A journalist in jail... in America?

I haven't yet waded into the whole Miller-Cooper-Plame saga, except to address Karl Rove's possible role as leaker, but check out Kevin Drum's thoughtful take on what it's all about. His conclusion is right on the mark:

[T]here's at least one thing everyone should agree on: we need a federal shield law. I happen to think reporters need greater protection, and you might think they need less, but in either case we ought to spell it out instead of making reporters and courts guess. Let's argue it out in Congress and then pass something that makes it clear what counts as "journalism," what protection sources can expect, and exactly how far prosecutors can go. If there are exceptions for specific criminal acts, so be it.

But let's at least nail it down. There's no excuse not to.

Journalists may not be infallible, but they need certain protections to do their jobs properly. They do their jobs for us, after all, and however much they may be vilified by both the left and the right in today's blame-the-messenger political climate, it's hard to imagine how democracy could survive without them.

(For the latest on the story, see here.)