Murdoch's Papers Fight the Guardian (and Free Speech)

[woo me with science]

http://www.newrepublic.com/article/114500/glenn-greenwald-nsa-leaks-british-journos-dont-defend-guardian

Murdoch's Papers Fight the Guardian (and Free Speech)
Journalism's circular firing squad, UK edition


BY PETER JUKES

While it might be a mite too early to assess the historic and political impact of Edward Snowden’s leaks of top secret NSA documents, the first casualty is already clear: journalism.

The arrest for nine hours last week of David Miranda while in transit through London’s Heathrow airport is just one obvious example. Miranda was held under the Schedule 7 of the British Terrorism Act 2000 for nine hours with no legal representation, and his computers and personal effects searched and confiscated. Miranda was allegedly acting as a courier for his partner Glenn Greenwald, the Guardian columnist who has been the pointman for most of Snowden’s leaks. As the World Association of News Papers and News Publishers said in a letter to Prime Minister David Cameron, the fact that journalism was equated with terrorism is, in itself, “outrageous and deeply disturbing.” Miranda has since launched a legal case against the British authorities over his detention.

State threats to revelations about its security apparatus are hardly new, and Miranda’s reversion to the slow and cumbersome means of physical transport show just how insecure telecommunications have become. One would have thought the chilling effects on whistleblowing and investigative journalism should concern every reporter.

Alas, this is not so. The “shooting the messenger” reprisals against Greenwald began back in June, but in recent weeks the circular firing squad has grown even louder. CNN legal analyst and New Yorker staff writer Jeffrey Toobin compared Miranda to a “drug mule” because he was handling classified information and said he should have been locked up. If possession of legally compromised material is a crime, then many journalists should fear arrest—not only those who cover national security, but court proceedings and business affairs as well....