Leak investigation

A government inquiry, often criminal, into the unauthorized disclosure of nonpublic information to the press. Leak investigations can include surveillance of reporters' phone or email records and, in the most serious cases, prosecution of the source under statutes such as the Espionage Act.

Sources

1. DOJ rescinds news media guidelines: analysis archived copyReporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, 2025-04-25. Source record
2. The Obama Administration and the Press archived copyCommittee to Protect Journalists, 2013-10-10. Source record