In her four decades in journalism, former New York Times executive editor Jill Abramson has never seen a more secretive administration than Barack Obama’s.

“I think it’s easy to demonstrate that that’s true,” she told Fox News on Wednesday. “I have never dealt with an administration where more officials — some of whom are paid to be the spokesmen for various federal agencies – demand that everything be off the record, so that’s secretive and not transparent.”



She’s most concerned by the criminal leak investigations launched against various whistleblowers and sources, which she said has put “a freeze” on many reporters. Abramson witnessed the issue firsthand when she communicated with the Times’ national-security team in Washington, she said.

“Almost all of the reporters have said to me that there has never been a more difficult atmosphere in which to do the work that they do than now,” she said. “It’s profoundly different.”