In light of revelations that the Feds are monitoring journos' phone records, one has to wonder if the wiretapping of actual conversations is far behind.

Well, FishbowlDC is here to help.

Very Important Reporters might consider investing in a TopSecGSM celly by German manufacturer Rohde & Schwarz. It's "the first tap-proof mobile telephone on the market," according to the R&S web site, being a modified Siemens dualband mobile phone S351 integrated with something called a "crypto module."

"The TopSec cell phone is being marketed toward corporate executives and government officials who want to discuss sensitive matters wherever they are," wrote the AP's Jim Krane in 2001.

So, then, any source worth his salt already has one, and maybe Brian Ross and Richard Esposito didn't really need to conduct their interview with the SLEO in an "in-person conversation," as they (gratuitously) pointed out. On the other hand, the Feds are no doubt shadowing their every movement, so those clandestine sit-downs might not be worth the trouble.

The downside: the phone costs $3,000.

The upside: it's bulky, so everyone will know what a danger you are to national security.