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{
"title": "Atlanta broadcast photographer held hostage for 90 minutes",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/atlanta-broadcast-photographer-held-hostage-for-90-minutes/",
"first_published_at": "2023-12-14T15:59:14.654252Z",
"last_published_at": "2023-12-14T15:59:14.654252Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2023-12-14T15:59:14.469592Z",
"date": "2023-12-11",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Jonesboro",
"longitude": -84.35381,
"latitude": 33.5215,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"2uf78\">WANF television photojournalist Lauren Swaim and reporter Asia Wilson were held hostage for about an hour and a half in the late evening of Dec. 11, 2023, while on assignment in Jonesboro, Georgia. Neither journalist was injured and the man who threatened them was arrested.</p><p data-block-key=\"a7ttf\">Swaim and <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/atlanta-broadcast-reporter-held-hostage-for-90-minutes\">Wilson</a> were preparing to go live from the parking lot of the Clayton County Sheriff’s Office shortly before 11 p.m. when a man approached their marked news vehicle, the station <a href=\"https://www.atlantanewsfirst.com/2023/12/12/man-accused-holding-atlanta-news-first-reporter-photojournalist-hostage-arrested/\">reported</a>. The man allegedly said he had a gun and would shoot them if they called for help.</p><p data-block-key=\"37rp6\">Allen Devlin, an anchor at WANF, told the station that the newsroom lost all contact with the journalists until they started receiving surreptitious texts from Wilson at approximately 10:44 p.m. that Devlin called “bone-chilling.”</p><p data-block-key=\"a2bjl\">“It was just things like — sporadic, not even in complete sentences — ‘we need help,’ ‘we’re scared’ and ‘he’s going to shoot,’” he said.</p><p data-block-key=\"crg75\">The newsroom alerted the sheriff’s office and, when they did not receive confirmation of the crew’s safety, called 911.</p><p data-block-key=\"eumld\">Assignment Editor Gary Stilwell said an officer called him back and said that he had spoken with the crew — a man and a woman — and that they were safe. Gary responded that both journalists were women, and asked the officer to go back.</p><p data-block-key=\"ftd15\">As time continued to pass, three WANF employees took it upon themselves to drive the 20 minutes to the sheriff’s office, flagging down a police officer along the way.</p><p data-block-key=\"9aapn\">WANF reported that approximately an hour and a half after Wilson and Swaim were taken hostage, police arrived at the scene and arrested the man, later identified as Brandon R. Logan. Neither journalist was injured and police did not recover a firearm.</p><p data-block-key=\"ech17\">Logan was charged with false imprisonment, simple battery, simple assault, terroristic threats and loitering or prowling, among others. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Jan. 24, 2024.</p><p data-block-key=\"fa87k\">According to <a href=\"https://www.wsbtv.com/news/local/clayton-county/man-arrested-after-holding-atlanta-tv-news-crew-against-their-will/L7FPF4IVLVDYBMJAM3EEAIS5KQ/\">WSB-TV</a>, Logan allegedly shoved one of the station’s employees and attempted to strike the other.</p><p data-block-key=\"9hbb2\">WANF Vice President and General Manager Erik Schrader said the broadcast outlet’s focus is on getting answers on how law enforcement responded.</p><p data-block-key=\"namn\">“What we’re really looking for is to figure out what took so long,” Schrader said. “Where was the breakdown, what caused this to last seemingly a whole lot longer than it needed to last.”</p><p data-block-key=\"30beb\">Neither journalist nor WANF responded to requests for additional comment.</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
"teaser_image": "https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/Swaim.2e16d0ba.fill-1330x880.png",
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"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"0vt9p\">Activity around a WANF news vehicle after journalists Lauren Swaim and Asia Wilson were held hostage on Dec. 11, 2023, by a man who approached them outside the Clayton County Sheriff’s Office in Jonesboro, Georgia. Neither journalist was injured.</p>",
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"assailant": "private individual",
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"state": {
"name": "Georgia",
"abbreviation": "GA"
},
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"categories": [
"Assault"
],
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"Lauren Swaim (WANF)"
],
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{
"title": "Atlanta broadcast reporter held hostage for 90 minutes",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/atlanta-broadcast-reporter-held-hostage-for-90-minutes/",
"first_published_at": "2023-12-14T15:59:25.650216Z",
"last_published_at": "2023-12-14T15:59:25.650216Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2023-12-13T22:45:23.777912Z",
"date": "2023-12-11",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Jonesboro",
"longitude": -84.35381,
"latitude": 33.5215,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"ryog5\">WANF television reporter Asia Wilson and photographer Lauren Swaim were held hostage for about an hour and a half in the late evening of Dec. 11, 2023, while on assignment in Jonesboro, Georgia. Neither journalist was injured and the man who threatened them was arrested.</p><p data-block-key=\"1a20q\">Wilson and <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/atlanta-broadcast-photographer-held-hostage-for-90-minutes\">Swaim</a> were preparing to go live from the parking lot of the Clayton County Sheriff’s Office shortly before 11 p.m. when a man approached their marked news vehicle, the station <a href=\"https://www.atlantanewsfirst.com/2023/12/12/man-accused-holding-atlanta-news-first-reporter-photojournalist-hostage-arrested/\">reported</a>. The man allegedly said he had a gun and would shoot them if they called for help.</p><p data-block-key=\"c7grv\">Allen Devlin, an anchor at WANF, told the station that the newsroom lost all contact with the journalists until they started receiving surreptitious texts from Wilson at approximately 10:44 p.m. that Devlin called “bone-chilling.”</p><p data-block-key=\"9qfta\">“It was just things like — sporadic, not even in complete sentences — ‘we need help,’ ‘we’re scared’ and ‘he’s going to shoot,’” he said.</p><p data-block-key=\"9hlub\">The newsroom alerted the sheriff’s office and, when they did not receive confirmation of the crew’s safety, called 911.</p><p data-block-key=\"140m8\">Assignment Editor Gary Stilwell said an officer called him back and said that he had spoken with the crew — a man and a woman — and that they were safe. Gary responded that both journalists were women, and asked the officer to go back.</p><p data-block-key=\"2eanv\">As time continued to pass, three WANF employees took it upon themselves to drive the 20 minutes to the sheriff’s office, flagging down a police officer along the way.</p><p data-block-key=\"lc5g\">WANF reported that approximately an hour and a half after Wilson and Swaim were taken hostage, police arrived at the scene and arrested the man, later identified as Brandon R. Logan. Neither journalist was injured and police did not recover a firearm.</p><p data-block-key=\"4iovc\">Logan was charged with false imprisonment, simple battery, simple assault, terroristic threats and loitering or prowling, among others. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Jan. 24, 2024.</p><p data-block-key=\"6ght8\">According to <a href=\"https://www.wsbtv.com/news/local/clayton-county/man-arrested-after-holding-atlanta-tv-news-crew-against-their-will/L7FPF4IVLVDYBMJAM3EEAIS5KQ/\">WSB-TV</a>, Logan allegedly shoved one of the station’s employees and attempted to strike the other.</p><p data-block-key=\"4lskf\">WANF Vice President and General Manager Erik Schrader said the broadcast outlet’s focus is on getting answers on how law enforcement responded.</p><p data-block-key=\"2jh48\">“What we’re really looking for is to figure out what took so long,” Schrader said. “Where was the breakdown, what caused this to last seemingly a whole lot longer than it needed to last.”</p><p data-block-key=\"1eav8\">Neither journalist nor WANF responded to requests for additional comment.</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
"teaser_image": "https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/Wilson.2e16d0ba.fill-1330x880.jpg",
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"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"gcprd\">WANF reporter Asia Wilson, center, and photojournalist Lauren Swaim were held hostage on Dec. 11, 2023, as they prepared to do a live shot in front of the Clayton County Sheriff’s Office in Jonesboro, Georgia. Neither journalist was injured.</p>",
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"assailant": "private individual",
"was_journalist_targeted": "yes",
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"state": {
"name": "Georgia",
"abbreviation": "GA"
},
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"Assault"
],
"targeted_journalists": [
"Asia Wilson (WANF)"
],
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},
{
"title": "Vandal throws brick, shattering glass door at Oregon daily",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/vandal-throws-brick-shattering-glass-door-at-oregon-daily/",
"first_published_at": "2023-12-21T22:07:35.696923Z",
"last_published_at": "2024-01-30T15:45:58.924928Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2024-01-30T15:45:58.828091Z",
"date": "2023-12-08",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Grants Pass",
"longitude": -123.33067,
"latitude": 42.43933,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"32nkn\">The Grants Pass Daily Courier newsroom in Oregon was vandalized on Dec. 8, 2023, when an unknown person threw a brick — marked with a vulgar message naming a member of the newsroom — through the glass entrance doors to the building.</p><p data-block-key=\"9gl61\">The Courier <a href=\"https://twitter.com/scottstoddard/status/1733967636592243152/photo/1\">reported</a> that an employee was working in the building when at around 10:45 p.m. they heard a loud bang and shattering glass. The employee called 911 and police found that a brick had smashed through one of the front doors, as well as a separate glass pane in the vestibule.</p><p data-block-key=\"8hkva\">Courier Editor Scott Stoddard told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that the attack caused approximately $1,500 in damage to the building, which the newspaper has occupied for nearly 75 years. Police are still investigating the vandalism.</p><p data-block-key=\"d5ro\">The newspaper is not releasing the details of the message or the name of the journalist in order to avoid further targeting, Stoddard said. He added that staff had met to review safe locations and exits, in case of a future attack.</p><p data-block-key=\"40am9\">“We are not a sleepy newspaper, we cover local topics aggressively,” he told the Tracker. “There are multiple factions in town that are not happy with the paper because of the level of reporting we do.”</p><p data-block-key=\"degvc\">The Courier also quoted Stoddard as saying, “I want to assure our readers that we are not going to be silenced by anyone who tries to intimidate us or infringe on the press freedoms that are guaranteed by the First Amendment.”</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
