New York Times faces backlash after revealing details about whistleblower

National security experts and advocates for whistleblower protection condemn publication of identifying information

Maanvi Singh
Fri 27 Sep 2019 04.48 BST
Last modified on Fri 27 Sep 2019 07.01 BST

The New York Times is facing criticism over its decision to publish revealing details about the whistleblower whose explosive complaint, which raised concerns about Donald Trump’s conversation with the Ukrainian president and the White House’s apparent attempts to cover it up, was made public on Thursday.

Readers, including those who work with or within the intelligence community, national security experts and advocates for whistleblower protection, expressed concern that the decision compromised the individual’s safety.

The newspaper reported the whistleblower’s employer and expertise, citing three unnamed people familiar with the individual’s identity. Since the article’s publication online on Thursday, the newspaper has added the context that the White House already knew where the whistleblower was employed.

Identifying information published in the paper “recklessly narrows that universe of suspected whistleblowers to a very few people,” said Jesselyn Radack, the director of national security and human rights at the Whistleblower and Source Protection Program. “This has a very chilling effect on anyone who is even thinking of blowing the whistle and thinking of doing so through the proper channels.”

The individual is especially at risk given that Trump lashed out at those who informed the whistleblower, comparing them to spies, and alluded to retaliation. In audio obtained by the Los Angeles Times, Trump can be heard asking: “Who’s the person that gave the whistleblower the information? Because that’s close to a spy. You know what we used to do in the old days, when we were smart, right? The spies and treason? We used to handle it a little differently than we do now.”

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