Faculty/Research < On Topic

The outing of an agent: Coyle on the Plame case

Note: Because of Mr. Coyle’s work with the Central Intelligence Agency, his comments below cannot be used in any way by organizations not connected with the School of Public and Environmental Affairs at Indiana University. Please contact Jenny Cohen, manager of media relations, if you have any questions.

I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby, Vice President Dick Cheney’s former chief of staff, pleaded not guilty to five felony charges of lying to FBI investigators and a grand jury in the investigation of the leak of a CIA agent’s name. Libby became the first White House official in more than 130 years to be indicted when special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald unsealed the indictment after a two-year investigation into who leaked the name of CIA operative Valerie Plame to reporters.

Expert perspective, Gene Coyle: “Almost lost in the media frenzy over the indictment of ‘Scooter’ Libby last week is the violation by someone of the Intelligence Identities Protection Act of 1982 when the name of undercover CIA officer Valerie Plame was leaked to the press and Robert Novak published it in his newspaper column. It is an irony of our society and the privileged position of the press in our country that the government official who leaked her name has committed a federal crime, yet Robert Novak is not judicially punishable for his irresponsible action because he is a journalist. Apparently Mr. Novak forgot that along with the privileges accorded to the media should come some sense of responsibility.

“As the investigation by special prosecutor Fitzpatrick was nearing its end, a number of public figures seeking to ward off possible indictments of any White House-connected individuals played down any possible damage done by the ‘outing’ of Valeria Plame and even questioned whether revealing her name was covered by the act of 1982 since she was not posted abroad when her name was revealed. Having served for many years undercover with the CIA earlier in my career, I find such positions as galling as the original crime of the person who leaked her name in the first place. It reflects either a gross ignorance of how intelligence operations are conducted or a callous disregard for the lives of CIA officers and the foreign agents that they may be handling in the name of political expediency.

“Revealing the identity of any CIA officer under cover is a serious matter, but especially when the officer was working as a NOC (Non-Official Cover). This meant that Ms. Plame had no diplomatic immunity when she made trips abroad, carrying out operations for the Non-Proliferation Center. NOCs are often used in the handling of the most sensitive agent cases and thus the revelation of her name in the press put at risk the safety of any foreign agents she may have been developing or handling. The security services of many foreign countries have no doubt been reviewing the contacts Ms. Plame might have had with nationals of their countries, beginning investigations to see if any of them might have been recruited by her. Revealing the name of the Boston firm that Ms. Plame purportedly worked for also told foreign governments something about the methodology used by the CIA, making it even harder in the future for the CIA to carry out its mission. In sum, the revelation of her name was a ‘big deal’, which has ramifications well beyond just Valerie Plame’s safety and career.”

The SPEA toolkit: Gene Coyle teaches SPEA courses on intelligence communities and on the role of intelligence in wartime.

Click here to read Professor Coyle’s interview with SPEA magazine earlier this year. Click here to see CNN’s coverage of the recent indictments involving the leak of Valerie Plame’s name.