The alphabet networks use anonymous sources nightly.
Via Charleston Post and Courier:
A judge could decide Wednesday to jail a well-known, polarizing South Carolina political blogger for refusing to reveal his sources, a move that “could set a very disturbing precedent,” a top state press official said.
Columbia-area blogger Will Folks is scheduled to appear before Circuit Judge Keith Kelly to face possible contempt of court charges for refusing to reveal anonymous sources in a civil case filed by a former state lawmaker.
Folks used information given to him by those sources to publish information on his website, fitsnews.com, which is followed closely by up to 300,000 readers in South Carolina political circles, according to the lawsuit.
Folks is a former spokesman for Gov. Mark Sanford and a political consultant whose popular website has featured a mix of news, including breaking stories of interest, harsh and sometimes biting criticisms of politicians and the media, and opinion.
He is being sued by former Cayce Republican state Rep. Kenny Bingham for defamation for a series of articles published in 2014 and 2015 concerning an ethics investigation and Statehouse corruption probe, according to court filings.
The complaint includes the wording, “The above statements are false and defamatory because no ethics complaint has been filed against plaintiff and the statements falsely imply he has been engaged in conduct for which he could be criminally indicted,” Bingham’s attorney wrote in May 2015.
The former legislator has not been charged in the Statehouse investigation. House complaints are not public unless a member is found to have violated ethics rules or laws.