Felix Salmon of Reuters writes Wednesday about the recent action by the Securities and Exchange Commission to subpoena e-mails between sources Sam Antar and Barry Minkow and business journalists.
Salmon writes, “If the SEC were to ask Antar for emails he sent to his lawyer, he could simply refuse, on the grounds that such communications are protected. And the SEC itself is happy to admit that communications with journalists deserve some measure of protection, and that the SEC shouldn’t simply go on massive fishing expeditions in such circumstances: instead, it should be very specific about exactly what information it wants.
“The Sam Antar subpoena, however, is obviously a fishing expedition: it even includes documents from Antar’s recent divorce. And it nullifies a huge amount of the welcome sentiment behind the SEC’s policy on asking for information from journalists, if the SEC can ignore all those guidelines when asking for information from journalists’ sources.
“The SEC should encourage communication between sources and the press, using the press as a kind of adjunct enforcement mechanism. Instead, this kind of activity is prone to making sources even quieter. And that doesn’t serve the SEC at all.”
OLD Media Moves
When biz journalist's sources get subpoenaed
June 23, 2010
Felix Salmon of Reuters writes Wednesday about the recent action by the Securities and Exchange Commission to subpoena e-mails between sources Sam Antar and Barry Minkow and business journalists.
Salmon writes, “If the SEC were to ask Antar for emails he sent to his lawyer, he could simply refuse, on the grounds that such communications are protected. And the SEC itself is happy to admit that communications with journalists deserve some measure of protection, and that the SEC shouldn’t simply go on massive fishing expeditions in such circumstances: instead, it should be very specific about exactly what information it wants.
“The Sam Antar subpoena, however, is obviously a fishing expedition: it even includes documents from Antar’s recent divorce. And it nullifies a huge amount of the welcome sentiment behind the SEC’s policy on asking for information from journalists, if the SEC can ignore all those guidelines when asking for information from journalists’ sources.
“The SEC should encourage communication between sources and the press, using the press as a kind of adjunct enforcement mechanism. Instead, this kind of activity is prone to making sources even quieter. And that doesn’t serve the SEC at all.”
Read more here.
Media News
Dynamo hires former Business Insider executive editor Harrington
November 22, 2024
Media News
Bloomberg TV hires Kerubo as desk producer
November 22, 2024
Media News
Jittery CNBC staff reassured by new boss
November 22, 2024
Media News
Making business news accessible to a wider audience
November 22, 2024
Media News
Rest of World hires Lo as China reporter
November 22, 2024
Subscribe to TBN
Receive updates about new stories in the industry daily or weekly.