Government agencies pressure a reporter's spouse to tell what he knows about his wife's confidential informant. A district attorney searches newsrooms at three television stations.
Federal courts force reporters to turn over outtakes and reveal their sources.
All twists on the same theme. Reporter's privilege Reporter's privilege typically focuses on the right to refuse to disclose a source in court proceedings. Many jurisdictions expand the privilege to cover information gathered by a reporter in the course of putting a story together. The reasons for seeking the reporter's information are numerous-perhaps the reporter did a story that touches on some aspect of the dispute or interviewed a key witness in a pending criminal prosecution. Or maybe your station has videotape of an accident or crime scene.