"teaser_image": "https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/Grants_Pass_Daily_Courier.2e16d0ba.fill-1330x880.jpg",
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"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"me1ka\">A brick was thrown through the front doors of the Grants Pass Daily Courier in Oregon on Dec. 8, 2023. A vulgar message directed at a specific Courier journalist was scrawled on the brick, which caused approximately $1,500 in damage.</p>",
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{
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"name": "Oregon",
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},
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"categories": [
"Equipment Damage"
],
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"Unidentified journalist 10 (Grants Pass Daily Courier)"
],
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},
{
"title": "Colorado newspaper wins access to recording of closed city council session",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/colorado-newspaper-wins-access-to-recording-of-closed-city-council-session/",
"first_published_at": "2023-12-21T20:51:14.954098Z",
"last_published_at": "2023-12-21T20:51:14.954098Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2023-12-21T20:51:14.878153Z",
"date": "2023-12-07",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Aurora",
"longitude": -104.83192,
"latitude": 39.72943,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"oye25\">The Sentinel Colorado newspaper is entitled to a recording of a closed Aurora City Council meeting that the council had earlier refused to release, the Colorado Court of Appeals ruled on Dec. 7, 2023.</p><p data-block-key=\"fr1k6\">The city council held the closed meeting on March 14, 2022, to discuss whether to censure Council member Danielle Jurinsky for violating the city charter and the council’s rules of order, after Jurinsky criticized the city’s police chief on a talk radio show, calling her “trash,” the Sentinel <a href=\"https://sentinelcolorado.com/metro/city-of-aurora-confirms-closed-door-council-decision-to-end-censure-of-jurinsky/\">reported</a>. The council voted at the session not to censure Jurinsky.</p><p data-block-key=\"avolg\">The Sentinel <a href=\"https://sentinelcolorado.com/metro/sentinel-colorado-threatens-lawsuit-against-aurora-demanding-private-censure-discussion-recording-be-made-public/\">reported</a> that reporter Max Levy filed a records request for a recording of the session on March 18. The city clerk denied the request on March 22, claiming that because an outside law firm hired by the council was present to advise on the investigation into Jurinsky’s conduct, the session involved “privileged attorney/client communication” and was therefore “exempt from disclosure.”</p><p data-block-key=\"98dc\">The Sentinel, represented by Rachael Johnson of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, sued the clerk, <a href=\"https://www.rcfp.org/litigation/the-sentinel-colorado-v-rodriguez/\">arguing</a> that the city violated Colorado’s Open Meetings Law by secretly voting on Jurinsky’s censure and without advance public notice about the nature of the session.</p><p data-block-key=\"4fo3b\">A district court reviewed the recording and ordered the city council to turn it over to the Sentinel, then reversed its decision at the request of the city council, ruling that the council had undone its violation of the Open Meetings Law by holding a regular meeting to discuss the censure on March 28.</p><p data-block-key=\"9mobm\">The Sentinel appealed, and the Colorado Court of Appeals ultimately <a href=\"https://www.rcfp.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/2023-12-07-Sentinel-Colorado-v.-Rodriguez-Opinion.pdf\">reversed</a> the district court’s decision, agreeing with the newspaper that the city council had violated the Open Meetings Law and ordering the city council to release the recording.</p><p data-block-key=\"6hfp3\">The city can still decide to appeal the decision to the Colorado Supreme Court, the Sentinel <a href=\"https://sentinelcolorado.com/metro/appeals-court-aurora-council-illegally-blocked-censure-of-member-in-closed-door-meeting/\">reported</a>.</p><p data-block-key=\"dgn3t\">“We’re pleased that the Court of Appeals saw this executive session for what it was: an unlawful meeting that prevented the community from observing the city council as it conducted the public’s business,” RCFP attorney Rachael Johnson <a href=\"https://www.rcfp.org/aurora-council-open-meetings-law/\">said</a>. “The Sentinel looks forward to the release of the recording.”</p><p data-block-key=\"a3mqb\">Levy and Sentinel publisher and editor Dave Perry did not respond to emailed requests for comment.</p></div>",
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{
"title": "Journalist subpoenaed for reporting and communications in defamation suit",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/journalist-subpoenaed-for-reporting-and-communications-in-defamation-suit/",
"first_published_at": "2024-09-25T14:56:41.523780Z",
"last_published_at": "2025-03-13T15:05:32.199221Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2025-03-13T15:05:32.056326Z",
"date": "2023-12-06",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Wilmington",
"longitude": -75.54659,
"latitude": 39.74595,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"8wuus\">Jessica Pressler, a staff writer for New York magazine, was subpoenaed for her communications and newsgathering materials on Dec. 6, 2023, as part of an ongoing defamation lawsuit against Netflix.</p><p data-block-key=\"30af1\">In 2018, Pressler wrote an <a href=\"https://www.thecut.com/article/how-anna-delvey-tricked-new-york.html\">article</a> on Anna Sorokin, a high society grifter who posed as a German heiress named Anna Delvey and was convicted for conning hotels and banks out of hundreds of thousands of dollars. The piece went viral online, and in 2022 Netflix released the miniseries “Inventing Anna” based on the article, having hired Pressler to consult on its production.</p><p data-block-key=\"b8pfu\">Rachel DeLoache Williams, a former friend of Sorokin, sued Netflix in August for defamation and false light invasion of privacy for her unflattering portrayal in the series, in which she was identified by full name and with real biographical information.</p><p data-block-key=\"1ba80\">Attorneys representing Williams then <a href=\"https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.ded.79878/gov.uscourts.ded.79878.54.5.pdf\">subpoenaed</a> Pressler in 2023, requesting all of the journalist’s communications with the series’ producers concerning Williams and her portrayal, writers’ room notes for seven of the nine episodes, and any research on her in connection with the development of the series.</p><p data-block-key=\"8g5be\">The U.S. Press Freedom Tracker was unable to determine the outcome of the subpoena, which ordered Pressler to produce the documents by Jan. 5, 2024. Attorneys representing Netflix filed responses and objections to the subpoena in February, but no formal motion to quash was filed on Pressler’s behalf and the journalist did not respond to multiple requests for comment.</p><p data-block-key=\"9i6n8\">Williams’ efforts to obtain Pressler’s newsgathering materials continued, however, and in September her attorneys <a href=\"https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.ded.79878/gov.uscourts.ded.79878.88.0.pdf\">requested that the court compel Netflix</a> to turn over materials that it had redacted or withheld after asserting journalistic privilege to protect confidential sources.</p><p data-block-key=\"33kpk\">In a <a href=\"https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.ded.79878/gov.uscourts.ded.79878.93.3.pdf\">declaration</a> opposing the motion, Pressler said that the disclosure of her reporting materials — which she shared with the producers of the series with the understanding that her confidential sources would remain so — could jeopardize her future reporting.</p><p data-block-key=\"ad1nl\">“For many reasons, ranging from safety issues to employment prospects, sources often refuse to speak to me or provide me with newsworthy information unless I can promise those sources that their identities will remain strictly confidential,” she wrote. “Maintaining such confidentiality is critical to my role as a journalist and my ability to report will be substantially impaired if I am compelled to disclose my newsgathering material.”</p><p data-block-key=\"eooe6\">Williams’ attorneys argued in a <a href=\"https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.ded.79878/gov.uscourts.ded.79878.88.0.pdf\">letter to the court</a> that Pressler waived her privilege by voluntarily disclosing the information to Netflix and others working on the series. In its own opposition to the motion, Netflix <a href=\"https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.ded.79878/gov.uscourts.ded.79878.93.0.pdf\">wrote</a> that the confidential sources had nothing to do with Williams or her portrayal in the series, and that the production company is also protected by the privilege as it applies to the adaptive work done by filmmakers and dramatists.</p><p data-block-key=\"c7l11\">In a <a href=\"https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.ded.79878/gov.uscourts.ded.79878.100.0.pdf\">joint status report</a>, attorneys for the parties wrote Sept. 20 that they had been unable to reach an agreement on the documents that would identify Pressler’s sources, as Williams’ attorney asserted that receiving the names is crucial to showing that the series used his client’s real name while protecting the identities of others.</p><p data-block-key=\"aed6c\">The case is ongoing, with the next joint status report due to the court Oct. 9.</p></div>",
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"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"fw9ui\">A portion of the subpoena issued to New York magazine staff writer Jessica Pressler on Dec. 6, 2023, ordering her to produce her communications and newsgathering materials in connection with a defamation lawsuit against Netflix.</p>",
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{
"title": "Top state legal officers warn outlets against giving ‘material support’ to Hamas",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/top-state-legal-officers-warn-outlets-against-giving-material-support-to-hamas/",
"first_published_at": "2023-12-08T19:26:07.869950Z",
"last_published_at": "2024-03-14T16:11:44.573800Z",
