Snowden has certainly paid a price for his leaks. However, the Washington Post, New York Times, and others were not punished for re-publishing or discussing the content of these leaks. Historically, American papers have successfully defended their right to do so in court (the Pentagon Papers, Watergate). Leakers also do often maintain anonymity, obtain legal protection, or receive pardons when their leaks appear to serve the public interest (Daniel Ellsberg, Deep Throat, Manning). The situation in China for newspapers, journalists, and sources is far worse.

Manning, by the way, leaked an enormous unredacted cache of documents pertaining to active, ongoing military operations. This leak very likely resulted in the deaths of anti-Taliban and anti-Islamist informants and cooperators. Not all leaks are good at all times for all people, and some confidentiality rules exist for good reason.