Police continue abuse of press covering protests
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Dear Friend of Press Freedom,
Here are some of the most important stories we’re following from the U.S. and around the world. If you enjoy reading this newsletter, please forward it to friends and family. If someone has forwarded you this newsletter, please subscribe here ([link removed]) .
Wikileaks Editor-in-Chief Kristinn Hrafnsson speaks outside the U.K. High Court in 2022. "Wikileaks Editor-in-Chief Kristinn Hrafnsson talks about Assange's extradition hearing ([link removed]) " by alisdare1 ([link removed]) is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0 ([link removed])
** Assange decision: A wake-up call for US
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On Monday, the High Court in London granted ([link removed]) WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange leave to appeal his extradition to the United States.
The court’s decision is a welcome one ([link removed]) . But as Freedom of the Press Foundation (FPF) wrote in The Guardian ([link removed]) , it's "painfully ironic" that a U.K. court is defending the First Amendment against U.S. overreach.
The ruling should be a “wake-up call” for President Joe Biden, wrote FPF: “It’s not possible to prosecute Assange while claiming to be a friend of press freedom ([link removed]) . Rather than wait for UK courts to defend the rights that America supposedly stands for, the US should drop the case now.”
Read the full Guardian op-ed ([link removed]) , as well asour statement on the U.K. ruling ([link removed]) , and tell the Biden administration to drop the case against Assange ([link removed]) .
Police continue abuse of press covering protests
From coast to coast, law enforcement officers are illegally detaining and arresting reporters who are simply doing their jobs covering recent pro-Palestinian protests.
The New York City Police Department continues to arrest and detain journalists despite a settlement agreement intended to overhaul the NYPD’s response to demonstrations, including its treatment of the press. Read more on our website ([link removed]) about the NYPD’s disregard for its commitments, as well as the First Amendment.
Meanwhile, in Oregon, police unnecessarily arrested ([link removed]) Alissa Azar, a journalist covering a protest at Portland State University, earlier this month. Read more on our website ([link removed]) about why the charges against Azar must be dropped right away. Also, check out our Q&A with Susan Seager, ([link removed]) an adjunct professor of law at University of California, Irvine School of Law, about similarly alarming press freedom violations in California.
News is criminal contraband, federal prosecutors say
Federal prosecutors in Florida have concocted a novel workaround to restrain journalists from publishing news: declaring the news itself criminal “contraband.”
That’s the latest constitutionally dubious argument the Department of Justice is making in the prosecution of Tim Burke ([link removed]) , the journalist who found unaired footage from Tucker Carlson’s Fox News interview with Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, where Ye went on a bizarre and antisemitic rant ([link removed]) .
FPF’s Advocacy Director Seth Stern wrote for Slate about the dangers of the government’s theory. Read the full op-ed ([link removed]) .
Israel censors the AP: U.S. should take note
On Tuesday, Israel seized broadcasting equipment from The Associated Press, cutting off its live footage of Gaza. After an outpouring ([link removed]) of criticism ([link removed]) , including from FPF ([link removed]) , the Israeli government backed down and returned the AP’s gear the same day.
The seizure and a recent ban on Al Jazeera ([link removed]) in Israel were both based on a new Israeli censorship law that allows its government to bar foreign media organizations. FPF ([link removed]) and others ([link removed]) have criticized the law as an attempt to silence coverage of the Israel-Gaza war.
It’s good that Israel returned the AP’s equipment, but it never should have been seized in the first place. Israel must also reverse the Al Jazeera ban. And the U.S. should stop passing its own censorial laws, like the TikTok ban, before it slides down a similar slippery slope. You can read the statement we issued after the Israeli raid here ([link removed]) .
** What we’re reading
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Gov. Murphy should veto public records bill, say mayors of N.J.’s two biggest cities ([link removed]) (New Jersey Monitor). New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy still hasn’t said whether he’ll sign a disastrous bill to gut the state’s Open Public Records Act, but the mayors of Newark and Jersey City have made clear that the bill is a raw deal for the public. Murphy must veto ([link removed]) it.
How much does it cost DeSantis to travel from one place to another? Florida won't tell you ([link removed]) (Tallahassee Democrat). Florida is refusing to release a breakdown of Gov. Ron DeSantis’ travel expenses. It’s the latest example of laws purportedly intended to shield officials from harm being abused to shield them from accountability ([link removed]) instead.
Journalists pepper-sprayed, threatened and harassed at campus protests ([link removed]) (U.S. Press Freedom Tracker). Journalists documenting demonstrations against the Israel-Gaza war have been exposed to chemical irritants, harassed by protesters and counterprotesters, and subject to access restrictions. The Tracker has a roundup of such incidents.
** Covering 2024 elections
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As election season approaches, stay up to date on how candidates are treating the press by following the Tracker’s campaign tracking blog ([link removed]) . FPF’s Digital Security Training team is also here to help ([link removed]) reporters covering candidates and campaign events. In addition, you can join ([link removed]) the Committee to Protect Journalists, the International Women's Media Foundation and PEN America for a free webinar series to help journalists prepare for the election.
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