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"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"z2ztp\">Over a dozen Republican state attorneys general sent a letter on Dec. 4, 2023, to the heads of The Associated Press, CNN, The New York Times and Reuters warning them that employing allegedly Hamas-affiliated freelancers would be a state and federal crime.</p><p data-block-key=\"2b1u0\">Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird was joined by her counterparts in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Montana, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia and West Virginia.</p><p data-block-key=\"8bc1i\">“We, the chief legal officers of our respective States, also remind you that providing material support to terrorists and terror organizations is a crime,” the <a href=\"https://www.scribd.com/document/689965095/States-Material-Support-Letter\">letter read</a>.</p><p data-block-key=\"etp5v\">The letter cited “reports” alleging that the outlets had employed freelance journalists who had ties to the armed Palestinian militant group and prior knowledge of its Oct. 7 attack against Israel as the basis for the accusations, but only included a hyperlink to <a href=\"https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-photographers-attack-200be1ba47361f1c1fc113cdaeb65d04\">since-debunked</a> claims pushed by pro-Israel watchdog group HonestReporting.</p><p data-block-key=\"3i970\">The attorneys general wrote that hiring stringers, correspondents, contractors or other employees with connections to Hamas is a means of funding terrorists, and asserted that the outlets have a “long record of paying terrorists and possible terrorists for their work.”</p><p data-block-key=\"6p26j\">The letter also highlighted that “material support” for terrorist groups — both a federal and state crime — can include “writing and distributing publications supporting the organization.” It did not elaborate on what would be considered support, potentially chilling any reporting that does not unequivocally condemn Hamas or unilaterally support Israel.</p><p data-block-key=\"3st4c\">The attorneys general urged the outlets to reevaluate hiring practices and warned that they would be watching.</p><p data-block-key=\"dvo0i\">“We will continue to follow your reporting to ensure that your organizations do not violate any federal or State laws by giving material support to terrorists abroad,” the letter stated. “Now your organizations are on notice. Follow the law.”</p><p data-block-key=\"3jud7\">Sen. Tom Cotton, an Arkansas Republican, also alluded to HonestReporting’s claims in a Nov. 9 letter <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/senator-calls-on-justice-department-to-investigate-news-outlets/\">calling on the U.S. Justice Department</a> to open a national security investigation into the news outlets.</p><p data-block-key=\"7ph1t\">Similarly, a group of a dozen House Republicans, joined by two Democrats, sent a letter to Reuters citing the claims on <a href=\"https://www.nationalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Lawler-Letter-to-Reuters.pdf\">Nov. 21</a>, and asked the outlet how its freelancers became aware of the Oct. 7 attack and whether the journalists or Reuters had prior knowledge of the planned assault.</p><p data-block-key=\"8deef\">On Dec. 7, a group of 15 House Republicans <a href=\"https://files.constantcontact.com/647991c4801/5d2e36eb-8332-453f-a8a1-a25e1af8951f.pdf?rdr=true\">sent their own letter</a> to the AP, CNN, the Times and Reuters citing the claims. The letter asked that the media organizations provide detailed information on each of the six journalists identified by HonestReporting — including their nationalities and employment status — as well as communications, phone logs and financial records between the freelancers and the outlets prior to and since Oct. 7.</p><p data-block-key=\"7tvor\">The four news outlets previously <a href=\"https://www.thewrap.com/news-outlets-deny-hamas-attacks-advance-knowledge-gaza-photojournalists/\">denied</a> having any prior knowledge of the Oct. 7 attack and defended their reporting. The Times stood by its decision to work with freelancer Yousef Masoud, <a href=\"https://www.nytco.com/press/statement-on-yousef-masoud/\">stating</a> that there was no basis for HonestReporting’s claims. However, CNN and the AP suspended their relationship with freelance photojournalist Hassan Eslaiah, <a href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/09/world/middleeast/israel-gaza-hamas-photographers.html\">according to the Times</a>. Eslaiah told the outlet that he had no prior knowledge of the attack and had no ties to Hamas.</p><p data-block-key=\"5fuu6\">Freedom of the Press Foundation, which oversees the operation of the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, <a href=\"https://freedom.press/news/disinformation-campaign-puts-journalists-lives-at-risk-in-gaza/\">characterized</a> HonestReporting’s claims as a “malicious disinformation campaign” that endangers the lives of journalists covering the war.</p><p data-block-key=\"1m4rp\">“It’s a virtual certainty that, despite HonestReporting’s about-face, its nonsense report will be cited to justify past and future attacks against journalists in what’s already by far the deadliest war for the press in modern memory,” FPF Advocacy Director Seth Stern wrote.</p></div>",
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"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"qj3gg\">Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird, center, led a coalition of state attorneys general in a Dec. 4, 2023, letter putting four news outlets “on notice” that employing allegedly Hamas-affiliated freelancers constitutes “material support” for terrorists.</p>",
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{
"title": "Newsmax ordered to turn over journalists’ texts in Dominion defamation suit",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/newsmax-ordered-to-turn-over-journalists-texts-in-dominion-defamation-suit/",
"first_published_at": "2024-01-08T21:25:34.957682Z",
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"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"te9nv\">Newsmax was ordered on Dec. 1, 2023, to turn over its journalists’ personal texts and other electronic communications, as part of Dominion Voting Systems’ ongoing defamation suit against the conservative news network.</p><p data-block-key=\"evr65\">Dominion filed the $1.6 billion lawsuit in 2021, <a href=\"https://www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/rcna128179\">alleging</a> that Newsmax defamed the voting machine company when the news outlet falsely claimed that Dominion had rigged the 2020 presidential election.</p><p data-block-key=\"4mm5o\">According to court records reviewed by the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, one of Dominion’s early discovery requests was for all documents and communications concerning mentions of the company on Newsmax since November 2018. Newsmax objected to the request, stating in part that it would violate multiple states’ constitutional free speech protections and reporter’s privilege laws.</p><p data-block-key=\"141jf\">In August 2023, Dominion filed a motion to compel Newsmax to review and turn over texts and other non-email communications of current employees, including those on the employees’ personal devices.</p><p data-block-key=\"a3r8c\">“This is not a case where a bright line separates business-related and personal documents,” Dominion argued. “One of the central issues is whether any of Newsmax’s media professionals expressed, behind the scenes, disbelief about the election-related lies the network was airing publicly.”</p><p data-block-key=\"btrr6\">Newsmax objected to the request, arguing in court filings that it had already searched records and communications that were “in furtherance of Newsmax business,” as ordered by a special master in the parallel <a href=\"https://www.reuters.com/legal/judge-rejects-newsmaxs-bid-dismiss-smartmatic-lawsuit-over-2020-election-2023-08-23/\">Smartmatic litigation</a>. It added that it was only able to do so because employees had cooperated voluntarily once they were assured that their private data would not be collected, reviewed or produced.</p><p data-block-key=\"bhneg\">The news network added that it has no custody or control over its employees’ personal devices, and lacks the “legal right or practical ability to demand employees turn over such devices.”</p><p data-block-key=\"3a2d8\">Delaware Superior Court Judge Eric Davis overruled Newsmax’s arguments on Dec. 1, ordering the news network to produce the private communications.</p><p data-block-key=\"f60ds\">In a statement emailed to the Tracker, Newsmax said it is examining its options in light of the judge’s ruling.</p><p data-block-key=\"7kcos\">“Newsmax remains deeply concerned about the chilling effect that this litigation is having and will continue to have on the freedom of the press and how it covers largely live news events and controversies,” the statement said.</p></div>",
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"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"glqn0\">A portion of the order issued Dec. 1, 2023, ordering Newsmax to produce its journalists’ personal texts and other electronic communications as part of Dominion’s $1.6 billion defamation lawsuit against the company.</p>",
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{
"title": "Texas attorney general subpoenas Media Matters after report on X",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/texas-attorney-general-subpoenas-media-matters-after-report-on-x/",
"first_published_at": "2024-01-05T17:51:11.548738Z",
"last_published_at": "2024-04-18T16:38:22.327564Z",
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"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"v2hy6\">Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Dec. 1, 2023, demanded that Media Matters for America turn over what the media watchdog called a “sweeping array” of materials related to its reporting, according to court documents reviewed by the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker.</p><p data-block-key=\"86h60\">Media Matters <a href=\"https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/internet/media-matters-elon-musk-texas-attorney-general-ken-paxton-rcna129402\">sued</a> on Dec. 11 to block the “civil investigative demand,” an administrative subpoena that is part of a <a href=\"https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/news/releases/attorney-general-ken-paxton-opens-investigation-media-matters-potential-fraudulent-activity\">probe</a> launched Nov. 20 by Paxton into what his office characterized as “potential fraudulent activity” under the Texas Business Organizations Code and the Deceptive Trade Practices Act.</p><p data-block-key=\"4ecgt\">The probe followed the Nov. 16 publication of a Media Matters <a href=\"https://www.mediamatters.org/twitter/musk-endorses-antisemitic-conspiracy-theory-x-has-been-placing-ads-apple-bravo-ibm-oracle\">report</a> that found advertisements for major brands appeared next to pro-Nazi posts on X, formerly known as Twitter. <a href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/17/technology/elon-musk-twitter-x-advertisers.html\">Several</a> major companies <a href=\"https://www.theverge.com/2023/11/17/23965928/apple-x-ads-elon-musk-antisemitic-posts\">paused</a> their advertising on the platform shortly after the report and following a post on X by owner Elon Musk that appeared to endorse an antisemitic conspiracy theory.</p><p data-block-key=\"apfj\">Paxton, a Republican, said he was “extremely troubled” by allegations that the progressive, Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit had manipulated data on X. “We are examining the issue closely to ensure that the public has not been deceived by the schemes of radical left-wing organizations who would like nothing more than to limit freedom by reducing participation in the public square,” he added.