In a drama worthy of the last season of The Newsroom, New York Times reporter James Risen is refusing to testify at the pretrial hearing of ex-CIA officer Jeffrey Sterling, whom the government says was the journalist’s source for confidential material for a book about a failed intelligence operation. An appeals court ruled last year that Risen must testify at the trial even though the government has plenty of other evidence linking Sterling to him, but Risen and supporters say that compelling him to testify violates the freedom of the press. At Monday’s hearing, Risen confirmed that his book had used confidential sources, but reiterated his absolute refusal to divulge any more information about who they are — even though that may mean he will go to prison.
