'L.A. Times': Sources Say Pending Book Did Help Push 'N.Y. Times' to Publi

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http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1001701012

'L.A. Times': Sources Say Pending Book Did Help Push 'N.Y. Times' to Publish Spy Story


NEW YORK Since it broke the big domestic spy program story last week, The New York Times has been accused (from the left) of holding back the story since before the November 2004 election, and (from the right) publishing it only now because of a pending book written by one of its reporters. Today, a respected reporter for the Los Angeles Times claims to have confirmed both notions.

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According to Rainey, New York Times Executive Editor Bill Keller rejects the suggestion that the timing of the story was linked to next month's scheduled publication of "State of War: The Secret History of the CIA and the Bush Administration," by Times reporter James Risen, who co-authored last week's spy scoop.

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"But two journalists, who declined to be identified, said that editors at the paper were actively considering running the story about the wiretaps before Bush's November showdown with Democratic Sen. John F. Kerry of Massachusetts.

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"'When they realized that it was going to appear in the book anyway, that is when they went ahead and agreed to publish the story," said one of the journalists. 'That's not to say that was their entire consideration, but it was a very important one of them.'