Mr. Holder faces a court-imposed deadline of Tuesday to decide whether to force James Risen, a reporter for The Times, to testify in the leak trial of a former C.I.A. officer. Mr. Risen has said he will not testify, exposing himself to potential jail time for obstruction. Mr. Holder has said he will not send a reporter to jail, but abandoning the subpoena would undermine his prosecutors, who say they need Mr. Risen’s testimony to win their case.

Image Richard Bonin, the "60 Minutes" producer, made an unsuccessful effort to interview Osama bin Laden in 1998. Credit... Matt Richman

The CBS matter does not involve a leak investigation or confidential sources. Prosecutors want Mr. Bonin to testify about logistical conversations he had with Mr. Fawwaz to set up an interview with Bin Laden. The Justice Department declined to comment on the matter.

Coordinated bombings at two United States Embassies in Africa in 1998 pushed Al Qaeda into the headlines. Bin Laden issued a declaration of war against the United States as early as 1996, and several journalists tried to interview him for reports on the growing terrorist threat. Mr. Bonin’s interview, however, never materialized.

“Part of my job as a reporter is to inform the American public about those who want to do us harm,” Mr. Bonin said in an interview. “To turn me into a witness for the government will make it difficult for me to do my job in the future and increase the substantial risks already faced by every reporter in the Mideast today.”

Mr. Holder approved a subpoena for Mr. Bonin weeks ago, people briefed on the case said, but did so believing that prosecutors in Manhattan had worked out an arrangement in which Mr. Bonin would agree to testify. When it became clear that Mr. Bonin intended to challenge a subpoena, he rescinded his approval. Mr. Bharara’s office still wants the subpoena approved, but Mr. Holder is reviewing it.