Reply #1: I argued here at DU that the WH officials who spoke to the press shouldn't [View All]

be able to be claimed by the reporters as confidential sources whose identities need to be protected.

If you're a government official who is acting within your official capacities, it doesn't make sense that a reporter should be able to protect you as a source.

Deepthroat is one thing. A whistleblower whose job is NOT to talk to the press is one thing. But if a press secretary calls you, performing their job, what interest is a reporter serving by protecting your confidentiality? A press secretary's job is to serve the public by talking to the press.

I'd love to hear a debate on this issue because I'm not sure which way this one should go.

But I suspect the WH employees signed waivers perhaps because they were acknowleding that they don't deserve the same sort of confidential status as your average information leaker.