Leak Brings Down Woodward and Bernstein

Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein refuse to confirm or deny W. Mark Felt as Deep Throat.

From Editor and Publisher:

On Bernstein--

Contacted by E&P, former Washington Post reporter Carl Bernstein, who with Bob Woodward relied on the man dubbed 'Deep Throat' for crucial advice in their Watergate sleuthing, would neither confirm of deny Felt was the source, and said that the Woodward-Bernstein team would not change its stance.

"I think people are jumping up and down about this, but we have nothing to say other than what we have said which is when the individual dies, we will disclose his identity," he said. "Other sources have released us from pledges, but nothing has happened that could change that in these circumstances."

..."There have been numerous books and articles and speculation in journalism classes devoted to Deep Throat," Bernstein told E&P, when contacted at his Manhattan office. "When the individual dies, we will disclose his identity. We have always said the same thing. We do not go into any detail about it, not to play games, but to protect the source."

Asked if he was aware of the Vanity Fair article prior to its publication or had spoken with Felt, Bernstein declined comment. He also declined comment when asked directly if Felt was Deep Throat. "I'm not going to go beyond this," he said. "I've said what I am going to say."

When asked if this report was different than most past reports on Deep Throat's identity because it involved alleged commments by the famed anonymous source, Bernstein said, "That is not exactly true," but declined to elaborate further.

On Woodward--

In the Vanity Fair article exposing former FBI official W. Mark Felt as legendary Watergate source 'Deep Throat" (see article elsewhere on this site), writer John D. O'Connor details how he tried to get Washington Post reporter Bob Woodward to join in.

Felt, 91, purportedly said he wanted Woodward, who with Carl Bernstein relied on Deep Throat in their reporting, to cooperate.

O'Connor and Felt's daughter Joan tried to get Woodward to go along. The article pictures Woodward as neither confirming nor denying Felt was Deep Throat but acting in ways that certainly suggest that this is the truth. "Just because I'm talking to you, I'm not admitting that he is who you think he is," Woodward told O'Connor.

But Woodward was concerned about Felt's mental state, in talks and a visit with him, and ultimately, he did not go along with a joint exposure plan.
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If Felt is indeed Deep Throat, he is getting the last laugh.

Woodward and Berstein gained cult status as the reporters who helped bring down the Nixon presidency, thanks to their source, the mysterious Deep Throat.

Keeping this mystery alive was most likely part of Woodward and Berstein's retirement nest egg. They expected to cash in big when Deep Throat died. Therefore, it makes sense that they are choosing not to verify or dispel Felt's claim.

Isn't it ironic that the man responsible for leaking information to Woodward and Bernstein to destroy Nixon, would leak information that would destroy the secrecy of the reporters' exclusive?

I guess one could conclude that once a leaker, always a leaker.