ABC and The New York Times knew that Robert Levinson was a CIA operative when he was kidnapped in Iran in 2007 but repeatedly reported that he was an independent businessman. They lied in their coverage at the request of Levinson’s family and the CIA. (Gawker, December 13, 2013, by J.K. Trotter)
The Associated Press reporter who first broke the story after sitting on it for seven years said he did so with some trepidation lest Levinson’s life be further endangered. But the reporter, Matt Apuzzo said, “When the American government can put a citizen in harm’s way and not be straight about it with the American people for seven years, and not be straight with Congress about it straight away…that stuff can’t be in the shadows. That’s what the press is for.”(BuzzFeed, December 14, 2013, by Jacob Fischler)