Matthew Cooper Shares His Experiences as a Time Magazine Correspondent

Time Magazine White House correspondent Matthew Cooper spoke on April 3 about his involvement with the CIA leak investigation that nearly landed him in jail for refusing to reveal a confidential source. Prior to his lecture, he discussed his experiences with students during dinner at Davison Hall.

Cooper testified in the ongoing investigation by Justice Department Special Counsel Patrick Fitzgerald into the leak of CIA undercover agent Valerie Plame's identity. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, the former chief of staff for Vice President Dick Cheney, was indicted after allegedly lying to the grand jury.

"Like many moments in history, my 15 minutes of fame were by accident," said Cooper.

Cooper had talked to Karl Rove, senior advisor to President George Bush, in "double super secret" communication, and he refused to reveal Rove as a source to a grand jury. As a result, courts ruled that he could be jailed for contempt of court.

The gravity of his situation hit home for Cooper when he was forced to tell his seven-year-old son that he might go to jail. He used his son's Dr. Doolittle book, which recounted how Dr. Doolittle faced jail for assisting hurt animals, to help explain his decision to accept jail time in order to protect the identity of his source. With home confinement also an option, his son was excited that his father might have to stay at home.

On the day Cooper was to be jailed, Rove released the reporter from his promise of confidentiality. Cooper agreed to testify before the grand jury and instead of going to jail, returned home to his son and wife.

Cooper followed his talk by taking questions from an audience interested in his thoughts on a range of political issues. Asked whether the news media has been too easy on President Bush and his administration, he responded, "The media does have biases, because when the president is doing well the media boost him up and they kick him when he is down."

Dante Scala, associate professor of politics, asked Cooper about the relationship between President Bush and Sen. John McCain. "McCain and Bush agree on the war. The war has brought them together," Cooper said. 

Cooper concluded the evening by offering his thoughts on New Hampshire's first-in-the-nation primary. "The New Hampshire primary has been an important crucible for democracy," Cooper said, before joking that he had a good "Iowa speech too."

—Bridget Luddy '07