Pentagon drops controversial ban on GTMO reporters
Published: July 13, 2010
Carol Rosenberg is back in Guantanamo. And she Tweets.
The Pentagon’s second-in-command for media operations, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs Bryan Whitman, has canceled the lifetime bans on covering GTMO trials for three of four reporters, including the Miami Herald’s Rosenberg.
Rosenberg is among the most prolific Gitmo reporters. But she and three Canadian reporters covering the military commission of detainee and Canadian national Omar Khadr were banned for life after violating courtroom rules in May.
Whitman said they publicly identified an interrogator in the case, Army Sgt. Joshua Claus. But Claus' name already was known publicly because he gave an interview to the Toronto Star years earlier. So, the reporters thus named him in their articles about the proceeding.
A flurry of protests in the editorial pages of major newspapers followed. And a law firm sent the Defense Department a protest letter on behalf of Rosenberg and the Miami Herald, Associated Press, Dow Jones & Company, Inc., the New York Times, Reuters and the Washington Post.
The firm charged, “This penalty is an illegal denial of access to the Commissions.” The problem, they said, was the DoD's courtroom ground rules didn’t take into account information discovered independently elsewhere, as with this particular interrogator’s identity.
“The expulsion of these reporters was based upon an expansive and illegal application of the Ground Rules by OASD (PA) to preclude reporters from disclosing information deemed 'protected,' even if that information had already been widely publicized, was not “gathered or produced” at Guantanamo, and was known by the reporters before they ever traveled to Guantanamo.”
Whitman offered an olive branch, allowing the reporters to apply for reinstatement, but in mid-August after the next scheduled Kahdr hearing. The reporters appealed for faster movement and three were granted, in time to make this week’s proceedings.
The Globe & Mail’s Paul Koring told Danger Room he did not think he did anything wrong and therefore would not admit so, as required in Whitman's rules for a reinstatement letter.
Rosenberg’s lawyer told the New York Times's Media Decoder the rules for reporters were “unconstitutional and illegal”, but she agreed to abide by them in order to get back to doing what she does best: covering Gitmo.
Thanks to Carole (who is live Tweeting from Guantanamo) the public gets to see gems like this image of the handwritten letter by Kahdr to the judge, explaining that he would refuse any U.S. plea bargain offer, “because it will give excuse for the gov for torturing and abusing me when I was a child.”
Keeping with the spirit, I asked Rosenberg to give me her reaction to the reinstatement, in 140 characters or less:
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carolrosenberg: Can't quite do it in 140. "It's a good start. But we're still disputing |
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carolrosenberg: DOD's new, expanded interpretation of their military censorship powers that tries to ban already public stuff in Guantanamo articles." |
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