Uploaded July 2023 | Updated September 2026, 6 hours ago
A #podcast about how the Supreme Court got so supreme.
When can a reporter be compelled to testify?
Recently, On the Media’s Micah Loewinger was called to testify in court. He had reported on militia groups who’d helped lead the January 6 attack on the Capitol. Now the government was using his work as evidence in a case against them. Micah wanted nothing to do with it — he worried that participating in the trial would signal to sources that he couldn’t be trusted, which would compromise his work.
As he considered his options, he uncovered a 1972 case called Branzburg v. Hayes. It involved New York Times reporter Earl Caldwell, who was approached multiple times by the FBI to testify against sources in the Black Panther Party. His case — and its decision — transformed the relationship between journalists and the government.
Voices in the episode include:
• Micah Loewinger — correspondent for On the Media
• Earl Caldwell — former New York Times reporter
• Lee Levine — attorney and media law expert
• Congressman Jamie Raskin — representing Maryland’s 8th District
Learn more:
• 1972: Branzburg v. Hayes — oyez.org/cases/1971/70-85
• Listen to On the Media's "Seditious Conspiracy" episode — wnycstudios.org/podcasts/otm/episodes/on-the-media-seditious-conspiracy
• Subscribe to On the Media here — link.chtbl.com/onthemedia?sid=mp
Special thanks to the Maynard Institute For Journalism Education for allowing the use of its Earl Caldwell oral history.
Subscribe & Listen:
• Subscribe to WNYC Studios on YouTube so you never miss an episode: bit.ly/3VovhOq
• Or subscribe to More Perfect wherever you listen to podcasts: bit.ly/3Ns9BPz
• Check out The Most Perfect Album (cools songs about the 27 amendments to the Constitution): bit.ly/3p5aWl2
• Like this video and leave us a comment!
Follow More Perfect:
Instagram — instagram.com/moreperfectpodcast
Facebook — facebook.com/moreperfectpodcast
Twitter — twitter.com/moreperfect
About More Perfect:
The Supreme Court was designed to be above the fray of politics. But at a time when politics seems to seep into every pore of American life, are the nine justices living up to that promise? More Perfect is a guide to the current moment on the Court. We bring the highest court of the land down to earth, telling the human dramas at the Court that shape so many aspects of American life — from our religious freedom to our artistic expression, from our reproductive choices to our voice in democracy.
The fourth season, hosted by Julia Longoria (a former More Perfect producer) will revisit the human dramas at the Court that are driving change around core aspects of American life today — from our religious freedom to our artistic expression; from our reproductive choices to our voice in democracy.
Supreme Court archival audio comes from Oyez®, a free law project by Justia and the Legal Information Institute of Cornell Law School.
Support for More Perfect is provided in part by The Smart Family Fund.
Episode illustration by Candice Evers — candiceevers.com
Video by Kim Nowacki.
A #podcast about how the Supreme Court got so supreme.
When can a reporter be compelled to testify?
Recently, On the Media’s Micah Loewinger was called to testify in court. He had reported on militia groups who’d helped lead the January 6 attack on the Capitol. Now the government was using his work as evidence in a case against them. Micah wanted nothing to do with it — he worried that participating in the trial would signal to sources that he couldn’t be trusted, which would compromise his work.
As he considered his options, he uncovered a 1972 case called Branzburg v. Hayes. It involved New York Times reporter Earl Caldwell, who was approached multiple times by the FBI to testify against sources in the Black Panther Party. His case — and its decision — transformed the relationship between journalists and the government.
Voices in the episode include:
• Micah Loewinger — correspondent for On the Media
• Earl Caldwell — former New York Times reporter
• Lee Levine — attorney and media law expert
• Congressman Jamie Raskin — representing Maryland’s 8th District
Learn more:
• 1972: Branzburg v. Hayes — oyez.org/cases/1971/70-85
• Listen to On the Media's "Seditious Conspiracy" episode — wnycstudios.org/podcasts/otm/episodes/on-the-media-seditious-conspiracy
• Subscribe to On the Media here — link.chtbl.com/onthemedia?sid=mp
Special thanks to the Maynard Institute For Journalism Education for allowing the use of its Earl Caldwell oral history.
Subscribe & Listen:
• Subscribe to WNYC Studios on YouTube so you never miss an episode: bit.ly/3VovhOq
• Or subscribe to More Perfect wherever you listen to podcasts: bit.ly/3Ns9BPz
• Check out The Most Perfect Album (cools songs about the 27 amendments to the Constitution): bit.ly/3p5aWl2
• Like this video and leave us a comment!
Follow More Perfect:
Instagram — instagram.com/moreperfectpodcast
Facebook — facebook.com/moreperfectpodcast
Twitter — twitter.com/moreperfect
About More Perfect:
The Supreme Court was designed to be above the fray of politics. But at a time when politics seems to seep into every pore of American life, are the nine justices living up to that promise? More Perfect is a guide to the current moment on the Court. We bring the highest court of the land down to earth, telling the human dramas at the Court that shape so many aspects of American life — from our religious freedom to our artistic expression, from our reproductive choices to our voice in democracy.
The fourth season, hosted by Julia Longoria (a former More Perfect producer) will revisit the human dramas at the Court that are driving change around core aspects of American life today — from our religious freedom to our artistic expression; from our reproductive choices to our voice in democracy.
Supreme Court archival audio comes from Oyez®, a free law project by Justia and the Legal Information Institute of Cornell Law School.
Support for More Perfect is provided in part by The Smart Family Fund.
Episode illustration by Candice Evers — candiceevers.com
Video by Kim Nowacki.
