who pledges confidentiality to a source must not violate that pledge. If the reporter is asked by an editor for the identity of a source, the reporter should advise the source of the editors request. If the source wishes to withhold his or her identity from the editor, then the reporter and editor must decide whether or not to use the information even though the sources identity remains known only to the reporter. (Steele Black, 2001, Sources and Reporters).The Need for Shield equity. Notwithstanding the important function of the press in defending democracy, there are no sufficient laws in protecting its existence. All sectors of society especially the government depend on the press for timely information in order to make policies. In its 2005 annual report for press freedom rankings, the United States placed 44th falling 20 places from the previous years all because of the Miller case and the legal tactics that attack the privacy of journalistic sources. This is ironic since the country is the booster unit of democracy the world over. News organizations are now uniting forces to seek legislative action.However, several proposed bills have already been sent to congress but unfortunately no actions have been taken yet. Since Branzburg some 100 federal s tatutes have been introduced but failed to pass. The Free Flow of Information Act of 2005 is presently pending in the senate and congress. This act is in response to the jailing of Judith Miller. The legislation would prevent government officials from compelling a reporter to reveal a source unless it was determined by clear and convincing evidence that disclosure of the identity of the person is necessary to prevent imminent and actual harm to national security. (Durity, 2000, 34).A federal shield law is important to safeguard the reporter in the performance of his/her duty. The move is for the federal government to recognize states interest in protecting the secrecy of sources and that no party may force a journalist to reveal his/her source or notes by suing the reporter in federal court. This poses dilemma for reporters whether to violate a court order and face jail or break the promise of source confidentiality and face public distrust. Subpoenas are burdensome to journalists b ecause it consumes so much time and disrupts their work. A law could provide reporters for head to quash subpoenas except when there is prevailing evidence that such information is really necessary and when there is no other way to obtain the information.The trend of compelling reporters to identify their sources has sent fears that the American free press is under attack and being used by the government in investigating its own deficiency particularly the leakage of classified documents. When the government fails to resolves its own problems, it may be tempted to enlist reporters in criminal acts as an easy way out.With an existing law, prosecutors and criminals defendants may seek other means or conduct investigations in acquiring information rather than depend on journalists by attacking their sources. helplessness to define who qualifies as a journalist has delayed the passage of shield laws. Perhaps with an established ruling, this problem will be addressed giving courts stan dards and criteria to give judges guidance who qualifies for protection. This law is needed to regularise legal approaches to the privilege of reporters and to assure them that confidentiality to sources is respected. In effect, sources will feel safe and not disappear but will remain for future news stories.In a decision that strongly endorsed the principles on which the reporters privilege is based, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit observed, If reporters were routinely required to divulge the identities of their sources, the free flow of newsworthy information would be restrained and the publics understanding of important issues and events would be hampered in ways inconsistent with a well-grounded republic. (Ganett, 2006, 7). Responding to the Miller incident, James Goodale, New York Times former vice chairman and general counsel, has encouraged the press to fight on and to guard the freedoms of First Amendment in order to come up with better laws. cryptograph can dispute that the press has strong influence in every American citizen. It has molded American opinion and shaped government policies through time. Noted journalists have been recognized for their dedication in the profession. Reporters serve as link between government and its citizens and that of other nations. Because of the press, the world has become a global liquidation promoting culture, language, and perhaps peace. Journalists deserve better. They deserve more than just subpoenas. They have earned their right for a privilege in serving and protecting the democracy of this country.ReferencesBates, S. (2000). The Reporters Privilege Then and Now. Research makeup R-23. The Joan Shorenstein Press Politics. Public Policy. Harvard University. John F. Kennedy School of Government.Schmid, Karl H. (2002). Journalists privilege in criminal proceedings an analysis of United States Courts of Appeals decisions from 1973 to 1999. American Criminal Law Review. Date 22-SEP-02. Retrieved Oct ober 30, 2006, from http//goliath.ecnext.com/coms2/summary_0199-2470495_ITMMcCollam, D. (2005). Attack at The Source Why the Plame case is so scary. Columbias Journalism Review. Americas Premier Media Monitor. Columbia Universitys Graduate School of Journalism. give up 2 March/April 2005. Retrieved October 30, 2006, from http//www.cjr.org/issues/2005/2/mccollam-plame.asp?printerfriendly=yesWillis, J. (1990). Journalism State of the Art. Praeger Publsihers. New York. ISBN 0275932443Soley, L. C. (1992). The News Shapers The Sources Who Explain the News. Praeger Publishers. New York. ISBN 0275940330Schaffer, J. (2001). The Role of the Media in Building Community. Pew Center for Civic Journalism. Global Issues. An Electronic Journal of the U.S. Department of State. mickle 6, Number 1, April 2001.Baker, C. E. (2001). Media, Markets, and Democracy. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge, England. ISBN 0521009774Steele, R Black, J. (2001). Media Ethics Codes and Beyond. Global Issues. An Electronic Journal of the U.S. Department of State. Volume 6, Number 1, April 2001.Durity, L. (2000). screen Journalist Bloggers The Need To Protect Newsgathering Despite The Distribution Medium. Public Policy Studies. Duke University. Retrieved October 30, 206, from http//www.law.duke.edu/dev/journals/dltr/articles/2006DLTR0011.htmlGanett Company, Inc. (2006). From Barbara Wartelle Wall Legal Watch. 2000 Media Law Developments Sources and Public Records. News Watch. Retrieved October 30, 2006, from http//www.gannett.com/go/newswatch/2000/december/nw1228-4.htm