Off the Record, On the Stand
06/29/23 • 33 min
4 Listeners
Recently, On the Media’s Micah Loewinger was called to testify in court. He had reported on militia groups who’d helped lead the January 6 attack on the Capitol. Now the government was using his work as evidence in a case against them. Micah wanted nothing to do with it — he worried that participating in the trial would signal to sources that he couldn’t be trusted, which would compromise his work.
As he considered his options, he uncovered a 1972 case called Branzburg v. Hayes. It involved New York Times reporter Earl Caldwell, who was approached multiple times by the FBI to testify against sources in the Black Panther Party. His case — and its decision — transformed the relationship between journalists and the government.
Voices in the episode include:
• Micah Loewinger — correspondent for WNYC Studios' On the Media
• Earl Caldwell — former New York Times reporter
• Lee Levine — attorney and media law expert
• Congressman Jamie Raskin — representing Maryland’s 8th District
Learn more:
• 1972: Branzburg v. Hayes
• Listen to On the Media's "Seditious Conspiracy" episode. Subscribe to On the Media here.
Shadow dockets, term limits, amicus briefs — what puzzles you about the Supreme Court? What stories are you curious about? We want to answer your questions in our next season. Click here to leave us a voice memo.
Special thanks to the Maynard Institute For Journalism Education for allowing the use of its Earl Caldwell oral history.
Supreme Court archival audio comes from Oyez®, a free law project by Justia and the Legal Information Institute of Cornell Law School.
Support for More Perfect is provided in part by The Smart Family Fund.
Follow us on Instagram and Facebook @moreperfectpodcast, and Twitter @moreperfect.
Recently, On the Media’s Micah Loewinger was called to testify in court. He had reported on militia groups who’d helped lead the January 6 attack on the Capitol. Now the government was using his work as evidence in a case against them. Micah wanted nothing to do with it — he worried that participating in the trial would signal to sources that he couldn’t be trusted, which would compromise his work.
As he considered his options, he uncovered a 1972 case called Branzburg v. Hayes. It involved New York Times reporter Earl Caldwell, who was approached multiple times by the FBI to testify against sources in the Black Panther Party. His case — and its decision — transformed the relationship between journalists and the government.
Voices in the episode include:
• Micah Loewinger — correspondent for WNYC Studios' On the Media
• Earl Caldwell — former New York Times reporter
• Lee Levine — attorney and media law expert
• Congressman Jamie Raskin — representing Maryland’s 8th District
Learn more:
• 1972: Branzburg v. Hayes
• Listen to On the Media's "Seditious Conspiracy" episode. Subscribe to On the Media here.
Shadow dockets, term limits, amicus briefs — what puzzles you about the Supreme Court? What stories are you curious about? We want to answer your questions in our next season. Click here to leave us a voice memo.
Special thanks to the Maynard Institute For Journalism Education for allowing the use of its Earl Caldwell oral history.
Supreme Court archival audio comes from Oyez®, a free law project by Justia and the Legal Information Institute of Cornell Law School.
Support for More Perfect is provided in part by The Smart Family Fund.
Follow us on Instagram and Facebook @moreperfectpodcast, and Twitter @moreperfect.
Previous Episode
Adoptive Couple v. Baby Girl Reprise
Last week, the Supreme Court upheld the Indian Child Welfare Act in a case called Haaland v. Brackeen. The decision comes almost exactly 10 years after the Supreme Court ruled in Adoptive Couple v. Baby Girl, which planted the seed for last week’s big ruling. To mark the new landmark decision, More Perfect re-airs the Radiolab episode that tells the story of two families, a painful history, and a young girl caught in the middle.
Voices in the episode include:
• Allison Herrera — KOSU Indigenous Affairs reporter
• Matt and Melanie Capobianco — Veronica's adoptive parents
• Dusten Brown — Veronica's biological father
• Mark Fiddler — attorney for the Capobiancos
• Marcia Zug — University of South Carolina School of Law professor
• Bert Hirsch — attorney formerly of the Association on American Indian Affairs
• Chrissi Nimmo — Deputy Attorney General for Cherokee Nation
• Terry Cross — founding executive director of the National Indian Child Welfare Association (now serving as senior advisor)
• Lori Alvino McGill — attorney for Christy Maldonado, Veronica’s biological mother
Learn more:
• 2013: Adoptive Couple v. Baby Girl
• 2023: Haaland v. Brackeen
• "Baby Veronica belongs with her adoptive parents" by Christy Maldonado
• "Doing What’s Best for the Tribe" by Marcia Zug
• "The Court Got Baby Veronica Wrong" by Marcia Zug
• "A Wrenching Adoption Case" by The New York Times Editorial Board
• National Indian Child Welfare Association
• In Trust podcast, reported by Allison Herrera
Supreme Court archival audio comes from Oyez®, a free law project by Justia and the Legal Information Institute of Cornell Law School.
Support for More Perfect is provided in part by The Smart Family Fund.
Follow us on Instagram and Facebook @moreperfectpodcast, and Twitter @moreperfect.
Next Episode
No More Souters
David Souter is one of the most private, low-profile justices ever to have served on the Supreme Court. He rarely gives interviews or speeches. Yet his tenure was anything but low profile. Deemed a “home run” nominee by Republicans, Souter defied partisan expectations on the bench and ultimately ceded his seat to a Democratic president.
In this episode, the story of how “No More Souters” became a rallying cry for Republicans and inspired a backlash that would change the Court forever.
Voices in the episode include:
• Ashley Lopez — NPR political correspondent
• Anna Sale — host of WNYC Studios' Death, Sex & Money podcast
• Tinsley Yarbrough — author and former political science professor at East Carolina University
• Heather Gerken — Dean of Yale Law School and former Justice Souter clerk
• Kermit Roosevelt III — professor at University of Pennsylvania School of Law and former Justice Souter clerk
• Judge Peter Rubin — Associate Justice on Massachusetts Appeals Court and former Justice Souter clerk
• Governor John H. Sununu — former governor of New Hampshire and President George H.W. Bush’s Chief of Staff
Learn more:
• 1992: Planned Parenthood v. Casey
• 1992: Lee v. Weisman
• 2000: Bush v. Gore
• 2009: Citizens United v. FEC
Shadow dockets, term limits, amicus briefs — what puzzles you about the Supreme Court? What stories are you curious about? We want to answer your questions in our next season. Click here to leave us a voice memo.
Supreme Court archival audio comes from Oyez®, a free law project by Justia and the Legal Information Institute of Cornell Law School.
Support for More Perfect is provided in part by The Smart Family Fund.
Follow us on Instagram, Threads and Facebook @moreperfectpodcast, and Twitter @moreperfect.
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