Obama DOJ charges eight under the Espionage Act for leaks to press
A CPJ report found the Obama administration's Justice Department had brought Espionage Act charges against six government employees and two contractors for leaking to journalists since 2009, more than all prior administrations combined.1
- Country
- United States
- Where
- United States
- Level of government
- National
- Tactic
- Surveillance and subpoenas
- Outcome
- Unknown
- Era
- The 2010s
What happened
A Committee to Protect Journalists special report published October 10, 2013 documented that the Obama administration's Justice Department had, since 2009, brought felony Espionage Act charges against six government employees plus two contractors (including Edward Snowden) for leaking classified information to journalists, compared with three such prosecutions across all prior U.S. administrations combined. The report and follow-up commentary from press-freedom groups, including the ACLU and the Project On Government Oversight, said the prosecutions, combined with broadened surveillance of reporters' phone and email records in leak investigations, documented sources' reluctance to speak to journalists on diplomatic, national-security or intelligence topics; one source said, "I worry now about calling somebody because the contact can be found out through a check of phone records or e-mails." The Freedom of the Press Foundation later said the pattern set a precedent that subsequent administrations, including the first Trump administration, could extend further still.1234
Historical; the pattern is frequently cited as a precedent by press-freedom organizations assessing later administrations' use of the Espionage Act against sources.4
What reason was given
Not stated in the CPJ report as a single administration-wide statement; individual prosecutions were justified case by case on national-security grounds.2
What changed for reporting
Journalists and sources covering national security reported reluctance to communicate by phone or email for fear of being identified through records requests.3
Timeline
2013
Who acted
| Name | Role in this incident | Office at the time |
|---|---|---|
| Barack Obama | other | President of the United States (2009-2017) |
| United States Department of Justice | enforced | Federal executive department |
Sources
- The Obama Administration and the Press
- Leak prosecutions: Obama takes it to 11 (or should we say eight)
- Six Americans Obama and Holder charged under the Espionage Act
- Obama used the Espionage Act to put a record number of reporters' sources in jail, and Trump could be even worse
Claims cited
- CPJ published its report documenting the Obama-era Espionage Act prosecutions.
Six government employees, plus two contractors including Edward Snowden, have been subjects of felony criminal prosecutions since 2009 under the 1917 Espionage Act, accused of leaking classified information to the press
The Obama Administration and the Press, Committee to Protect Journalists, 2013-10-10. Claim 63, checked 2026-09-22. - Prosecutions were pursued case by case rather than under one publicly stated blanket policy.
It was never a conscious decision to bring more of these cases than we ever had. It was a combination of things.
The Obama Administration and the Press, Committee to Protect Journalists, 2013-10-10. Claim 64, checked 2026-09-22. - Sources reported avoiding contact with journalists for fear leak investigations would expose them.
I worry now about calling somebody because the contact can be found out through a check of phone records or e-mails.
The Obama Administration and the Press, Committee to Protect Journalists, 2013-10-10. Claim 65, checked 2026-09-22. - The Department of Justice under Obama pursued more Espionage Act leak prosecutions than all prior administrations combined, a pattern later assessments compare later administrations against.
The Department of Justice under Obama and Attorney General Eric Holder has used it more than all prior administrations combined.
Six Americans Obama and Holder charged under the Espionage Act, Project On Government Oversight. Claim 66, checked 2026-09-22.