Days after Attorney General Eric Holder decided he wouldn’t compel New York Times reporter James Risen to reveal his source from a story about the CIA’s efforts to sabotage Iran’s nuclear weapons program, it seems Risen isn’t off the hook yet.
Also read: NYT Journalist James Risen Will Not Be Forced to Reveal His Source
Risen will be subpoenaed to answer questions ahead of the upcoming trial of former CIA officer Jeffrey Sterling, the officer believed to have been his source in the Iran nuclear weapons story.
Prosecutors vow they won’t directly ask Risen if Sterling was the source he used for his book, “State of War,” but will try to establish if the two had a prior on-the-record relationship.
Also read: Supreme Court Won’t Intervene in New York Times Reporter’s Case
Attorney General Holder has authorized the subpoena that will require the author to testify at Sterling’s trial.
“Any reporter who is doing his or her job in gathering news is not going to go to jail as a result of that kind of activity,” Holder said in October.