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Monday, August 29, 2005

Come on, it hasn't even been two months

Doesn't Judith Miller of the "New York Times" deserve better than this "Free Judy Miller" editorial? Can't they come up with some more convincing arguments, or even one sustained line of argument, instead of some of these:
  1. "[H]aving her in jail is an embarrassment to a country that is supposed to be revered around the world for its freedoms, especially its First Amendment that provides freedom of the press."

    They never printed anything, so it's just a bit unclear where "freedom of the press" comes in. It sounds compelling, so they have to mention it. Even though the real situation is that she's a witness in a criminal investigation who won't testify. Just because she happens to be a reporter doesn't make it a First Amendment issue.

  2. Günter Grass et al. signed a petition that "should be required reading for the judge, the prosecutor and the White House."

    The White House? I'm not sure what the White House has to do with Miller being in jail, unless the Times is arguing that "Scooter" Libby or whomever ought to be obligated to release her from whatever confidentiality pledge she made--in which case you have a newspaper imploring a confidential source to out himself, which is an odd position for a newspaper to take in an editorial claiming that leaks are a bulwark of democracy. (Also, the European petition has little to recommend it as "required reading"--it's a jumble of platitudes in search of a sustained argument, not unlike the editorial itself.)

  3. "[C]ontinued incarceration is not going to sway a reporter who believes she is making a principled sacrifice."

    The only way to test this proposition is to keep her in jail. It hasn't even been two months. She might very well still cave.

  4. "Without leaks, without anonymity for some sources, a free press loses its ability to act as a check and a balance against the power of government."

    Try finding that in the First Amendment. Anyway, it's not like anything that happens with Judith Miller is going to do away with leaks and anonymity for sources.


posted at 3:16 PM

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