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Viveca Novak, Journalist as Blabbermouth
Today’s NYT reveals that Novak tipped off Karl Rove and Robert Luskin to the former’s unrevealed meeting with Matt Cooper at which Valerie Wilson’s identity was discussed:
People involved in the case said that at a minimum Ms. Novak communicated to Mr. Luskin that Mr. Rove might face legal problems because of potential testimony from Mr. Cooper, her colleague. They said Ms. Novak had told Mr. Luskin that Mr. Cooper might have been in contact with Mr. Rove about Ms. Wilson in the days before her identity became public.
I’m neither a lawyer nor a journalist, but doesn’t this appear to be the shoddiest of journalism for a reporter to alert someone under federal investigation that a third party (Cooper) would be spilling the beans on him, thus giving Rove an opportunity to fess up to the feds and (potentially) get himself out of a ton of jeopardy?
Let’s add Novak to the growing list of WashPo journalists who’ve hindered Fitzgerald’s investigation AND practiced shoddy journalism.
Atrios is goin’ where I’m goin’ on this one.
