BOB GARFIELD: This is On the Media, from NPR. I'm Bob Garfield.

BROOKE GLADSTONE: And I'm Brooke Gladstone with a few of your letters. A number of you were rankled by our interview about the New York Times reporters who were refusing to reveal the government sources who fed them information about Wen Ho Lee, the scientist wrongly accused of passing nuclear secrets to the Chinese. Lucy Dalglish, the executive director of Reporters for Freedom of the Press, defended the reporters, much to the dismay of Charles Heitsch of Bourbon, Missouri. He writes that, quote, "One has to wonder about a journalist who would protect a source that has passed false information which was so destructive to an innocent individual. The First Amendment was not designed to protect those who would attack innocent people."

BOB GARFIELD:Dr. Francisco Franco notes that, quote, "in medicine, there are instances in which the doctor-patient confidentiality has to be broken. For example, if a patient confesses about any suicidal plan or intent, physicians are mandated to report this to emergency services to assure the safety of the patient. The same should be mandated of journalists when the welfare of someone is at stake. I think that helping Mr. Lee clear up his name is a moral imperative that supersedes any excuse of 'ethics' that potentially hides slanderers."

BROOKE GLADSTONE:And if your letters are any indication, our listeners are just as ambivalent about video games as they are about journalistic ethics. Travis McCrory Gardner of Dallas, Texas tells us "I was actually playing a video game when I heard your story on games. It is indeed true that all most people know about video games is Space Invaders is sort of fun, and Grand Theft Auto is too violent. Most people can't imagine a game like Final Fantasy X which has six hours of voice acting to tell a story about sacrificing yourself for others. People should just keep in mind that, like any other medium, in games there are differences between art and well...crap."

BOB GARFIELD:We want to know what you think about art or crap, as long as it's media. Write to us at onthemedia.org, and don't forget to tell us where you live and how to pronounce your name. [MUSIC]