The White House said on Tuesday that it did not think the Justice Department should threaten criminal action against journalists who report on sensitive national security matters, distancing itself from a recent case in which a television correspondent was targeted as a possible “co-conspirator†in a leak investigation.
Jay Carney, the White House press secretary, said he discussed the situation with President Obama after reports that James Rosen, the chief Washington correspondent for Fox News, was described in criminal terms in an affidavit involving a 2009 article about North Korea posted on the network’s Web site.
“I can’t comment on the specifics of any ongoing criminal matter,†Mr. Carney told reporters. “But if you’re asking me whether the president believes that journalists should be prosecuted for doing their jobs, the answer is no.â€
The statement was more definitive than the one the White House had issued the day before, when news of Mr. Rosen’s situation was first written about in The Washington Post. Mr. Carney, himself a former reporter for Time magazine, sought to amplify the original response by disavowing the notion of criminalizing journalism without weighing in on the particular case.
Having said that, Mr. Carney asserted that it was still a top priority of government to investigate and prosecute those who leak classified information in violation of the law, saying it was important to balance the need for secrecy with a free press. The Rosen case generated special attention as it came after word that the Justice Department had seized a broad array of phone records from The Associated Press as part of an investigation into a national security leak.
“There is no question that when classified information is leaked, that is a violation of the law,†Mr. Carney said. “And it is a serious matter, as we have seen in some cases.â€
He added, “It is also vital to our democracy â€" and the president believes this deeply â€" that the press is allowed to pursue investigative journalism freely.â€
