New York Times reporter James Risen didn’t hold back — after hearing Attorney General Eric Holder’s defense of the Obama administration’s record on open government and press freedom — and slammed the White House for being as anti-media as you can get.
Mr. Holder, at a National Press Club event, said the administration was not at all hostile to members of the press and that federal authorities could have prosecuted several leakers, but chose not to, Newsmax reported.
He also said that the media, for its part, should ask itself before reporting if the story due to go to press could have “a negative impact on the security of a nation,” Newsmax reported.
Mr. Risen expressed outrage and called Mr. Holder the “nation’s top censorship officer,” Politico reported.
He went on: “Eric Holder has done the bidding of the intelligence community and the White House to damage press freedom in the United States. … [He’s] sent a message to dictators around the world that it is OK to crack down on the press and jail journalists … [and he] leaves behind a wrecked First Amendment.”
Mr. Risen also added that Mr. Holder “has managed to destroy any semblance of a reporters’ privilege in the United States.”
• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
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