</p><p data-block-key=\"5108u\">The allegations of data manipulation were contained in a Nov. 20 <a href=\"https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.txnd.383454/gov.uscourts.txnd.383454.1.0_1.pdf\">lawsuit</a> filed by X against Media Matters and senior investigative reporter Eric Hananoki in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas. X’s suit alleged that the group and Hananoki, who wrote the story, manipulated the platform’s algorithms to produce feeds in which advertisers’ posts appeared next to pro-Nazi content, with the intent of harming X’s relationship with advertisers.</p><p data-block-key=\"ectch\">The suit sought unspecified damages and asked a judge to order Media Matters to remove the report from its website and social media accounts.</p><p data-block-key=\"e33sq\">Media Matters President Angelo Carusone, in a <a href=\"https://twitter.com/GoAngelo/status/1726800683263771051?s=20\">statement</a> after Musk filed the suit, said, “This is a frivolous lawsuit meant to bully X’s critics into silence. Media Matters stands behind its reporting.”</p><p data-block-key=\"6t7md\">In its suit against Paxton, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, where Hananoki lives and works, Media Matters said that the Texas attorney general demanded “a sweeping array of materials from Media Matters and Hananoki, including documents and communications about their research and reporting.”</p><p data-block-key=\"8gkam\">The suit called the investigation “retaliatory” and an “extraordinarily invasive intrusion into Plaintiffs’ news gathering and reporting activities [that] is plainly intended to chill those activities.”</p><p data-block-key=\"ehhru\">Media Matters accused Paxton of violating the plaintiffs’ First, Fourth and 14th Amendment rights, as well as its rights under reporters shield laws in <a href=\"https://www.rcfp.org/privilege-compendium/maryland/\">Maryland</a> and <a href=\"https://www.rcfp.org/privilege-compendium/district-of-columbia/\">Washington, D.C.</a>, and asked the court to permanently block the investigation.</p><p data-block-key=\"dluvv\">Carusone, in a Dec. 17 <a href=\"https://www.mediamatters.org/angelo-carusone/msnbc-angelo-carusone-discusses-how-free-speech-line-media-matters-lawsuit-against\">interview</a> with MSNBC about the suit against Paxton, said, “In some respects, it was really our only path because the alternative would be to do nothing and have him continue to barrel ahead with this investigation, which he says could be both civil and criminal.”</p><p data-block-key=\"3nr1e\">Carusone told the Tracker in a phone interview that Paxton’s investigation added a “layer of unpredictability” in terms of “what could be exposed and what information somebody could get access to, and the process for that.” He added that the probe “leads to a culture, internally, of self-censoring.”</p><p data-block-key=\"38beo\">Paxton’s office did not reply to an emailed request for updates on the investigation.</p><p data-block-key=\"4pjd6\">Meanwhile, on Dec. 11, Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey opened his own investigation into Media Matters. In a <a href=\"https://ago.mo.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023.12.11-Notice-of-Investigation-MMFA-Final.pdf\">letter to the watchdog group</a>, he alleged that it appeared to have used the “coordinated, inauthentic activity” described in X’s lawsuit “to solicit charitable donations from consumers,” and that his office would look into whether this violated Missouri’s consumer protection laws, “including laws that prohibit nonprofit entities from soliciting funds under false pretenses.” Bailey instructed the group to preserve all records related to the case.</p><p data-block-key=\"ds65a\">Three days later, Bailey <a href=\"https://ago.mo.gov/attorney-general-bailey-directs-letter-to-advertisers-amidst-media-matters-investigation/\">announced</a> that he and Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry had sent letters to several major companies that paused their advertising on X, including Disney, IBM and Sony, informing them of the investigation into Media Matters.</p><p data-block-key=\"d21k8\">Bailey’s office told the Tracker in a Jan. 4, 2024, email that there were no further updates in the investigation.</p></div>",
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"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"cs5p8\">Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, seen at an August 2022 Conservative Political Action Conference in Dallas, subpoenaed watchdog Media Matters on Dec. 1, 2023, after the group reported on the social platform X.</p>",
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{
"title": "Arizona radio reporter arrested at pro-Palestinian protest in Tucson",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/arizona-radio-reporter-arrested-at-pro-palestinian-protest-in-tucson/",
"first_published_at": "2023-11-30T22:23:12.620924Z",
"last_published_at": "2024-03-14T16:11:17.418790Z",
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"date": "2023-11-30",
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"longitude": -110.92648,
"latitude": 32.22174,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"fn4zl\">KJZZ radio reporter Alisa Reznick was arrested and charged with criminal trespass while reporting on a pro-Palestinian demonstration in Tucson, Arizona, on the morning of Nov. 30, 2023.</p><p data-block-key=\"ei2pc\">The Arizona Republic <a href=\"https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/politics/arizona/2023/11/30/deputies-detain-kjzz-reporter-raytheon-protest-in-tucson/71754739007/\">reported</a> that Reznick was among 26 arrested as demonstrators gathered at a University of Arizona satellite campus where weapons manufacturer Raytheon is housed. Approximately 60 protesters blockaded the entrance to the facility, <a href=\"https://twitter.com/UR_Ninja/status/1730259721347838423\">according to Unicorn Riot</a>.</p><p data-block-key=\"eerde\">In <a href=\"https://twitter.com/UR_Ninja/status/1730285671980659137\">footage</a> captured by Unicorn Riot, Reznick, who is a senior field correspondent for KJZZ’s Fronteras Desk and the NPR network, can be heard identifying herself as a journalist and telling a Pima County Sheriff’s deputy that she was walking to her vehicle nearby.</p></div>\n<div class=\"block-tweet\"><div class=\"tweet-embed\">\n <div>\n <blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">After clearing protesters from blocking UA Tech/Raytheon's entrance road, Pima County Sheriffs also insisted on also arresting <a href=\"https://twitter.com/kjzzphoenix?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@kjzzphoenix</a> journalist <a href=\"https://twitter.com/AlisaReznick?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@AlisaReznick</a> despite Reznick clearly carrying media equipment and repeatedly identifying herself as press. <a href=\"https://t.co/XJWf6tTCWW\">pic.twitter.com/XJWf6tTCWW</a></p>— UNICORN RIOT (@UR_Ninja) <a href=\"https://twitter.com/UR_Ninja/status/1730285671980659137?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">November 30, 2023</a></blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"></script>\n\n\n</div>\n\n</div>\n</div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"fn4zl\">“I'm a reporter,” Reznick said, with a press credential around her neck, recording equipment in her hand and a camera hanging from her shoulder.</p><p data-block-key=\"897k9\">The deputy, while holding her by the arm and wrist, responded, “And you're under arrest.” When she repeated that she was attempting to return to her car and leave, he responded, “You had plenty of time to go to your car and you haven’t.”</p><p data-block-key=\"7ks3k\">The deputy allowed a nearby reporter from Unicorn Riot to take her equipment, saying that he didn’t want to break it.</p><p data-block-key=\"92u7r\">A public information officer for the Pima County Sheriff’s Department confirmed to the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that Reznick was charged with criminal trespass, as were 25 demonstrators.</p><p data-block-key=\"31kls\">“That journalist was arrested in the same fashion as the demonstrators,” the officer said. “They were on private property, they were requested to leave and they failed to comply.”</p><p data-block-key=\"7ujj0\">Neither Reznick nor KJZZ was immediately available for comment. Michel Marizco, senior editor of KJZZ's Fronteras Desk, told The Arizona Republic that Reznick was released after several hours and was in “strong spirits.”</p><p data-block-key=\"3rhho\">“We are continuing to seek clarity from the sheriff’s department on the circumstances of this incident where a clearly identified journalist was in the course of reporting the news," Marizco said.</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
"teaser_image": "https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/Reznick.2e16d0ba.fill-1330x880.jpg",
"primary_video": null,
"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"05tnr\">KJZZ senior field correspondent Alisa Reznick was arrested for criminal trespass on Nov. 30, 2023, while reporting on a pro-Palestinian protest at a University of Arizona satellite campus in Tucson.</p>",
"arresting_authority": "Pima County Sheriff's Department",
"arrest_status": "arrested and released",
"release_date": "2023-11-30",
"detention_date": "2023-11-30",
"unnecessary_use_of_force": false,
"case_number": null,
"case_type": null,
"status_of_seized_equipment": null,
"is_search_warrant_obtained": false,
"actor": null,
"border_point": null,
"target_us_citizenship_status": null,
"denial_of_entry": false,
"stopped_previously": false,
"did_authorities_ask_for_device_access": null,
"did_authorities_ask_about_work": null,
"assailant": null,
"was_journalist_targeted": null,
"charged_under_espionage_act": false,
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"name_of_business": null,
"third_party_business": null,
"legal_order_venue": null,
"status_of_prior_restraint": null,
"mistakenly_released_materials": false,
"links": [],
"equipment_seized": [],
"equipment_broken": [],
"state": {
"name": "Arizona",
"abbreviation": "AZ"
},
"updates": [
"(2023-12-21 15:09:00+00:00) Charges dropped against radio reporter arrested at Tucson protest"
],
"case_statuses": [],
"workers_whose_communications_were_obtained": [],
"target_nationality": [],
"targeted_institutions": [],
"tags": [
"Israel-Gaza war",
"protest"
],
"politicians_or_public_figures_involved": [],
"authors": [],
"categories": [
"Arrest/Criminal Charge"
],
"targeted_journalists": [
"Alisa Reznick (KJZZ)"
],
"subpoena_statuses": null,
"type_of_denial": []
},
{
"title": "Colorado reporter ignores order to return, destroy legally obtained court filings",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/colorado-reporter-ignores-order-to-return-destroy-legally-obtained-court-filings/",
"first_published_at": "2023-12-12T19:52:10.707685Z",
"last_published_at": "2023-12-12T19:52:10.707685Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2023-12-12T19:52:10.577887Z",
"date": "2023-11-30",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Denver",
"longitude": -104.9847,
