Condoning Cooper
Former Time Inc. Editor Norman Pearlstine defended his controversial decisions to release information to the courts in the highly publicized Valerie Plame CIA leak case, during a Q&A session sponsored by The Aspen Group on Monday.
“The ‘e’ in e-mail stands for ‘evidence,’ ” said Pearlstine, speaking to reporter Matthew Cooper’s apparent lack of discretion when dropping White House Senior Advisor Karl Rove’s name in messages to a number of co-workers. Pearlstine cited Cooper’s laxity in keeping confidentiality as one of the points that led to his divulging Cooper’s notes, upsetting many journalists by breaking conventions.
Pearlstine discussedthe finer points of his new book, “Off the Record: The Press, the Government, and the War over Anonymous Sources.”
“I think too many reporters are too quick to grant confidentiality,” Pearlstine said. “We’re getting too lax about it.”
