TVNewser spoke with a relieved Jana Winter this afternoon about the New York court ruling that saved her from jail.
Following the court’s 4-3 ruling, the FoxNews.com reporter is grateful her rights as a journalist—and journalism as a whole—was protected by the court.
“I hope that this will really change the way that reporters work,” Winter said. “I hope that people can go to another state and report on something and promise a source that they will remain confidential, and mean it, and not have to go through what I went through.”
Winter also has a new appreciation for New York Civil Rights Law 79-h, the shield law that protected her from testifying in Colorado.
“If I hadn’t gone through this, I wouldn’t understand how important that is,” Winter said, hoping that in the future “people don’t have to Google specific state shield law” while crossing state lines during their reporting, which she’s gotten into the habit of doing for the last 18 months.
Winter tells us, as the case loomed, she’s been more timid and has second-guessed her reporting. But with the court ruling in her favor she expects to find her groove again.
“The decision by the appeals court yesterday, I think kind of got me back on my feet,” she says, adding, “After a very brief nap, maybe a day off, I think I’ll be good to go.”
Shepard Smith also spoke with Winter during his show this afternoon. She told him she was ready to go to jail if necessary.
“There was no way that I was ever going to give up these names,” Winter told Smith. ““I’m just so grateful that New York understands the importance of confidential sources in newsgathering.”
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