Trump’s anti-press agenda is an existential threat to the Fourth Estate

View this story in your browser ([link removed])
Donald Trump will try to make good on his anti-press threats in his second term. We’ll need your help to fight back. Olivier Douliery/Abaca Press/Sipa via AP Photo

The last time Donald Trump won the presidency, we were alarmed ([link removed]) by the prospect that he’d file frivolous defamation suits and insult journalists from the White House podium. Those fears almost seem quaint now — the lawsuits and verbal attacks haven’t ended, but there is so much more at stake in Trump’s second term.

Since his first term ended, Trump has repeatedly called for ([link removed]) journalists to be imprisoned and raped for not revealing their sources. Just days ago, he publicly fantasized ([link removed]) about a mass shooting of journalists at one of his rallies. He wants to sic federal agencies from the Federal Election Commission ([link removed]) to the Federal Communications Commission ([link removed]) to the Department of Justice ([link removed]) on his perceived enemies, including reporters he doesn’t like.
Support Freedom of the Press Foundation ([link removed])

In his second term, Trump will make good on these anti-press threats to try to destroy any news outlet, journalist, or whistleblower who criticizes or opposes him.

Trump will almost certainly repeal protections against federal surveillance ([link removed].) of journalists, which were prompted by his spying ([link removed]) on them last time around (to be fair, so did ([link removed]) his predecessor). He may even take advantage of the opening created by the case he started and the Biden administration finished — the prosecution of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange ([link removed]) — to prosecute journalists directly for publishing classified information.

Suffice it to say, we’ve got some hard work ahead of us at Freedom of the Press Foundation (FPF). But we’ve been here before. During the first Trump term, we fought him every step of the way, from launching the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker ([link removed]) , the first comprehensive database of press freedom violations in the United States, to expanding the availability of SecureDrop to enable whistleblowers to communicate securely with journalists. And we’re now better equipped than ever to hold Trump accountable.

We’ve got an expanded advocacy team to draw the attention of both the public and policymakers to press freedom issues, whether at the local or national level. We operate a coalition that fosters strong partnerships between press rights groups across the political spectrum. Our new Daniel Ellsberg Chair on Government Secrecy furthers our late co-founder’s legacy by leading the fight to fix the country’s overclassification problem — something that Trump, strangely enough, actually has reason ([link removed]) to support.

When the law isn’t enough, our digital security ([link removed]) team steps in to educate reporters about how they can protect themselves and their sources, and our open source software tools ([link removed]) like SecureDrop and Dangerzone help whistleblowers and journalists collaborate, and expose malfeasance, safely and confidentially.

Whatever press freedom violations we can’t prevent, we document. The Tracker is relied on by journalists and rights organizations everywhere to spot concerning trends and measure the state of press freedom in the United States. Just look at its work in 2020, the last year we had a President Trump, documenting hundreds of attacks ([link removed]) on press rights during the civil unrest that swept the nation that year.

We’re going to need your help as the demand for our work likely grows, in both foreseeable and unforeseeable ways. If you agree that a strong Fourth Estate is essential to preserve democracy and check abuses of power, from Trump or whoever’s next, please donate today ([link removed]) .
Donate to protect press freedom ([link removed])
Read and share this full post here ([link removed]) , as well as our statement calling on Congress ([link removed]) to pass the PRESS Act before it's too late.
[link removed]
[link removed]
[link removed]

============================================================
Copyright © 2024 Freedom of the Press Foundation, All rights reserved.
You are receiving this email because you opted in via our website.

Our mailing address is:
Freedom of the Press Foundation
49 Flatbush Ave, #1017
Brooklyn, NY 11217
USA
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can ** update your preferences ([link removed])
or ** unsubscribe from this list ([link removed])
.