The Willard Report on Unauthorized Disclosures (1982)
“Leak investigations do not focus on the receiving journalist for a variety of reasons,” according to a 1982 government report (pdf) on unauthorized disclosures of classified information.
One of those reasons is that “journalists are unlikely to divulge their sources in response to a subpoena for documents or testimony before a grand jury, and contempt sanctions against journalists in other types of cases have not been effective.”
In other words, according to this analysis, the traditional refusal of journalists to cooperate with leak investigations protects them in the long run by discouraging government officials from undertaking further investigations.
The 1982 report, known as the “Willard Report” after its chairman, Richard K. Willard, is a minor classic of cold war secrecy. Though frequently cited in the literature, it has not been available online until now (thanks to S).
See “Report of the Interdepartmental Group on Unauthorized Disclosures of Classified Information” (the “Willard” Report), March 31, 1982.
What if low trust was not a given? Or, said another way: what if we had the power to improve trust in government – what would that world look like?
“One in three Americans report being personally affected by extreme weather in just the past two years – illustrating that extreme weather has become extremely common,” said Dr. Hannah Safford.
Datasets and variables that do not align with Administration priorities, or might reflect poorly on Administration policy impacts, seem to be especially in the cross-hairs.
One month of a government shutdown is in the books, but how many more months will (or can) it go? Congress is paralyzed, but there are a few spasms of activity around healthcare and the prospects of a continuing resolution to punt this fight out until January or later.