The legal rationale used by the government to block Sibel Edmonds from testifying in court is called the "State Secrets Privilege." It has been invoked from time to time to quash information that the government says would threaten national security. But now, the precedent for that legal device is being challenged by people who claim it's based on a fraud. In January, Brooke spoke to George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley about the fascinating history of the State Secrets Privilege.
Howard Stern wants the Bush team out of the White House come November, and he's wielding his mighty mic to influence millions of listeners to vote. For his efforts he has won little support from Democrats who probably find the self-titled King of All Media a little too hot to handle in an election year. But Stern battles on. He may stand alone, but with a massive army of listeners behind him. New York Observer columnist Joe Hagan joined Brooke to discuss his recent story, "Howard's Private War."
In the months after 9-11, the U.S. government dismantled the Arabic- service of the Voice of America, and replaced it with Radio Sawa - a station heavy on the Britney and short on the news. For veteran journalist and international media adviser Stephen Schwartz, it was just another in a long line of blunders by Americans in charge of winning Iraqi hearts and minds. Schwartz tells Brooke why he thinks U.S. attempts at controlling the Iraqi media landscape is undermining America's own credibility.
The photos from Abu Ghraib have left an indelible impression around the world, but only in the military's own report into the matter does the full picture become clear. This week, the Taguba report was widely available online, leaving little doubt in the minds of many that responsibility stretches far up the chain of command. But technically, that report remains classified. Brooke looks at the question of why it was classified in the first place with Steven Aftergood, director of the Federation of American Scientists' Project on Government Secrecy.
After the fall of Saddam, there was much excitement about Iraq's burgeoning media. Suddenly, there were hundreds of newspapers on newsstands, and journalists were free to practice their craft unimpeded by regime censors. The only problem - they weren't exactly sure how to. Brooke talks to Hiwa Osman, an Iraqi Kurd employed by the London-based Institute for War and Peace Reporting to train Iraqi journalists.
Last week, Clear Channel booted Howard Stern from its stations on the stated grounds of indecency. Some say the radio giant was tidying house before a date with Congress. But others - Stern included - point to his recent political left turn. They say he was silenced after using his almighty mic to Bush-bash. Bob asks Salon senior writer Eric Boehlert to weigh-in on the theory.
Scientist Wen Ho Lee’s reputation was smeared by the media when he was wrongly accused of passing nuclear secrets to China in 1999. Now he wants to sue the government but to do that he needs the reporters who wrote about the case to reveal their government sources. Two of the five journalists who have been called to reveal their sources are from the New York Times. So far they are refusing to give up any information. Bob speaks with Lucy Dalglish, the Executive Director of Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press.
These days, there seems to be no shortage of government officials who would prefer a media-free democracy. But for much of American history, Congress and the press have existed symbiotically, with each alternatively shaping the actions of the other. National Security Archive founder Scott Armstrong joins Brooke to discuss the recent breakdown in this symbiosis, and the consequences for the democratic process.
