New York Times reveals freelance journalist Matthew Cole subpoenaed over 2025 North Korea leak investigation

The subpoena

The New York Times disclosed on Saturday that freelance journalist Matthew Cole has been fighting a grand jury subpoena since February. Prosecutors in Newport News, Virginia, are demanding two years of his professional notes and testimony about his contacts and sources. FBI agents first attempted to deliver the subpoena at Cole's New York City home; when he was not there, it was sent to his lawyer. The Times is providing legal defense for Cole, and the newspaper's spokesperson, Charlie Stadtlander, confirmed the disclosure.

“The demand that he disclose his sources is another brazen and illegal attack from the administration designed to deny the public information of vital importance.”

The botched mission

The subpoena stems from a September 2025 investigation co-written by Cole and Times national correspondent Dave Philipps. That article detailed a secret 2019 operation in which Navy SEALs attempted to plant an electronic listening device near the North Korean coast. The mission fell apart when the SEALs encountered a North Korean boat and opened fire, killing several unarmed people on board. The story relied on roughly two dozen unnamed sources.

Broader campaign against leaks

The Cole subpoena is the latest in a series of aggressive legal actions by the Trump administration aimed at identifying government leakers. In March, the Justice Department sought records from Wall Street Journal reporters over an article about internal discussions on the risks of war with Iran. Last month, the government withdrew subpoenas against three Times reporters who had covered security concerns with the president's new Air Force One jet, a gift from Qatar. During those proceedings, Judge Arun Subramanian of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York sharply rebuked prosecutors.

“Subpoenas are the last step, not the first step, but the last step.”

He accused the government of turning legal protections for journalists "on its head" and said the law required exhausting all other avenues before issuing subpoenas. The administration has also reportedly raided a Washington Post journalist's home and issued, then withdrew, subpoenas to other reporters.

Legal defense and reaction

Cole's attorney, David A. O'Neil, who also represented the Times in the Air Force One subpoena fight, said his client would not be intimidated. The Times is covering Cole's legal costs. The Justice Department declined to comment on the specific investigation but said it would use all available legal tools to "uncover those who unlawfully disclose national defense information."

“He will defend press freedom and the First Amendment from this administration's brazen attacks on journalists, and he will honor his commitment to his sources.”

President Trump has insisted the probes target leakers, not journalists. "We're not after journalists. We're after leakers," he told reporters. The Cole subpoena, kept secret for months, now adds to a growing record of press freedom clashes in Trump's second term.