The American Society for Journalists and Authors has changed its collective mind, and decided not to give Judith Miller the prestigious Conscience in Media award after all. The original vote to give her the award was a narrow one, but the new vote was unanimous. The society apparently yanked the award after looking at the whole of Miller?s career. Were they concerned by her hyping of incredibly flimsy evidence that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction? Or maybe her hijacking of an army WMD search unit?

Actually, Anita Bartholomew had it right: the real reason not to give Miller the award is that she was protecting confidential sources who were trying to silence whistleblowers instead of blowing the whistle themselves. It?s a pretty basic distinction, and one the mainstream media seems to have forgotten. Back when I was starting out as a reporter, we were warned to use confidential sources sparingly and to be aware of their agendas if we did use them. If your source works for the government and is pushing the government?s agenda (or ditto for a corporation) then he or she is just a cowardly shill. Forbidding reporters from talking to off-the-record-but-official sources would be the first step towards cleaning up the putrid relationship between the media and the establishment.