By Brian No, Special Writer
Journalists are still very much relevant today, Newsweek investigative correspondent Michael Isikoff argued Tuesday to a nearly full Dodds Auditorium at Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School.
”Are we still relevant? Is there a role for people like myself … who report on a weekly basis?” Mr. Isikoff asked. He added, “For all of the flack that we’re taking, we do still make a difference.”
Mr. Isikoff, who is best known for his work on the Monica Lewinsky scandal, cited instances in which the mainstream media has exposed secret elements of the Bush Administration over the past several years.
One instance was the uncovering of Justice Department memos written by Deputy Assistant Attorney General John Yoo, who advanced the Unitary Executive theory advocating for greater executive war powers in the aftermath of Sept. 11.
”It is one of the most astonishing documents you can read,” Mr. Isikoff said. “It’s saying ‘we can do whatever we want.’ It doesn’t matter what Congress says, it doesn’t even matter what the courts say.”
Mr. Isikoff said that the public would not have known about these memos if it were not for the press.
”You, the people, didn’t know a thing about it. Congress didn’t know a thing about this legal doctrine that came out in the aftermath of Sept. 11,” he said. “We do know about this today, and it has been known because at Newsweek we were able to get a hold of this memo and report on it.”
Mr. Isikoff also cited several other uncovered memos that have allowed the Bush Administration to expand its executive powers.
Another John Yoo memo concluded that Guantanamo Bay detainees were not under the jurisdiction of American courts. A memo written by former Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez stated that the detainees were not afforded the legal rights of the Geneva Convention.
”I think we were able to illuminate somewhat some of the huge conflicts going on within the government and the huge and eye-catching stances the White House was taking,” Mr. Isikoff said.
Mr. Isikoff also spoke on the infamous incident when then-White House Counsel Alberto Gonzalez confronted ailing former Attorney General John Ashcroft at his hospital bed about extending the government’s recently uncovered secret surveillance program.
Though the media reported on the incident, it was not until years after the event occurred.
”I wish we at Newsweek could have reported on that the very next day,” Mr. Isikoff said. “I take some modest comfort knowing that we at Newsweek were able to play a role in getting (the story) to the public and getting it known.”
”We didn’t get it in time, we didn’t get the full story, and we still don’t have the full story of how far the program went,” he added. “Those are stories yet to be told, and I have no doubt they will be.
”Our record is far from perfect, but I do think we have made a difference and that we will continue to make a difference,” Mr. Isikoff said.
