Government Spying on Confidential News Sources

This is a disturbing piece of news even at a time when we see enough disturbing news on a daily basis to make one numb. Brian Ross and Richard Esposito of ABC News are reporting that a confidential source in the government has warned them that their phone calls are being tracked as part of a program to root out confidential sources (under the guise of a leak investigation). According to the article, reporters from ABC News as well as the New York Times and the Washington Post have been targeted. While the source claims that the content of the phone calls is not being collected, they are apparently able to root out potential sources from tracking call patterns. At a time when Congress has relinquished all semblance of its oversight duties, this could have a potentially chilling effect on the whistleblowers we so desperately need.