Stories
Slash Boxes
Comments

SoylentNews is people

posted by janrinok on Tuesday May 01 2018, @05:03PM   Printer-friendly
from the freedom-of-some-information-act dept.

Submitted via IRC for DrexlSpivey

The CIA can selectively divulge classified information to selected reporters in emails yet withhold that information from other journalists or members of the public when they seek the same information under the Freedom of Information Act, a federal judge in New York has ruled.

The decision appeared in the court record on Friday but became more widely disseminated Monday.

The ruling comes amid vigorous national debate over leaks to the media and the use of anonymous sources in covering national security news, including an ongoing FBI investigation into Russian attempts to influence the 2016 presidential election.

Judge Colleen McMahon of the Southern District of New York ruled that the CIA does not have to release parts of five emails senior CIA officials sent to journalists from the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times and The Washington Post in 2012. At the time, the CIA was facing pressure over links it may have had to a Pakistani doctor who helped American forces hunt down Osama bin Laden.

Source: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/nation-world/national/national-security/article210169704.html


Original Submission

 
This discussion has been archived. No new comments can be posted.
Display Options Threshold/Breakthrough Mark All as Read Mark All as Unread
The Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way.
  • (Score: 5, Informative) by Thexalon on Tuesday May 01 2018, @08:23PM

    by Thexalon (636) on Tuesday May 01 2018, @08:23PM (#674299)

    Why would an actual journalist NOT publish exclusive information?

    Off the top of my head:
    1. They doubt the veracity of that exclusive information. Insiders leak false stuff to journalists all the time to push their agenda, whatever that agenda is.
    2. They are convinced that the exclusive information, if made public, will get people killed. Military secrets sometimes fall into this category.
    3. They believe that by showing they can be entrusted with exclusive information, they'll be able to convince that source to give them something juicier than what they're not reporting.
    4. They don't think said exclusive information would be at all interesting to their readers. Boring information always goes in the trash.

    That's not to say there aren't propagandists out there who pretend to be journalists.

    --
    The only thing that stops a bad guy with a compiler is a good guy with a compiler.
    Starting Score:    1  point
    Moderation   +3  
       Insightful=1, Informative=2, Total=3
    Extra 'Informative' Modifier   0  
    Karma-Bonus Modifier   +1  

    Total Score:   5