A free press is a more delicate creature than people in America might suppose. Supported by the First Amendment and buttressed by a strong history of liberal Supreme Court decisions, the press in America is in an enviable position. Even here, however, the Plame prosecution, the AIPAC spy scandal, and recent free speech rulings of the ultra-conservative Roberts Court suggest that that the press cannot take its position for granted.
Just how dependent press freedom is on strong laws to curb the power of the government is evident in the recent struggles of the Moroccan press to maintain its independence in the face of harsh prosecutions by the government. Magharebia reports, however, that the press is using the law to fight back, as it contemplates a suit against Communications Minister Nabil Benabdallah for his role in trying to manipulate public opinion over the investigation of journalists for Al Watan Al An accused of illegal possession of classified documents. In an interesting legal twist, the two journalists were prosecuted under the criminal law for illegal possession of the fruits of a crime rather than under the press law for publication of state secrets.