Actually, it's a Gentleman's Agreement, Maggie...

 Every trained, and practiced, journalists understands how Off the Record sourcing works.  OTR means OTR.  Haberman's argument here is not as clear as she is trying to pretend.   I don't know the relationship between Alex Thompson of Politico, and Jennifer Rubin of WaPo (?) or where ever the well-known opinion columnist is writing now.  (Odd that we know REPORTER Maggie Haberman's name so well -- and her political background.  Mother works as PR person for Trump's in-laws, the Kushners, and Maggie certainly made a name for herself -- not as an opinion pundit, but a plain political reporter... odd ... during the Trump years, breaking "scoops" and being the hardest working mother in the business, self described.

My point is OTR is an agreement like consent.  Do you have to ask every time?  Not in practice, people, let's be honest... Once a trust factor is established, when a source goes off the record, you gotta honor that in journalism practice or risk blowing up that relationship.

Alex Thompson published what Jen Rubin wrote him OTR, and truth be told, there wasn't much revealed by his breaking confidence.  Now, there's a media brouhaha that our Ms. Haberman has jumped herself into as some type of media ethics enforcer...

Nope, it's a gentleman's agreement, Maggie.  An honor code.  Ask your dad or ... nevermind.  The ongoing "controversy" only allows her to suck up more oxygen in her name.  #NotPlayin.

Maggie Haberman@maggieNYT

You can dislike a reporter and dislike what they wrote and dislike when they wrote it. And you can voice all that. What you can’t do is pretend the journalist committed an infraction when they didn’t and when you know better.

For the uninitiated - and the initiated pretending they don't know because it's a fun way to slam a reporter - off the record is an agreement. Don't send an email saying OTR - especially when you're ostensibly in journalism! - and not wait for the reporter to agree

If you've had a previous OTR relationship with a person -- you talk freely with the understanding that the material is not yet "publishable" but for sharing purposes only -- and you clearly label another conversation as OTR, I'd say for most in our profession, the privilege is extended.

I don't know.  Maybe some spouses formally consent nightly -- asked and answered in agreement, in each individual instance -- instead of assuming what was before continues on as implied, unless the other party objects...  Before publishing.

Same profession, different cultures, different practitioners.  It's clear Maggie's got Alex's back on this one, but what she cites as the off-the-record rules amongst journalists kind of only reveals the confidences Ms. Haberman herself is willing to break to get the story... in her name, of course.  That's Maggie, with two "g's".

Remember:  when the news is more about the reporters covering stories, think of all the stories they're not covering that we're not getting out here in America today.  She might be a nice lady, but she's not a very good reporter or journalist, and the swamp in Washington only continues to grow under coverage like hers and Alex's.  Nttawwt, but the loss of a strong Fourth Estate, at this crucial time in the country's history, only helps contribute to the daily downfall...