Mainstream media outlets are going out of their way to excuse the publication of a CIA operative's name by the Obama administration, a reaction that stands in stark contrast to the last time an administration did something similar.

In 2003, CIA agent Valerie Plame's name was reported by conservative columnist Robert Novak, a move many media outlets reported was intentional on behalf of the Bush administration.

The assignment of intention to the Plame leak stands in stark contrast to the media's characterization of the Obama administration's inclusion of the CIA agent's name as "inadvertent" or "mistakenly."

The Washington Post even took it upon itself to point out how different the two incidents were:

The disclosure marked a rare instance in which a CIA officer working overseas had his cover — the secrecy meant to protect his actual identity — pierced by his own government. The only other recent case came under significantly different circumstances, when former CIA operative Valerie Plame was exposed as officials of the George W. Bush administration sought to discredit her husband, a former ambassador and fierce critic of the decision to invade Iraq.

No matter the level of intention or agenda behind the publication of the name, the effect of the release of the CIA agent's identity appears to be having a similar effect to the Plame affair, according to the Associated Press article:

The Associated Press is withholding the officer's name at the request of the Obama administration, who said its publication could put his life and those of his family members in danger. A Google search appears to reveal the name of the officer's wife and other personal details.