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From the inbox comes this missive from Ruthann B. about efforts by media outlets to identify the person who tipped authorities off to the alleged Fort Dix plotters:

I am writing to protest your news staff trying to get the identity of the person responsible for alerting the FBI of the video tape of the accused men. I feel you are putting this person in danger, and every time I see when of your newspersons standing in front of the Circuit City store, I get upset. It is not important that everyone knows this persons name. He will have no peace once this becomes public record. It could discourage any other person from coming forward in a like situation. Please stop!!!!

The person in question is a store clerk who had been asked to dub a videotape made by the alleged plotters to DVD, a tape that prosecutors say shows the men shooting weapons and calling for jihad.

The person is being called an "unsung hero," and it appears he wants to stay that way. The AP reports that, according to a Circuit City spokesperson, the clerk was an employee at the Mount Laurel Circuit City and is still with the company. The company is not releasing his name. The Daily News reports that "co-workers claimed they don't know who he is." More:

Circuit City workers in the store's red polo shirts mostly refused to talk to reporters and private security guards escorted them to cars.

At least a dozen TV news trucks sprouted antennas in the parking lot as shoppers gawked on the hot spring day.

I'm actually kind of amazed that this person still has his privacy – not even Drudge has a name. Yet.

I missed this yesterday, but Greg Pollowitz flags a statement from The Council on American-Islamic Relations that contains a noteworthy request: that "media outlets and public officials refrain from linking [the Fort Dix] case to the faith of Islam."

The men alleged to have plotted the attack are Muslim, and, according to court papers, "several of them said they were ready to kill and die 'in the name of Allah.'"

On one level I understand why CAIR would not want the case linked to the faith of Islam, as these men are clearly not representative of the majority of Muslims. But media outlets should not be in the business of selectively suppressing information.

The fact that these men are Muslim may make some people more antagonistic towards all Muslims, and that's unfortunate. But it is not the role of journalists to make judgments about which facts to report and which to suppress, unless there are mitigating circumstances such as national security issues. The faith of these men is part of the story, and, whenever possible, the story should be told in full.

In the age of the Internet, of course, it would be extremely difficult for reporters to keep the facts secret even if they wanted to. But if they could, and did, it would only lead frustrated news consumers to traffic in rumors that could do far more damage than the facts. Can you imagine what people might have assumed about the Virginia Tech shooter if the press corps had not identified him and discussed his motivations and background?

The Asian American Journalist Association called on media outlets to move in that direction, requesting that they "avoid using racial identifiers unless there is a compelling or germane reason" in identifying the shooter. But in situations like Virginia Tech and Fort Dix, there is always a compelling and germane reason to fully identify those involved: The obligation of a free press to put all the facts out there and let us come to our own conclusions, even if they're flawed. To do otherwise would be to engage in something approaching social control, and that's what our press corps is for.