IIRC, the ruling in the case was NOT that the NY Times and the Washington Post were exempt from prosescution for publication of classified materials but merely that the government could not get a restraining order prior to publication.
Federal prosecutors were free to persue a case _after the fact_. In the event, they used their discretion and chose not to pursue the case.
Slashdot Mirror
IIRC, the ruling in the case was NOT that the NY Times and the Washington Post were exempt from prosescution for publication of classified materials but merely that the government could not get a restraining order prior to publication.
Federal prosecutors were free to persue a case _after the fact_.
In the event, they used their discretion and chose not to pursue
the case.