"latitude": 39.73915,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"8qae1\">BusinessDen reporter Justin Wingerter, who covers courts and white-collar crime for the local business news site, was ordered on Nov. 30, 2023, to return or delete all copies of legal filings he had obtained from a court in Denver, Colorado. He ignored the order and on Dec. 4 <a href=\"https://businessden.com/2023/12/04/seven-years-after-21m-sale-founders-of-sports-recruiting-startup-sue-buyer/\">published</a> an article with details about the underlying case containing information he obtained from the court filings.</p><p data-block-key=\"8492v\">Wingerter told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that he had been reviewing recently filed lawsuits on Nov. 28 when he noticed something unusual: a <a href=\"https://businessden.com/2023/12/04/seven-years-after-21m-sale-founders-of-sports-recruiting-startup-sue-buyer/\">civil case</a> with a pending motion for it to be “suppressed,” more commonly referred to as sealed. He then requested records from the case.</p><p data-block-key=\"29vbg\">“I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to get the documents,” Wingerter said. “The nature of a records request is you don’t know exactly what you’re going to get back, but you make the request because you’d rather be told ‘no’ than to not file it at all.”</p><p data-block-key=\"8aedt\">A clerk of the court later called to notify him that the request had been granted, and, after paying 25 cents per page over the phone, Wingerter received the files via email the following morning, Nov. 29.</p><p data-block-key=\"64fd\">That same evening, however, District Judge Kandace Cecilia Gerdes granted the plaintiff’s motion to suppress. When Gerdes learned that Wingerter had obtained the records before they were sealed, she <a href=\"https://coloradofoic.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Order.pdf\">issued a second order</a> on Nov. 30 that read:</p></div>\n<div class=\"block-blockquote\">\n\n<blockquote class=\"blockquote\" >\n\t<div class=\"rich-text\"><p data-block-key=\"5bkre\">“The Court hereby orders that all documents obtained by any media outlet, including by not limited to those obtained by Justin Wingerter of BusinessDen, shall be returned to the Court by hand-delivery, specifically Courtroom 275 … by 4:00 p.m., on November 30, 2023. All electronic copies of said documents shall be permanently deleted from servers as well. Failure to do so will be considered contempt of this Court’s Order.”</p></div>\n\t\n</blockquote>\n</div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"8qae1\">The order further stipulated that any subsequent attempts to access copies of the filings without Gerdes’ written permission would also be considered contempt of court.</p><p data-block-key=\"687u6\">Shortly after the order was issued, Wingerter said the clerk of the court alerted him to the order and told him that he was expected to comply.</p><p data-block-key=\"f8g7v\">Ashley Kissinger, an attorney representing Wingerter and BusinessDen, <a href=\"https://coloradofoic.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/DB6417AD8F7D5.pdf\">filed a motion</a> on Dec. 1 notifying the court that her clients would not be complying and arguing that the order constituted a “classic prior restraint.”</p><p data-block-key=\"7gojf\">“Mr. Wingerter obtained access to these court records simply by asking the Court for them. He submitted an open records request to the Court through an online form,” Kissinger wrote. “This is ordinary, lawful, newsgathering activity.”</p><p data-block-key=\"f42qa\">Wingerter told the Tracker that, after discussing it internally, BusinessDen decided to push ahead with his coverage.</p><p data-block-key=\"b8vbg\">“We don’t feel that the judge has the power of prior restraint,” Wingerter said. “So we didn’t see any reason to stop the reporting process. We just continued doing our jobs.”</p><p data-block-key=\"3s2e6\">The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press and a coalition of Colorado media organizations sent a letter on Dec. 11 to Gerdes in support of Kissinger’s motion.</p><p data-block-key=\"1nac3\">“Because each minute an unconstitutional prior restraint remains in place constitutes a separate and distinct First Amendment violation causing ‘irreparable harm’ to BusinessDen and its readers, we urge the Court to lift its prior restraint order immediately,” the letter read.</p><p data-block-key=\"e0n0i\">Kissinger told the Tracker that nothing has been filed in the case since, but that she believes the parties to the underlying case have until Dec. 22 to respond to her motion to vacate the prior restraint.</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
"teaser_image": "https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/Wingerter.2e16d0ba.fill-1330x880.png",
"primary_video": null,
"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"9bwwn\">A portion of the Nov. 30, 2023, court order requiring BusinessDen reporter Justin Wingerter to return or permanently delete filings he legally obtained through a records request. His attorney asserts the order is “a classic prior restraint.”</p>",
"arresting_authority": null,
"arrest_status": null,
"release_date": null,
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"unnecessary_use_of_force": false,
"case_number": null,
"case_type": null,
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"actor": null,
"border_point": null,
"target_us_citizenship_status": null,
"denial_of_entry": false,
"stopped_previously": false,
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"did_authorities_ask_about_work": null,
"assailant": null,
"was_journalist_targeted": null,
"charged_under_espionage_act": false,
"subpoena_type": null,
"name_of_business": null,
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"legal_order_venue": null,
"status_of_prior_restraint": "ignored",
"mistakenly_released_materials": true,
"links": [],
"equipment_seized": [],
"equipment_broken": [],
"state": {
"name": "Colorado",
"abbreviation": "CO"
},
"updates": [],
"case_statuses": [],
"workers_whose_communications_were_obtained": [],
"target_nationality": [],
"targeted_institutions": [],
"tags": [],
"politicians_or_public_figures_involved": [],
"authors": [],
"categories": [
"Prior Restraint"
],
"targeted_journalists": [
"Justin Wingerter (BusinessDen)"
],
"subpoena_statuses": null,
"type_of_denial": []
},
{
"title": "California journalist barred from press conference with district attorney",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/california-journalist-barred-from-press-conference-with-district-attorney/",
"first_published_at": "2023-12-13T22:28:17.348484Z",
"last_published_at": "2023-12-14T18:55:39.462192Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2023-12-14T18:55:39.301641Z",
"date": "2023-11-29",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Berkeley",
"longitude": -122.27275,
"latitude": 37.87159,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"uyhqm\">Journalist Emilie Raguso, who operates the crime and safety news site The Berkeley Scanner, was barred from attending a press conference on Nov. 29, 2023, with Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price. Three days later, the DA’s office announced that Raguso’s exclusion from the media list was an “oversight” and that she was “welcome” at future press events.</p><p data-block-key=\"5dauu\">Raguso told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that though she launched The Scanner in 2022, she has covered crime and courts for more than a decade. But after she published an article in January including criticisms of Price, her office made it clear that it was displeased with Raguso’s coverage.</p><p data-block-key=\"4b08\">Raguso said that she was one of the few journalists who attended Price’s first press conference in March, and that everything had seemed to go normally.</p><p data-block-key=\"8mkij\">“Afterward, people started getting in touch with me, saying, ‘She wanted to throw you out of that press conference,’” Raguso said, adding that she believed it was because of her prior reporting. “Fortunately some people who worked for her at the time were able to convince her that that was not appropriate.”</p><p data-block-key=\"5ko18\">Throughout the summer, Raguso said she was <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/california-journalist-restored-to-district-attorneys-media-list\">removed from the DA’s media list</a> multiple times, but was readded when she raised the issue. In October, she was told that the list — and her request to be included — was under review.</p><p data-block-key=\"7fut0\">When Raguso learned from other journalists that Price was to hold a press conference on the morning of Nov. 29, she planned to attend.</p><p data-block-key=\"bf270\">“I thought there was a possibility they wouldn’t let me in, but I didn’t think it was a strong possibility because they don’t have a legal reason to do that,” Raguso said.</p><p data-block-key=\"580c4\">When Raguso arrived at the press conference, she was barred at the door due to unspecified “safety issues.” Raguso said that two individuals from the DA’s office recognized her as press but said that her credentials provided by the Oakland Police Department were insufficient. She added that nearly half a dozen other journalists were allowed in that day without being asked to show their credentials, and some without even signing a check-in sheet.</p></div>\n<div class=\"block-tweet\"><div class=\"tweet-embed\">\n <div>\n <blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">I was just turned away from an announced press conference with elected <a href=\"https://twitter.com/AlamedaCountyDA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@AlamedaCountyDA</a> Pamela Price. Every other member of the media who came was let in without any checking of credentials. <a href=\"https://twitter.com/FACoalition?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@FACoalition</a> <a href=\"https://twitter.com/rcfp?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@rcfp</a> <a href=\"https://twitter.com/SPJ_NorCal?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@SPJ_NorCal</a> <a href=\"https://t.co/GInIcGHlpM\">pic.twitter.com/GInIcGHlpM</a></p>— The Berkeley Scanner (@BerkeleyScanner) <a href=\"https://twitter.com/BerkeleyScanner/status/1729941721923121526?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">November 29, 2023</a></blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"></script>\n\n\n</div>\n\n</div>\n</div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"uyhqm\">When Raguso saw Price exiting an elevator, she petitioned the district attorney directly to intervene and allow her to attend the press conference, but Price declined to do so.</p><p data-block-key=\"811si\">A statement released by Price’s office the following day referred to Raguso as an “uninvited person” and The Scanner as simply a “blog.” It also asserted that the employees were enforcing credentialing standards that are “long-standing and predate the election of District Attorney Pamela Price.”</p><p data-block-key=\"80tbd\">Following <a href=\"https://www.berkeleyscanner.com/2023/12/01/editors-desk/pamela-price-alameda-county-das-office-first-amendment/\">public outcry</a> — including a <a href=\"https://firstamendmentcoalition.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/2023-11-30-DA-Price-re-Free-Press.pdf\">letter</a> penned by the First Amendment Coalition — Price’s office on Dec. 2 released a statement that Raguso would be added back to the media list and allowed to attend future press conferences. It said that Raguso’s removal from the media list, as well as that of local news website the Bay City News, had been an “oversight.”</p><p data-block-key=\"d7adv\">The statement also noted that Price would be leading an effort to establish new media guidelines, saying that “this critical work is long overdue.” Price’s office did not respond to an emailed request for comment.</p><p data-block-key=\"299f\">Raguso told the Tracker that the main concern now is how the DA’s office will handle other reporters’ access moving forward. “Will people need to provide a credential? Or will people need to be on your email list to come to your press events? I asked that and they haven’t answered,” Raguso said.</p><p data-block-key=\"9j95i\">She added that she thinks the DA’s office could retaliate against her in this way because the Scanner is a one-person operation.</p><p data-block-key=\"3bifi\">“But they didn’t realize that there are so many people in the journalism world and in the First Amendment world and in the broader community who believe strongly in the First Amendment,” Raguso said, “and who understand that the government does not get to define and decide who gets to report the news.”</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
