Journalism advocacy groups said they welcomed the renewed interest in protecting journalists, though the effectiveness of a shield law would depend on how it is written and how easily the Justice Department could override the protections, citing national-security concerns.

WSJ: White House Aims to Revive 'Media Shield' Bill

As a presidential candidate in 2008, he supported journalist protections in the form of a federal shield law.

WSJ: White House Aims to Revive 'Media Shield' Bill

So the whole goal of this media shield law -- that was worked on and largely endorsed by folks like The Washington Post Editorial Page and by prosecutors -- was finding a way to strike that balance appropriately.

WHITEHOUSE: President Obama Holds a Press Conference with Prime Minister Erdogan | The White House

Ohio, like most states, has a rape shield law that limits the amount of information of an alleged victim's past that can be explored in court.

CNN: STORY HIGHLIGHTS

He also said he supported a so-called media shield law to help balance the protection of press freedom against national security needs.

BBC: Obama tries to tame political tempests

Mr. Chiklis, who won an Emmy and a Golden Globe in 2002 for his work on "The Shield, " is officially on the wrong side of the law in "Vegas, " which debuts Tuesday night.

WSJ: Michael Chiklis | Heavy Opportunities | A Cultural Conversation by Joanne Kaufman

The latter will show nothing but US acquisitions, and Five has an impressive roster of fine American dramas, including CSI, House, Law and Order and The Shield.

BBC: NEWS | Entertainment | Reporter's log: Edinburgh TV Festival

The Colorado State Shield Law has a loophole that the court can conclude that the need to know the identity of the source is greater than the need to protect the source.

FORBES: Protecting The First Amendment

Recently, however, the specter of costly state tort litigation against vaccine manufacturers threatened to undermine this important federal law intended to shield manufacturers from such suits.

FORBES: High Court Upholds Federal Preemption of Design Defect Claims Against Vaccine Makers