<<<< WASHINGTON — The CEO of the Associated Press, Gary Pruitt, told an
audience Wednesday that the Department of Justice has succeeded in muzzling
government employees from talking to AP reporters in the weeks since the
seizure of AP phone records was revealed.
“What I learned from our journalists should alarm everyone
in this room and I think should alarm everyone in this country. The actions of
the DOJ against AP are already having an impact beyond the specifics of this
particular case,” AP CEO Gary Pruitt told an audience at the National Press
Club. “Some of our longtime trusted sources have become nervous and anxious
about talking to us, even about stories that aren’t about national security. In
some cases, government employees that we once checked in with regularly will no
longer speak to us by phone, and some are reluctant to meet in person.”
After it was made public that the Justice Department took AP
Washington bureau phone records as part of the Obama administration’s
aggressive anti-leak operation, Pruitt said the fear among potential sources
has spread to reporters from other outlets.
“I can tell you that this chilling effect is not just at AP,
it’s happening at other news organizations as well,” he said. “Journalists from
other news organizations have personally told me it has intimidated sources
from speaking to them.”
Pruitt said he believes government officials are happy to
see the process of newsgathering become more difficult in Washington.
No comments:
Post a Comment