Trump Warns Media Over Missing Airman Report, Threatens Jail
Former President Donald Trump issued a warning to journalists who reported on a second US airman being missing after an incident involving Iran. The airman, injured during a shoot-down incident on Friday, had hidden in a mountain crevice before being rescued by a US recovery team under fire. Trump confirmed the service member's recovery on Sunday.
During a White House press conference on Monday, Trump stated that his administration was actively pursuing the individual who leaked information about the missing airman to the media. He asserted that the news report alerted Iran to the situation, thereby endangering the airman. Trump specifically claimed the media report revealed the situation to Iran.
"They basically said that 'we have one and there's somebody missing.' Well, they didn't know there was somebody missing until this leaker gave the information. So whoever it was, we think we'll be able to find it out because we're going to go to the media company that released it, and we're going to say, 'national security, give it up or go to jail.'"
He further added, "Because some things you can't do, because when they did that all of a sudden the entire country of Iran knew that there was a pilot that was somewhere on their land that was fighting for his life."
Trump did not identify the specific media outlet or reporter he was referring to. The White House later indicated that an investigation was underway.
Seth Stern, chief of advocacy at the Freedom of the Press Foundation, remarked that "Journalists don't work for the government and their right to publish government leaks is protected by the first amendment which, despite Trump’s efforts, remains the law of the land, and does not disappear whenever the words ‘national security’ are uttered. To the extent that the government is allowed to withhold information, it’s up to the government to keep its secrets, not journalists."