Professional bloggers could get journalist shield
By Nate Anderson | Published: August 02, 2007 - 06:27AM CT
A bill that would shield journalists (including bloggers) from revealing their sources today cleared the House Judiciary Committee. The Free Flow of Information Act protects journalistic sources generally, but does include several exceptions regarding terrorism, national security, imminent death, and trade secret leaks. And, in response to concerns that the initial version of the bill would apply to everyone capable of doing a Wordpress install, Rep. Rick Boucher (D-VA) narrowed the definition of a "journalist." You'll need to earn some scratch to qualify.
Boucher, along with Mike Pence (R-IN), championed the bill in the wake of several recent (and high profile) federal court cases in which journalists were threatened with or actually forced to serve jail time if they did not turn over confidential sources. More than 30 states already have shield laws on the books, and the new bill is an attempt to provide the same protection at the federal level.
The modified bill that passed the committee today included a provision that limits its protections to those who make "financial gain or livelihood" from their journalism. Bloggers who make ten bucks a quarter from their Google ads seem unlikely to get protection, though this will depend on how broadly the courts interpret "financial gain."
The Society of Professional Journalists pushed to keep the definition as broad as possible. "While it's important to distinguish responsible journalists from casual bloggers," said SPJ's national president, Christine Tatum, "the more narrow the language defining who is a journalist, the less impact the bill will have."
Boucher told the committee that "the best information about corruption in government or misdeeds in a private organization will come from someone on the inside who feels a responsibility to bring that information to light." And he argued that such people will not come forward unless they know that their confidentiality can be respected.
More than 40 media companies and journalism organizations agreed. "The journalist is becoming the first stop, rather than the last resort, for civil litigants and prosecutors attempting to obtain the identity of confidential sources," said the Newspaper Association of America in a statement supporting the bill.
An almost identical version (PDF) of the bill has also been introduced into the Senate. The House version, with 69 cosponsors, already enjoys strong bipartisan support.
