Shield law's big hole

One of the big debates of the moment is whether, when and which bloggers should be considered "journalists." The thorny issues involved raise some fundamental questions about the First Amendment, the role of the press and what legal rights and protections journalists should enjoy. At or near the top of the list is, what exactly is a journalist?

Chicago Tribune public editor Don Wycliff points out that a rising call for a nationwide shield law -- which would allow journalists to keep sources confidential even from a criminal investigation -- would provide an authoritative answer -- and that wouldn't be a good thing:

You see, if the government gives journalists the right to be exempt from the normal obligations of citizenship, the government, ultimately, will get to decide who is a journalist. Of course nobody will admit that this is the case. They'll contrive some body of journalistic wise men and women, a college of cardinals, who will set standards and thresholds and regulations and such. But somebody will have to appoint those cardinals and, in the end, it will be the government that's in charge.