Federal shield law is long overdue.(PRO/CON)

CONGRESS IS AGAIN considering the Free Flow of Information Act--a federal press shield law. Its passage is long overdue. Though most states have such laws, they are easily evaded by filing suits in federal courts where judges can compel journalists to name their sources.

Last year, NCEW joined dozens of other journalism organizations in support of the bill--despite opposition from some members.

Some argued that the United States should not set journalists apart as a special protected class. Rather, journalists should be the same as other citizens in the eyes of the law.

An interesting view, except journalists are a special protected class. The First Amendment sets the press apart. We have additional rights and access denied average citizens. We carry press passes for a reason.

Others argued that the First Amendment contains all the protection the press needs.

Maybe it should be enough, but in practice it isn't. It doesn't prevent judges from compelling journalists to reveal sources and give up notes.

Really, though, shield laws are not even about the press. They protect our sources, not us. They protect whistleblowers who could lose their jobs, government employees who could face retribution, and lawbreakers whose information allows us to report on the less savory side of a community.

True, sometimes those people leak information and demand confidentiality for their own selfish reasons. More often, their only goal is to inform the public about some scandal, abuse, or corruption. Their risk is all the greater when zealous prosecutors or attorneys in a civil suit could discover their identities with a subpoena. Some, instead, choose silence.

There's room to quibble about some of the specifics in the Free Flow of Information Act, but its fundamental idea is sound. If journalists cannot protect anonymous sources, important stories will never come to light.

Christian Trejbal is an editorial writer for The Roanoke Tunes and chair of NCEW's Open Government Committee. Email christian.trejbal@roanoke.com.

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