Dear Friend of Press Freedom,
It’s now the 73rd day that Rümeysa Öztürk is facing deportation by the United States government for writing an op-ed it didn’t like. Read on for more press freedom news and and don’t forget to join us on June 9 at 2 p.m. for a conversation about the Trump administration’s attacks on broadcast licensees and nonprofits. RSVP here.
Snowden revelations take on added urgency 12 years later
Twelve years ago today, Edward Snowden — now a longtime Freedom of the Press Foundation (FPF) board member — blew the whistle to journalists on global mass surveillance programs, changing the way we think about the relationship between privacy and national security.
His revelations and the dialog they initiated are more relevant today than ever. We wrote about 12 of the reasons why. Read more here.
Texas might ban college kids from reporting news at night — or even talking
Texas lawmakers trying to muzzle campus protests have just passed one of the most ridiculous anti-speech laws in the country. If signed by Texas Governor Greg Abbott, Senate Bill 2972 would ban speech at night — from study groups to newspaper reporting — at public universities in the state.
We’re not exaggerating. In their zeal to stop college kids from protesting the Israel-Gaza war, lawmakers in the Lone Star State passed a prohibition on “engaging in expressive activities on campus between the hours of 10 p.m. and 8 a.m.” Expressive activity includes “any speech or expressive conduct” protected by the First Amendment or Texas Constitution — in other words, all speech and expressive conduct. Freedom of the Press Foundation (FPF) Senior Advisor Caitlin Vogus has more in the Houston Chronicle. Read the op-ed here.
Virginia gag policy is outrageously unconstitutional
An unconstitutional policy in Greene County, Virginia, prohibits government employees from talking to the media and requires them to label anything they share with the press as “opinion,” even if it’s verifiable fact.
Freedom of the Press Foundation (FPF) and the Society of Professional Journalists led a letter from a coalition of press freedom and transparency organizations urging Steve Catalano, chair of the Greene County board of supervisors, to rethink the unconstitutional and downright absurd policy. Read more here.
Press freedom coalition warns of dangers of Dobbs leak investigation
The FBI’s investigation into the 2022 publication of the Dobbs draft decision could “instill a wide-reaching chilling effect on First Amendment-protected newsgathering.”
We joined Defending Rights & Dissent and other press freedom groups to warn that the FBI’s investigation into a draft Supreme Court opinion leak could instill a widespread chilling effect on newsgathering everywhere. Read more here.
What we’re reading
Reporters aren’t exempt from ordinance forbidding presence in city park from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. (Reason). Reporters can’t control what time news happens. Under this court’s reasoning, journalists who pass a closed city park at night and observe police beating or shooting someone couldn’t enter the park to cover it. That can’t be the law.
Trump caught trashing US history to hide his secrets (MeidasTouch). FPF’s Daniel Ellsberg Chair on Government Secrecy, Lauren Harper, warns, “The Trump administration’s goal is to become the sole source of information — even if it’s false.”
The ICE agents disappearing your neighbors would like a little privacy, please (The San Francisco Standard). This is exactly how newspapers should react when the government asks them to carry its water.
Fountain Hills officials punished a paper for coverage they don’t like (Phoenix New Times). “It’s very much unconstitutional for the government to in any way punish the press over its editorial or content decisions,” we said after officials punished reporters they don’t like by removing a press desk.
Trump asks Congress to repeal $9 billion from NPR, PBS and global aid (Washington Post). Taking money away from NPR and PBS hurts Americans who rely on them for news. Doing so because the president and other politicians disagree with their coverage violates the Constitution.
Press freedoms and civil rights under attack; and practicing civic self respect (Project Censored). Harper and FPF Advocacy Director Seth Stern joined Project Censored to discuss press freedom, government secrecy, and the Freedom of Information Act.
