Federal shield law stalls in Senate
As journalists, we’re supposed to stay away from advocacy issues, but I can’t help but mention the status of a federal bill to protect journalists and their sources.
Turns out a procedural vote today in the U.S. Senate on the Free Flow of Information Act of 2007 failed to get the 60 votes it needed to move forward. That means it’s unlikely it will come up for a vote again before the Senate takes its August recess.
Oklahoma Sens. Jim Inhofe, R-Tulsa, and Tom Coburn, R-Muskogee, both voted against the cloture motion on S. 2035. (The motion received 51 Yeas and 43 Nays, with six not voting.)
In the U.S. House, all five members of the Oklahoma delegation voted for the House version of the bill in October.
According to the Society of Professional Journalists, a federal shield law would:
… give journalists the right to refuse to reveal information and sources obtained during the newsgathering process with a few notable exceptions, including where national security is at issue. The qualified privilege would be similar to those afforded to lawyers and their clients, clergy and their penitents, and psychotherapists and their patients.
In a statement, SPJ President Clint Brewer said:
We are very disappointed that the bill stalled today. SPJ will continue to encourage its members and public citizens to contact members of Congress and express part of the Society’s mission: to encourage a climate where journalism can be practiced freely. A federal shield law would be a major step toward that goal.
Oklahoma is one of 49 states with a shield law already on the books, although it doesn’t cover actions in federal court. Attorney General Drew Edmondson was among 41 attorneys general who sent a letter to Congressional leaders last month urging passage of the federal shield law.
You can read more about Oklahoma’s shield law here.
The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press also has an interesting page about ongoing federal prosecutions involving journalists and their sources.
–Paul
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