BALCO journalists risk jail for protecting sources
Two journalists from San Francisco Chronicle, Lance Williams and Mark Fainaru-Wada, have been summoned to appear before a federal grand jury in Los Angeles to explain how they obtained transcripts of confidential grand jury testimonies from top athletes who were questioned in connection with the BALCO case.
The journalists used the testimonies as the basis for a number of articles which exposed the use of steroids amongst professional athletes – particularly in baseball. But now the U.S. Attorney wants the journalists to name the source of the leaked transcripts and also return the material. If not, the journalists will be held in contempt of court and sent to jail.
No plans to disclose sources
In the testimonies, several top athletes admitted to having used performance enhancing drugs – primarily in the form of steroids. The admissions formed the basis for a series of articles which has led to an intense debate in the US about the use of steroids in professional sport and encouraged Major League Baseball to change its doping rules.
According to American law, court stenographers, attorneys and others entrusted with grand jury testimonies are not allowed to publish them, and the journalists are not prepared to disclose their sources.
”Of course, we are going to stand up for our sources and we would never betray them,” Fainaru-Wada has told Associated Press.
The journalists are backed up in their own newspaper by San Francisco Chronicle’s Executive Editor Phil Bronstein:
“Reporters are not subject to the rules governing grand jury secrecy, which apply only to some of the people in the room during those proceedings. We believe that our ability to report on this issue is protected by the First Amendment to the Constitution.”
If the journalists are held in contempt of court and sent to prison, they may spend longer time there than any of the key players in the BALCO affair. The American justice system can be very determined in its attempts to get journalists to disclose their sources and last year reporter Judith Miller of the New York Times spent 85 days in jail until she gave up the name of the White House aide who had given her the name of the CIA agent Valerie Plame.
This contrasts with the fact that BALCO vice president James Valente and track coach Remi Korchemny were only given probation after they admitted to distributing drugs. BALCO president Victor Conte got four months in jail, and Bond’s personal trainer, Greg Anderson, was sentenced to three months in jail.