"teaser_image": "https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/Raguso_2.2e16d0ba.fill-1330x880.jpg",
"primary_video": null,
"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"qp10m\">Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price's office barred journalist Emilie Raguso from her Nov. 29, 2023, press conference citing “security concerns.” Price later announced that Raguso could attend future press events.</p>",
"arresting_authority": null,
"arrest_status": null,
"release_date": null,
"detention_date": null,
"unnecessary_use_of_force": false,
"case_number": null,
"case_type": null,
"status_of_seized_equipment": null,
"is_search_warrant_obtained": false,
"actor": null,
"border_point": null,
"target_us_citizenship_status": null,
"denial_of_entry": false,
"stopped_previously": false,
"did_authorities_ask_for_device_access": null,
"did_authorities_ask_about_work": null,
"assailant": null,
"was_journalist_targeted": null,
"charged_under_espionage_act": false,
"subpoena_type": null,
"name_of_business": null,
"third_party_business": null,
"legal_order_venue": null,
"status_of_prior_restraint": null,
"mistakenly_released_materials": false,
"links": [],
"equipment_seized": [],
"equipment_broken": [],
"state": {
"name": "California",
"abbreviation": "CA"
},
"updates": [],
"case_statuses": [],
"workers_whose_communications_were_obtained": [],
"target_nationality": [],
"targeted_institutions": [],
"tags": [],
"politicians_or_public_figures_involved": [
"Law enforcement: Prosecutor"
],
"authors": [],
"categories": [
"Denial of Access"
],
"targeted_journalists": [
"Emilie Raguso (The Berkeley Scanner)"
],
"subpoena_statuses": null,
"type_of_denial": [
"Government event"
]
},
{
"title": "Illinois watchdog blog subpoenaed in defamation case; subpoena later withdrawn",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/illinois-watchdog-blog-subpoenaed-in-defamation-case-subpoena-later-withdrawn/",
"first_published_at": "2023-12-21T16:14:03.699999Z",
"last_published_at": "2023-12-21T16:14:03.699999Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2023-12-21T16:14:03.612171Z",
"date": "2023-11-28",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Belleville",
"longitude": -89.98399,
"latitude": 38.52005,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"fea2v\">Illinois-based blog Edgar County Watchdogs was subpoenaed on Nov. 28, 2023, for testimony and communications about the parties to a civil defamation case, but the subpoena was subsequently withdrawn on Dec. 20.</p><p data-block-key=\"2ovut\">The <a href=\"https://edgarcountywatchdogs.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/20231213_120925.pdf\">subpoena</a> had been filed with the 20th Circuit Court in St. Clair County by Gerard Scott Jr., the plaintiff in the defamation case. It ordered a representative from the Edgar County Watchdogs, which is based in St. Clair County outside St. Louis, to testify on Jan. 3, 2024, and to bring all written correspondence related to the suit to the hearing.</p><p data-block-key=\"9v31s\">Edgar County Watchdogs <a href=\"https://edgarcountywatchdogs.com/2023/12/county-board-member-sued-foia-requester-wants-names-of-village-trustees-who-provided-information/\">reported</a> that Scott, a Village of Caseyville employee and St. Clair County board member, filed the suit against researcher and blogger Bradley VanHoose.</p><p data-block-key=\"a233f\">VanHoose had sought information about an invoice paid by the village for an automobile repair via Freedom of Information Act requests and by asking questions of local officials. VanHoose later informed Edgar County Watchdogs that he believed an employee of the village had used taxpayer funds for repairs on a privately owned vehicle, according to the blog.</p><p data-block-key=\"akrkh\">Edgar County Watchdogs co-founder and reporter John Kraft initially told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that it would seek to quash the subpoena under the <a href=\"https://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ilcs/ilcs4.asp?DocName=073500050HArt%2E+VIII+Pt%2E+9&ActID=2017&ChapterID=56&SeqStart=57600000&SeqEnd=58600000\">Illinois Reporter’s Privilege Act</a>, which <a href=\"https://www.rcfp.org/privilege-compendium/illinois/#:~:text=The%20Illinois%20Reporter's%20Privilege%20Statute,either%20that%20%E2%80%9Cdisclosure%20of%20the\">protects</a> reporters’ sources from compelled disclosure.</p><p data-block-key=\"cg7qu\">Before that motion could be filed, the two parties agreed that the subpoena would be withdrawn, Kraft and the plaintiff’s attorney, Douglas Stewart, told the Tracker. Stewart, in an email to Kraft, wrote, “I believe that the information that I seek is readily available from others.”</p><p data-block-key=\"8cmrc\">The subpoena was withdrawn during a Dec. 20 hearing, the blog reported.</p><p data-block-key=\"6r1ci\">The Tracker has documented <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/?search=%22edgar%20county%20watchdogs%22%20subpoena\">multiple other subpoenas</a> against Edgar County Watchdogs, most recently in 2020.</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
"teaser_image": "https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/Edgar_County_Watchdogs_subpoena.2e16d0ba.fill-1330x880.png",
"primary_video": null,
"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"e5lu3\">A portion of the subpoena demanding Edgar County Watchdogs’ communications and testimony related to a civil defamation case.</p>",
"arresting_authority": null,
"arrest_status": null,
"release_date": null,
"detention_date": null,
"unnecessary_use_of_force": false,
"case_number": null,
"case_type": null,
"status_of_seized_equipment": null,
"is_search_warrant_obtained": false,
"actor": null,
"border_point": null,
"target_us_citizenship_status": null,
"denial_of_entry": false,
"stopped_previously": false,
"did_authorities_ask_for_device_access": null,
"did_authorities_ask_about_work": null,
"assailant": null,
"was_journalist_targeted": null,
"charged_under_espionage_act": false,
"subpoena_type": null,
"name_of_business": null,
"third_party_business": null,
"legal_order_venue": "State",
"status_of_prior_restraint": null,
"mistakenly_released_materials": false,
"links": [],
"equipment_seized": [],
"equipment_broken": [],
"state": {
"name": "Illinois",
"abbreviation": "IL"
},
"updates": [],
"case_statuses": [],
"workers_whose_communications_were_obtained": [],
"target_nationality": [],
"targeted_institutions": [
"Edgar County Watchdogs"
],
"tags": [],
"politicians_or_public_figures_involved": [],
"authors": [],
"categories": [
"Subpoena/Legal Order"
],
"targeted_journalists": [],
"subpoena_statuses": null,
"type_of_denial": []
},
{
"title": "California newsroom, free speech group get $500,000 in public records lawsuit",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/california-newsroom-free-speech-group-get-500000-in-public-records-lawsuit/",
"first_published_at": "2024-03-13T13:48:36.743223Z",
"last_published_at": "2024-03-13T13:48:36.743223Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2024-03-13T13:42:27.738726Z",
"date": "2023-11-28",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "San Jose",
"longitude": -121.89496,
"latitude": 37.33939,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"rbzsk\">The San Jose City Council approved a $500,000 payment to the San José Spotlight and the First Amendment Coalition on Nov. 28, 2023, following their public records lawsuit against the California city and former Mayor Sam Liccardo.</p><p data-block-key=\"5pogo\">The Spotlight, a nonprofit newsroom, <a href=\"https://firstamendmentcoalition.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/San-Jose-Spotlight-FAC-v.-San-Jose-Verified-Petition-for-Writ-of-Mandate-2.3.22.pdf\">filed the lawsuit</a> on Feb. 3, 2022, alleging that the state’s Public Records Act was violated when Liccardo used private emails and text messages for city business in order to shield the communications from disclosure, and the city improperly searched the records. The lawsuit said it sought to enforce the public’s right of access to communications sent or received on nongovernmental devices.</p><p data-block-key=\"8n7b7\">In July 2023, Santa Clara Superior Court Judge Thomas Kuhnle ordered the city to release hundreds of pages of improperly withheld records, the Spotlight <a href=\"https://sanjosespotlight.com/ex-san-jose-mayor-sam-liccardo-and-city-violated-the-law-judge-rules-california-public-records-act/\">reported</a>. The following month, Kuhnle ruled that Liccardo and the city had violated transparency laws by failing to provide details about how they attempted to locate and search Liccardo’s private communications.</p><p data-block-key=\"40l25\">The financial award is the result of mandated fee-shifting under California’s records act — wherein the “prevailing party” is reimbursed for its legal costs. The Spotlight <a href=\"https://sanjosespotlight.com/san-jose-approves-hefty-pay-out-for-california-public-records-lawsuit/\">reported</a> that the San Jose City Council unanimously authorized the $500,000 payment for attorneys fees for the news outlet and nonprofit at the meeting in November.</p><p data-block-key=\"9j16h\">In a statement to the news outlet, Liccardo expressed dissatisfaction with the agreement and said that the money would “incentivize lawyers to continue trolling ‘gotcha’ public records lawsuits.”</p><p data-block-key=\"7lf5v\">Karl Olson, an attorney representing the Spotlight, <a href=\"https://sanjosespotlight.com/san-jose-to-pay-six-figures-after-losing-public-records-lawsuit/\">told the outlet</a>, “We think this was a hard fought victory that helped vindicate the public’s right to know, and we hope in the future it won’t be necessary for parties to have to go to court to get public records.”</p><p data-block-key=\"7d063\">Spotlight co-founder and CEO Ramona Giwargis told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that it’s community members, not the public officials, who are paying the price.</p><p data-block-key=\"ckgq0\">“I heard from a lot of residents later saying that this is unfair. Taxpayers are on the hook now for half a million dollars because city officials didn’t follow the law,” Giwargis said. “Even though they keep getting sued it doesn’t stop or change anything. For the city, it’s just a blip on the radar.”</p><p data-block-key=\"7efih\">Giwargis said that the Spotlight has since worked with State Sen. Dave Cortese to <a href=\"https://sd15.senate.ca.gov/news/senator-cortese-announces-bill-boost-transparency-public-records\">draft a bill</a>, proposed in January 2024, to improve transparency and provide structure for complying with the California Public Records Act.</p><p data-block-key=\"57tju\">“We need to put more teeth into these policies so that there is some kind of repercussion that actually makes a difference,” Giwargis said.</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
