“Non-Fiction” Authors Rescind Award, Redefine “Non-Fiction”
Apparently, it’s only noble to protect your sources if they’re the right…err…left…sources.
The board of The American Society of Journalists and Authors (ASJA) has voted unanimously to reverse an earlier decision to give its annual Conscience in Media award to jailed New York Times reporter Judith Miller, E&P has learned.
The group’s First Amendment committee had narrowly voted to give Miller the prize for her dedication to protecting sources, but the full board has now voted to overturn that decision, based on its opinion that her entire career, and even her current actions in the Plame/CIA leak case, cast doubt on her credentials for this award.
Yeah, I can understand that. I mean, who cares that she’s paying the price for her journalistic scruples – scruples that would otherwise make her the toast of the journalistic town. It’s not like she’s protecting anyone important.
Anita Bartholomew, a freelance journalist who has contributed to Reader’s Digest, wrote in a resignation letter, “The First Amendment is designed to prevent government interference with a free press. Miller, by shielding a government official or officials who attempted to use the press to retaliate against a whistleblower, and scare off other would-be whistleblowers, has allied herself with government interference with, and censorship of, whistleblowers. When your source IS the government, and the government is attempting to use you to target a whistleblower, the notion of shielding a source must be reconsidered. To apply standard practices regarding sources to hiding wrongdoing at the highest levels of government perverts the intent of the First Amendment.”
I wonder how Ms. Bartholomew knows what she knows about Miller’s source. The only person who knows for sure who Miller is protecting is Miller – that’s kind of why she’s in jail right now. Bartholomew is speaking squarely out of her hind parts on this – which makes her a pretty rotten non-fiction writer.
Luckily, she’s resigned instead of facing what no doubt would have been penetrating questioning about how she knows something that not even the special prosecutor knows at this point.
[The group's President Jack] El-Hai told E&P at that time, “It is unusual to have this kind of disagreement about an award, but independent writers are a prickly bunch.”
Prickly and apparently not so good with facts. It’s probably best they didn’t give Miller the award. It doesn’t seem fit to be used as a chamber pot.
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Category: Moonbat Nonsense
