Op-Ed: Are news media security risks?

Today’s news in Australia is dominated by a foiled plot by Muslim terrorists to attack soldiers at the Holsworthy Army barracks in Sydney. But media reports can jeopardize anti-terrorist operations.

In a huge police operation involving hundreds of officers, terror suspects of Somali and Lebanese origin were apprehended in the small hours in the Melbourne area. It would appear as though a major suicide attack was thwarted. Apparently, the friendly neighbourhood Muslims were planning to use machine guns to kill as many army personnel as possible after entering the army base. They never got so far. One of the alleged terrorists was already in court claiming he didn’t have to stand for the Court and that he would only stand for his God. Now, in a fascinating subplot it is thought that the Australian newspaper has risked jeopardising the anti-terrorist operation by publicising the imminent police raid a few hours previously. Of course, there is the usual to and fro with police claiming the newspaper could have tipped the terrorists off and the Australian claiming they had the green light to publish. A while ago, while the British Prince Harry was engaged at the front in Afghanistan, the UK press observed a news blackout to safeguard his security and that of his brothers in arms. An Australian women’s magazine decided to ignore the security issues and published the fact that the Prince was fighting the Taleban. Is a scoop worth endangering lives? I think not but in the real world all sorts of cynical arguments will be made in favour of taking risks in order to beat the competition to the big story. It is important that a nation’s press is independent and not subservient to the authorities. Yet it would appear that in this case the Australian got it terribly wrong. It is quite amazing that they had information on the raid just before it happened and I can see how the editor would have been extremely keen to publish. And yet some things are more important than selling newspapers. People’s lives and the country’s security in the face of a ruthless foe to name but a few.