Scott Bremner

I normally don’t advocate positions to politicians. I only cover politicians and then I cover those trying to make their points to them from an impartial distance.

Then again, every rule has its exception, doesn’t it?

The debate in the Senate over the need for a federal shield law prompted me to write a rare request to Senator Robert Casey, who is still considering his vote (Senator Arlen Specter is already a sponsor) because I believe that the courts’ ability to jail and even bankrupt a reporter to force the revealing of sources will have a chilling effect on whistleblowers and others who see wrong in powerful places.

So I sat down one afternoon and this is what came out:

To: Staff of Senator Robert Casey

My name is Scott Bremner and I am the News Director for WSEE-TV, the CBS affiliate in Erie, PA. I write this not in an official working capacity but as a constituent of Senator Robert Casey.
I urge our Senator to consider support for S. 2035, which would help create a federal shield law for journalists.
I respect the courts but also fear any consolidation of power, and believe that a great nation is built by leaders with the foresight to realize that a free press out from under the thumb of any branch of government is critical to the gears on which that nation runs.
For national leaders like the Senator, a free press can often be messy, bothersome and inconvenient. It is also the sole means of informing the true leaders of America, the voters, of what is happening in a fair and impartial manner.
Having the freedom to protect the sources that feed that informational blood flow is imperative not only to the minds of the masses but to the marrow of the democracy. Please relate to the Senator our belief of the urgent need for this legislation.

Thanks,
Scott Bremner
News Director
WSEE-TV

I understand the critics who say that reporters only get their notebooks in a bunch when the law directly affects them, but that’s shortsighted.

This law doesn’t protect reporters as much as it protects your right to know what people in power are doing while also preventing those in power from using the courts as a hammer to silence opposition.

Passing a federal shield law looks good in an election year. What we need to watch, however, is how watered down the legislation becomes as it moves through the process; whether bugaboos like “terrorism” or “national security” are inserted to file down the teeth of the law’s intention.

You can be sure that I’ll be watching.

Then again, that’s my job.