Media Shield Law Vs. Disclosing Of Sources

Television network news chief says current situation confusing

Media Shield Law Would Clarify When News Sources Can Be Disclosed

Passage by Congress of the first U.S. federal shield law would help clarify the circumstances under which reporters can reveal confidential news sources, says David Westin, president of the ABC television network's news division.

"There is no accepted rule or law at the federal level" on this issue, Westin said. He told USINFO that he finds that situation "very ironic" because the federal government lags behind 49 U.S. states and the District of Columbia, all of which have adopted shield laws for reporters.

Westin said he favors the media shield bill now before the U.S. Congress because it would establish a "uniform rule" that "makes it clear that the judicial courts have to take a very, very close look" at when reporters should be ordered to release the names of sources.

Westin said the lack of a federal shield law is inhibiting reporters and "affects what we do" in terms of the way in which his network reports the news.

"But let's be clear," Westin added, "not all that inhibition is bad. I think there have been times in the past when journalists have been too willing to give promises of confidentially" to news sources.

Such promises, said Westin, should be made "as a last resort. We should not be giving promises of confidentiality ... unless it's absolutely necessary to get really important information" and also is the only way to get the information.

The country needs "a clear consistent rule, whatever the rule is," he said. "It's wrong for us to be laboring under confusion or an ambiguity. And that's where we are now on a federal level. That is really bad."

Westin reiterated points he made in his October 2005 statement before the Senate Judiciary Committee regarding reporters being subpoenaed to testify about their sources in a federal court.

"If the issue is in state court" in America, he said in his testimony, "we at least know what the rules are and can make some informed judgment about what we should report and how we should report it."

The U.S. House of Representatives on October 16 passed by 398-21 the media shield law for reporters. The Senate Judiciary Committee passed a similar bill October 4 that is now pending before the full Senate.

Anonymous Sources Exception, Rather Than Rule, Media Executive Says

Westin said most of ABC's reporting does not involve confidential sources. The news division's investigative unit typically deals with anonymous sources and "some national security" issues, he said.

"So the practice" of relying on anonymous sources "is the exception rather than the rule" at ABC, said Westin.

Westin said "people who deal with confidential sources are very aware" of the current climate for either private litigants or federal prosecutors to seek to compel the disclosure of anonymous sources. Such a climate marks a change from a decade ago when court orders compelling disclosures were less common, said Westin, who was a partner in a law firm before joining ABC in 1991 as the network's vice president and general counsel. Westin was named president of ABC News in March 1997.

Westin said his reporters now are more reluctant to offer pledges of confidentiality. But if the story is important enough, "we will continue to give" such pledges and "we will defend" that privilege "all the way up to the Supreme Court."

Westin said ABC's procedure precludes its investigative reporters from publishing a story until it is checked by a senior vice president's team for editorial quality.

He said situations arise when one part of a particular ABC report might raise legal difficulties because it uses confidential sources. In such cases, "we will take some things out of the report," said Westin.

However, he added, "we haven't had any instances yet where we simply haven't reported a particular story at all" because of potential legal problems. The current practice, he said, is for ABC to "modify our reporting to minimize" reliance on confidential sources and avoid potential disclosure issues.

Westin said the Free Flow of Information Act of 2007, the bill now before Congress, should provide for "some protection for the confidential sources of journalists, but that the privilege should not be absolute." The information that is sought about sources, he said, should be "really essential" to a case, and not just "peripheral."

The question becomes "how exactly do you articulate the standards" for when reporters can keep sources anonymous, a question central to the debate on the federal shield bill, Westin said. Clarifying the legal situation on disclosing sources is "the sensible approach," he said.

Westin expressed reluctance to predict whether a federal media shield law will be enacted by the United States.

"That's a legislative judgment that's beyond my competence. I've enough to do on my regular job without predicting what legislation will make it through or not," he said with a laugh.

But Westin said he was encouraged, as were all advocates for the shield bill, by the fact that the House not only passed the legislation, but by such an overwhelming margin.

ENDS

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