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"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"3p0io\">San José Spotlight Senior Reporter Joseph Geha, at left, interviews Mayor Matt Mahan in 2023. The Spotlight was awarded $500,000 in November following its victory in a public records lawsuit involving a former mayor’s communications.</p>",
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"state": {
"name": "California",
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"settled"
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"San José Spotlight"
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"public records"
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"Other Incident"
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{
"title": "Reporter subpoenaed for testimony in Title IX lawsuit",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/reporter-subpoenaed-for-testimony-in-title-ix-lawsuit/",
"first_published_at": "2024-01-05T17:53:06.176220Z",
"last_published_at": "2024-02-08T22:11:02.207674Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2024-02-08T22:11:02.023953Z",
"date": "2023-11-22",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Sacramento",
"longitude": -121.4944,
"latitude": 38.58157,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"ezj50\">California-based USA Today reporter Kenneth “Kenny” Jacoby was subpoenaed on Nov. 22, 2023, to testify in connection with an ongoing lawsuit against multiple Louisiana universities. Jacoby was served a separate subpoena in October for documents and source communications, which was quashed in December.</p><p data-block-key=\"esq2m\">In a May 2021 <a href=\"https://www.usatoday.com/in-depth/news/investigations/2021/05/26/louisiana-officials-skirted-law-meant-curb-campus-sex-crimes/7048845002/\">article,</a> Jacoby reported that various Louisiana schools and police forces failed to share relevant information with each other after multiple women reported the same college student for sexual misconduct.</p><p data-block-key=\"2af6u\">One of the women cited in Jacoby’s reporting filed a lawsuit against two university systems and a local government in May 2022, alleging negligence and violations of her rights under Title IX. According to the <a href=\"https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.lamd.60517/gov.uscourts.lamd.60517.1.0.pdf\">complaint</a>, the woman — identified only as Jane Doe to protect her identity — learned from Jacoby’s article that the universities had been aware of her assailant’s history of sexual misconduct before the attack against her.</p><p data-block-key=\"af51e\">The board of supervisors of the University of Louisiana System initially issued Jacoby a <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/subpoena-quashed-for-reporters-communications-as-part-of-title-ix-lawsuit\">sweeping document subpoena</a>, which listed 28 requests for his communications, reporting materials and unpublished work product around the article. It was subsequently limited to just his texts with Doe and notes from their conversations, as well as an affidavit authenticating and contextualizing them.</p><p data-block-key=\"dgt80\">The university system argued that the communications would prove that Doe had learned the material facts underlying her allegations earlier than she claimed and had missed the statute of limitations to file the lawsuit.</p><p data-block-key=\"9nikv\">Though that subpoena was ultimately quashed on Dec. 21, the university system issued a <a href=\"https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.caed.438351/gov.uscourts.caed.438351.1.1.pdf\">second subpoena</a> on Nov. 22 for Jacoby to testify concerning his communications with Doe (the subpoena was reissued just over a week later changing the time of the deposition).</p><p data-block-key=\"2mpp8\">Jacoby <a href=\"https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.caed.438351/gov.uscourts.caed.438351.1.0.pdf\">filed a request</a> for a protective order on Dec. 6 requesting that the court ensure he is not compelled to testify. When contacted by the Tracker, Jacoby declined to comment further until the matter is resolved.</p></div>",
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"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"yxh5q\">A portion of the subpoena issued to USA Today reporter Kenneth “Kenny” Jacoby on Nov. 22, 2023, ordering him to testify in connection with a negligence lawsuit against the University of Louisiana System.</p>",
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"links": [],
"equipment_seized": [],
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"state": {
"name": "California",
"abbreviation": "CA"
},
"updates": [
"(2024-02-01 00:00:00+00:00) Subpoena for California reporter’s testimony quashed"
],
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"categories": [
"Subpoena/Legal Order"
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"Kenneth “Kenny” Jacoby (USA Today)"
],
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},
{
"title": "St. Louis TV reporter shot with pellet gun, suspect arrested",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/st-louis-tv-reporter-shot-with-pellet-gun-suspect-arrested/",
"first_published_at": "2023-11-27T19:48:10.124216Z",
"last_published_at": "2023-11-27T19:48:10.124216Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2023-11-27T19:39:17.066458Z",
"date": "2023-11-20",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "St. Louis",
"longitude": -90.19789,
"latitude": 38.62727,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"d38w2\">KTVI-TV reporter Andy Banker was shot by a pellet gun while reporting in St. Louis, Missouri, on Nov. 20, 2023. Banker was not seriously injured and a suspect has since been arrested on charges of assault.</p><p data-block-key=\"6g39o\">Banker reported for <a href=\"https://fox2now.com/news/missouri/fox-2-reporter-photographer-victims-of-pellet-gun-drive-by/\">KTVI</a> that he was standing on a residential street in South St. Louis at around 12:45 p.m., using his phone to send an email, when a car drove past.</p><p data-block-key=\"ekjpa\">“Photographer Brian Ledford and I first heard the rapid fire, then saw what appeared to be gel-blaster-style guns made for airsoft games,” he said. “There were male teens firing pellets directly at us from the front and rear passenger seats.”</p></div>\n<div class=\"block-tweet\"><div class=\"tweet-embed\">\n <div>\n <blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Only on <a href=\"https://twitter.com/FOX2now?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@FOX2now</a> new at 9: frightening video ... we come "under fire" today ... it turns out to be from pellet guns, I was shot in the head, not seriously hurt. <a href=\"https://twitter.com/slmp?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@slmp</a> looking for suspects, have plate number. Past victims say someone will eventually shoot back & not w pellets <a href=\"https://t.co/gMD7rTLSSo\">pic.twitter.com/gMD7rTLSSo</a></p>— Andy Banker (@andybankertv) <a href=\"https://twitter.com/andybankertv/status/1726773046600519724?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">November 21, 2023</a></blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"></script>\n\n</div>\n\n</div>\n</div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"d38w2\">Banker said that the pellets struck him in the head and torso, but that he was not seriously injured. <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/st-louis-news-crew-shot-at-with-pellet-guns-suspect-arrested\">Ledford</a> was not struck.</p><p data-block-key=\"e027b\">“I felt something hit me in the side of my head, near my ear, and it hurt quite a bit,” Banker said in an <a href=\"https://www.audacy.com/podcast/mark-reardon-show-c052a/episodes/how-ai-could-change-the-economy-eacb0\">interview with KTFK-FM</a>. “I bent over and checked to see if I was bleeding, I didn’t know what happened.”</p><p data-block-key=\"cchj5\">In a <a href=\"https://www.facebook.com/AndyBankerFOX2/posts/pfbid0qJiYwBq1ixHPnQ77U8h6Up4hr75KGoKEsLLjVCJYjBhYkUy5tzx4boKDJ1j5gaQVl?__cft__[0]=AZVx2Nm-OqxpQ2xkx3aDVoSQfK597QqNBKhtzWPtIX02ISOuLKx_u-xsNr-bCiGWzwHY1wx3y038xJTQHm3OMcG0Mup9ruiOFVXPv1r3pRonW8nprZiUqUhA2CSSqgjqomAHPoiQRLFjj4-0blwvnubnHN2X71nC4-OqblQiITv38QKEVJF573lHeTsTPavuAV4&__tn__=%2CO%2CP-R\">social media post</a>, Banker called the incident “extremely unnerving.” Neither Banker nor Ledford responded to requests for comment.</p><p data-block-key=\"92gbg\">KTVI <a href=\"https://fox2now.com/news/missouri/police-arrest-suspect-in-pellet-gun-shooting-of-fox-2-crew/\">reported</a> on Nov. 21 that St. Louis Metropolitan Police arrested the alleged driver, a juvenile, and are still searching for the two passengers who are suspected of firing the gel-blaster guns.</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
"teaser_image": "https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/Banker.2e16d0ba.fill-1330x880.png",
"primary_video": null,
"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"phzk4\">Security footage shared by KTVI captured the moment when reporter Andy Banker, standing, at right, and photojournalist Brian Ledford were shot at with pellet guns by multiple individuals in a car while reporting in St. Louis, Missouri, on Nov. 20, 2023.</p>",
"arresting_authority": null,
"arrest_status": null,
"release_date": null,
"detention_date": null,
"unnecessary_use_of_force": false,
"case_number": null,
"case_type": null,
"status_of_seized_equipment": null,
"is_search_warrant_obtained": false,
"actor": null,
"border_point": null,
"target_us_citizenship_status": null,
"denial_of_entry": false,
"stopped_previously": false,
"did_authorities_ask_for_device_access": null,
"did_authorities_ask_about_work": null,
"assailant": "private individual",
"was_journalist_targeted": "yes",
"charged_under_espionage_act": false,
"subpoena_type": null,
"name_of_business": null,
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"links": [],
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"state": {
"name": "Missouri",
"abbreviation": "MO"
},
"updates": [],
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"targeted_institutions": [],
"tags": [
"shot / shot at"
],
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"authors": [],
"categories": [
"Assault"
],
"targeted_journalists": [
"Andy Banker (KTVI)"
],
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"type_of_denial": []
},
{
"title": "St. Louis TV crew shot at with pellet guns, suspect arrested",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/st-louis-tv-crew-shot-at-with-pellet-guns-suspect-arrested/",
"first_published_at": "2023-11-27T19:49:34.756392Z",
"last_published_at": "2023-11-27T19:49:34.756392Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2023-11-27T19:49:34.575311Z",
"date": "2023-11-20",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "St. Louis",
"longitude": -90.19789,
