100 Years Later: The Espionage Act & the Free Press

In June 2017, the Trump Administration launched its first prosecution under the Espionage Act of an individual accused of leaking classified information to journalists. But the Espionage Act, which was enacted in 1917 as the United States prepared to enter World War I, was never intended to apply to leakers and the press, and was only used to prosecute leakers for the first time during the presidency of Richard Nixon in 1971.

100 years after it became law, the Espionage Act's continued misuse could have a devastating effect on investigative journalism, whistleblowers, and freedom of the press in the United States. CPJ spoke with James Goodale, a First Amendment attorney and former general counsel for The New York Times, and Scott Shane, national security reporter for The New York Times, about how the Espionage Act could be used against the press.

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