3 ms·
The laws against publishing classified information only apply to people who are authorized to have it in the first place. As soon as that info makes its way to
by henryfjordan 7y ago
The laws against publishing classified information only apply to people who are authorized to have it in the first place. As soon as that info makes its way to someone who is NOT authorized to see it, they can legally do whatever they want with it.
There is no legal definition of "journalist" in this context.
- tssva 7y agoThis is simply untrue. The laws regarding publishing classified information to those unauthorized to have it applies across the board. There is no exception for journalists. There has been a tradition of not prosecuting journalists for doing so and the Supreme Court ruled in the Pentagon Papers case that the government couldn't prevent publication but didn't rule that journalists could not be prosecuted after the fact for doing so. Several justices released their own briefs regarding the opinion because the reason for ruling against the prior restraint varied among the justices. In a few of them justices mentioned that the government could seek, likely successfully, criminal charges after the fact.