James Risen, a Pulitzer Prize winning hero 10-20-2014

20, October 2014        James Risen, a Pulitzer Prize winning hero

In a determined effort to punish James Risen, the New York Times investigative reporter, the Bush and now the Obama administration has threatened him with imprisonment unless he reveals his source who provided him details of the massive illegal warrantless wiretapping conducted by the National Security Agency. This case will undoubtedly become the most significant challenge to press freedom in decades. Fearful that such a revelation could torpedo Bush’s 2004 reelection, the administration applied intense pressure on the NYT to delay publication. Sadly, the NYT capitulated; had the story been published earlier the outcome of the election might have resulted in a John Kerry victory.

In 2006 Risen won a Pulitzer Prize for his reporting and has more recently published a book, “State of War” which provides startling details of the long dark history of the CIA and the Bush administration. The government accuses the CIA officer, Jeffrey Sterling, of giving Risen classified information about the agency’s role in disrupting Iran’s nuclear program, which Risen argues effectively gave Iran a blueprint for designing a bomb. In what appears to be a crude effort to silence Risen to prevent the botched ‘Sterling Affair” coming to light, the Obama administration has intensified its effort to compel Risen to reveal his source. In a gesture of defiance, Risen responded to the Justice Department highhandedness by releasing another book, titled  "Pay Any Price: Greed, Power, and Endless War."  He stated that "you cannot have aggressive investigative reporting in America without confidential sources — and without aggressive investigative reporting, we can’t really have a democracy." This may prove to be a landmark case which may eventually determine the future of journalism. His latest book is a savage indictment of what he calls the "homeland security-industrial complex." It is tragic that President Obama who ran his presidential campaign promising a more open government has become mired in secrecy and developed an aggressive attitude determined to silence and punish whistleblowers.