Senator Lugar Doesn't Think Bloggers Are Journalists

Indiana's senior Senator Richard Lugar (R), who is proposing the Free Flow of Information Act of 2005 to shield journalists from having to disclose their sources by making such communications privileged, believes that bloggers are "probably not" journalists entitled to coverage under his proposed legislation. According to Editor and Publisher, Lugar told the Inter American Press Association: "Are bloggers journalists or some of the commercial businesses that you here would probably not consider real journalists? Probably not, but how do you determine who will be included in this bill?"

Defining who is a journalist is a major problem with Lugar's legislation. The story reports that some journalists actually oppose a new shield law because they "fear that giving Congress the power to define who is and isn't a journalist could lead effectively to the licensing of journalists."

Lugar acknowledged that his legislation may be giving preferential treatment to journalists over ordinary Americans. "I think, very frankly, you can make a case that this is a special boon for reporters, and certainly for their role in freedom of the press," he said. "At the end of the day what we will come out with says there is something privileged about being a reporter, and being able to report on something without being thrown into jail." The jailing of New York Times reporter Judith Miller, a long-time friend of Lugar's, inspired him to introduce the legislation.