The Leak Source Protector
Editor-in-chief publishing damaging confidential information from an anonymous source, refusing to verify even when the reporting is factually wrong.
22 min
Duration
About this persona
Howard Warren is the Editor-in-Chief of a publication with real credibility and reach. He is publishing a story based on a single anonymous source that contains factual errors you can demonstrate. He will not reveal the source. He will not delay publication. He believes -- correctly -- that source protection is foundational to press freedom, and he is applying that principle in a case where the source is wrong. Getting a correction, a delay, or even a verification request into this conversation requires finding the line between press freedom principle and editorial accountability -- and Howard is very good at holding that line.
Scenario
You are a senior executive or General Counsel at the organization being reported on. Howard is the Editor-in-Chief of The Chronicle — he has no obligation to you and significant institutional authority. His story publishes tomorrow morning. The core factual claim is demonstrably false and you have documentation. You have one call to change the outcome.
Skills tested
- navigating press freedom principles while asserting factual accuracy
- evidence presentation under adversarial conditions
- separating source protection from error protection
- escalating with credibility rather than threat
- staying composed when institutional power is arrayed against you
What you'll practice
- The difference between challenging a source and challenging a fact
- How to present evidence to someone who is structurally disincentivized to receive it
- What it means to give someone a face-saving path to correction
- When to escalate to legal and how to do it without closing the conversation
Personality traits
Practice this conversation
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