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From Wondry, I'm Lindsay Graham and this is American Scandal.

It's January 2003. Millions of Americans are watching the state of the Union address delivered by President George W. Bush, where he delivers 16 words that alter the course of global history.

The British government has learned that Saddam Hussein recently sought significant quantities of uranium from Africa.

Watching that announcement is Valerie Plane. It doesn't make sense to her. Just months earlier, her husband Joe Wilson went to the African country of Niger to investigate a similar accusation and he concluded that the report was not reliable.

When he hears about the announcement, he goes directly to the media with an op-ed in the New York Times and an interview on Meet the Press. When the White House finds out, they go on the offensive.

And soon, in retaliation, they leak a big secret.

This is the story of the Valerie Plane affair. And while it's centered on abusive power in the halls of Washington, it's also a story about journalists and their right to protect their sources.

Today, we finish the series, hearing from someone who is at the center of it all. Matthew Cooper was a White House correspondent for Time Magazine during this chapter. He became part of the story himself after he refused to reveal his White House sources. Here's our conversation.

Hello, I'm Hannah. And I'm Syrte. And we are the hosts of a Redhanded, a weekly true crime podcast.

Every week on Redhanded, we get stuck into the most talked about cases. From Idaho student killings, the Delphine murders and our recent rundown of the Murdoch saga.

Last year, we also started a second weekly show, Shorthand, which is just an excuse for us to talk about anything we find interesting because it's our show and we can do what we like.

We've covered the death of Princess Diana, an unholy Quran written in Saddam Hussein's blood, the gruesome history of European witch hunting, and the very uncomfortable phenomenon of genetic sexual attraction.

Whatever the case, we want to know what pushes people to the extremes of human behavior. Like, can someone give consent to be cannibalized? What drives a child to kill? And what's the psychology of a terrorist?

Listen to Redhanded wherever you get your podcasts and access our bonus Shorthand episodes exclusively on Amazon Music or by subscribing to Wondry Plus in Apple Podcasts or the Wondry app.

Hi, I'm Lindsey Graham, the host of Wondry's podcast American scandal. Our newest series looks at the Kids for Cash scandal, a story about two judges who stood accused of making millions of dollars in a brazen scheme that shattered the lives of countless children.

Listen to American scandal on Amazon Music or wherever you get your podcasts.

Matthew Cooper, thanks for talking to me today. Hey, thank you. It's great to be here.

So the Valerie Plame story is one about journalism as much as it is about politics. You were a journalist for time when you found yourself in the middle of the story that you were sent to cover.

You learned about Joe Wilson when the rest of us did after his op-ed in the New York Times. That's also probably when the White House first drew their scope on him.

Do you know what the feeling was in the White House after his op-ed came out?

I think the response was at two levels. I think publicly they listened to the findings and didn't react with any particular VMNC their way.

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