My Response to "News War"

We watched a section of the film News Wars in my Reporting for the Mass Media class today. The film told the true story of Josh Wolf, a news reporter who was arrested and sent to prison for refusing to release part of the footage from some film he recorded of anarchist action against the G8. FBI agents told him that someone tried to start a police car on fire during this event and they needed the footage of the film he recorded because they thought it would help them find out who did it. He released part of the film, but when he refused to release the rest of it he went to prison. Josh served 226 days in prison--the longest time in history served for defying a court order to release information.
To be honest, I have mixed feelings about whether the FBI (or other government agency) should be able to ask a journalist to hand over information to help in an investigation. I believe in the freedom of speech to the fullest extent. Thomas Jefferson said, "The only security of all is in a free press. The force of public opinion cannot be resisted when premitted freely to be expressed." I certainly believe in the freedom of speech. It was so important that the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution guarantees our right to the freedom of speech. The reason I would consider siding with the FBI would be in the case of protecting Americans from acts of terrorism. Because it is illegal for anyone to withold information in an investigation, journalists should not be treated any different than anyone else. Current policy from the U.S. Department of Justice United States Attorney's Manual states: "In all cases, members of the Department must balance the public's interest in the free dissemination of ideas and information with the public's interest in effective law enforcement and the fair administration of justice." Therefore, I believe that the situation should determine the action taken.