"latitude": 38.62727,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"fwz4y\">KTVI-TV photojournalist Brian Ledford and <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/st-louis-tv-reporter-shot-with-pellet-gun-suspect-arrested\">reporter Andy Banker</a> were shot at with pellet gun munitions while reporting in St. Louis, Missouri, on Nov. 20, 2023. Ledford was not hit, and Banker was not seriously injured. A suspect has since been arrested on charges of assault.</p><p data-block-key=\"3to81\">Banker reported for <a href=\"https://fox2now.com/news/missouri/fox-2-reporter-photographer-victims-of-pellet-gun-drive-by/\">KTVI</a> that he was standing on a residential street in South St. Louis at around 12:45 p.m., using his phone to send an email, when a car drove past.</p><p data-block-key=\"bjoel\">“Photographer Brian Ledford and I first heard the rapid fire, then saw what appeared to be gel-blaster-style guns made for airsoft games,” he said. “There were male teens firing pellets directly at us from the front and rear passenger seats.”</p></div>\n<div class=\"block-tweet\"><div class=\"tweet-embed\">\n <div>\n <blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Only on <a href=\"https://twitter.com/FOX2now?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@FOX2now</a> new at 9: frightening video ... we come "under fire" today ... it turns out to be from pellet guns, I was shot in the head, not seriously hurt. <a href=\"https://twitter.com/slmp?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@slmp</a> looking for suspects, have plate number. Past victims say someone will eventually shoot back & not w pellets <a href=\"https://t.co/gMD7rTLSSo\">pic.twitter.com/gMD7rTLSSo</a></p>— Andy Banker (@andybankertv) <a href=\"https://twitter.com/andybankertv/status/1726773046600519724?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">November 21, 2023</a></blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"></script>\n\n</div>\n\n</div>\n</div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"fwz4y\">In a <a href=\"https://www.facebook.com/AndyBankerFOX2/posts/pfbid0qJiYwBq1ixHPnQ77U8h6Up4hr75KGoKEsLLjVCJYjBhYkUy5tzx4boKDJ1j5gaQVl?__cft__[0]=AZVx2Nm-OqxpQ2xkx3aDVoSQfK597QqNBKhtzWPtIX02ISOuLKx_u-xsNr-bCiGWzwHY1wx3y038xJTQHm3OMcG0Mup9ruiOFVXPv1r3pRonW8nprZiUqUhA2CSSqgjqomAHPoiQRLFjj4-0blwvnubnHN2X71nC4-OqblQiITv38QKEVJF573lHeTsTPavuAV4&__tn__=%2CO%2CP-R\">social media post</a>, Banker called the incident “extremely unnerving,” stating that the pellets struck him in the head and torso.</p><p data-block-key=\"bk9gk\">Neither Banker nor Ledford responded to requests for comment.</p><p data-block-key=\"fatvb\">KTVI <a href=\"https://fox2now.com/news/missouri/police-arrest-suspect-in-pellet-gun-shooting-of-fox-2-crew/\">reported</a> on Nov. 21 that St. Louis Metropolitan Police arrested the alleged driver, a juvenile, and are still searching for the two passengers who are suspected of firing the gel-blaster guns.</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
"teaser_image": "https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/Ledford.2e16d0ba.fill-1330x880.png",
"primary_video": null,
"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"3om3p\">KTVI photojournalist Brian Ledford, left, and reporter Andy Banker were shot at with pellet guns by multiple individuals in a car while reporting in St. Louis, Missouri, on Nov. 20, 2023. One of the suspects in the shooting has since been arrested.</p>",
"arresting_authority": null,
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"release_date": null,
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"assailant": "private individual",
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"state": {
"name": "Missouri",
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},
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"tags": [
"shot / shot at"
],
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"categories": [
"Assault"
],
"targeted_journalists": [
"Brian Ledford (KTVI)"
],
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},
{
"title": "Photojournalist sues City of Cincinnati following arrest at accident scene",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/photojournalist-sues-city-of-cincinnati-following-arrest-at-accident-scene/",
"first_published_at": "2024-11-04T18:47:49.835866Z",
"last_published_at": "2024-11-04T18:47:49.835866Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2024-11-04T18:47:49.736747Z",
"date": "2023-11-19",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Cincinnati",
"longitude": -84.51439,
"latitude": 39.12711,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"nz1ut\">Freelance photojournalist Calvin Andrus was arrested while recording the aftermath of a car accident in Cincinnati, Ohio, in the early hours of Nov. 19, 2023. Charges were later dropped, and Andrus filed a lawsuit against the city and a police sergeant in October 2024.</p><p data-block-key=\"bs2d3\">According to his <a href=\"https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.ohsd.297452/gov.uscourts.ohsd.297452.1.0.pdf\">lawsuit</a>, Andrus was filming the response to a <a href=\"https://www.wcpo.com/news/local-news/cpd-1-dead-after-driver-fleeing-from-traffic-stop-crashes-into-building\">deadly crash</a> using both his cellphone and a body camera, and remained outside the perimeter established by police.</p><p data-block-key=\"fl55\">But a police sergeant approached Andrus and ordered him to leave the scene, explained Steve Goodin, an attorney who represented Andrus in the criminal case. The sergeant ignored the press credentials Andrus was wearing and refused to acknowledge or read a card he carries listing laws protecting the media and the right to film police in public spaces, Goodin added.</p><p data-block-key=\"beh6k\">“They told him he needed to move away, and he couldn't film there,” Goodin told the Tracker. “When he persisted and said, ‘Look, I know I'm allowed to be here,’ they expanded the crime scene by almost two acres — which was absurd. He refused to acknowledge the new crime scene, so they cuffed him and threw him in the back of the cruiser, and we think they forgot about him.”</p><p data-block-key=\"39sc0\">Andrus was held in the cruiser for at least an hour and a half, Goodin said, and suffered a panic attack that required treatment at a hospital. “I think most people, if you're trapped in an enclosed place with your hands cuffed, by yourself, you would start to freak out,” he added.</p><p data-block-key=\"8bbi6\">Andrus was issued a citation that night for obstructing official business, a second-degree misdemeanor; the charge wasn’t formally filed until Nov. 24, according to court records reviewed by the Tracker.</p><p data-block-key=\"3cd19\">Goodin told the Tracker that Andrus continued working while fighting the charge, but “felt like he had a target on his back.”</p><p data-block-key=\"3g79h\">“He would go to crime scenes, and people certainly were aware of the charge pending,” Goodin said. “Police just saying, ‘Hey, you can't be here. We don't want you taping this on this public street’: That's wrong. And I mean both legally wrong and wrong from a public policy standpoint, in our view. And it has — no question — has a chilling effect on everybody, on journalists, just generally.”</p><p data-block-key=\"6ppuf\">After around seven months of failed negotiations and multiple trial dates, Goodin said, he filed a motion to dismiss the charge on June 21. That began to get press attention and an assistant city prosecutor dropped the case four days later.</p><p data-block-key=\"8n667\">“I do want to commend the city at the end of the day for doing the right thing here. I have to applaud the city lawyers for having the tough conversations with police officers and actually dismissing the case,” Goodin told the Tracker. “I wish it hadn't taken so much time and energy, but they eventually did do it.”</p><p data-block-key=\"7flr5\">A separate Andrus attorney, Robert Klinger, filed the federal lawsuit against police Sgt. Kraig Kunz and the city on Andrus’ behalf Oct. 11. The suit alleges false arrest, malicious prosecution, unreasonable seizure and First Amendment retaliation.</p><p data-block-key=\"6el70\">“Mr. Andrus was lawfully exercising these rights as a member of the media when he stood outside of the police line tape and filmed the emergency response,” the lawsuit said. “Mr. Andrus would not have been arrested had he not been engaged in protected First Amendment activity at the scene.”</p><p data-block-key=\"eklh9\">The suit also calls for an injunction against the police to prevent unreasonable expansions of crime scenes to restrict public access or wrongful arrests of journalists.</p><p data-block-key=\"96nt6\">A spokesperson for the Cincinnati Police Department told the Tracker that it does not comment on open litigation.</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
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"primary_video": null,
"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"wfp0e\">Photojournalist Calvin Andrus filmed with a body camera as he attempted to hand an officer a card detailing his rights to document an accident scene in Cincinnati, Ohio, on Nov. 19, 2023. Andrus was arrested and charged with obstructing official business.</p>",
"arresting_authority": "Cincinnati Police Department",
"arrest_status": "arrested and released",
"release_date": null,
"detention_date": "2023-11-19",
"unnecessary_use_of_force": true,
"case_number": "1:24-cv-00572",
"case_type": "CIVIL",
"status_of_seized_equipment": null,
"is_search_warrant_obtained": false,
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"state": {
"name": "Ohio",
"abbreviation": "OH"
},
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"ongoing"
],
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"categories": [
"Arrest/Criminal Charge"
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"targeted_journalists": [
"Calvin Andrus (Freelance)"
],
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},
{
"title": "Boston reporter grabbed from behind while on camera",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/boston-reporter-grabbed-from-behind-while-on-camera/",
"first_published_at": "2023-11-22T20:50:09.682772Z",
"last_published_at": "2023-11-22T20:50:09.682772Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2023-11-22T20:44:09.683578Z",
"date": "2023-11-18",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Boston",
"longitude": -71.05977,
"latitude": 42.35843,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"tj8dv\">WHDH-TV reporter Grant Hermes was grabbed from behind by a passerby while setting up for a live shot outside the TD Garden arena in Boston, Massachusetts, on Nov. 18, 2023.</p><p data-block-key=\"46v3m\">Hermes, who was preparing to report on a hockey game inside the arena, <a href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/Cz0EbfSuUHU/\">shared</a> a video on Instagram of the assault. In the video, a man approaches him from behind as Hermes stands in front of the TV camera, shouts “Yeah, boy! Whoo!” and grabs Hermes around the shoulders. Hermes shakes the man off and chases him out of frame.</p><p data-block-key=\"7stid\">Hermes wrote in a comment that accompanied the video that he and his photographer were fine after the incident. “But I wanna be clear how not ok this is,” he wrote, adding, “The people you see on TV are at work, at a job where people make threats at us regularly. So we don’t know when you yell at us, run into our live shots or grab us, we don’t know what you’re there to do.”</p><p data-block-key=\"1i1rg\">Hermes told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker by email that he didn’t know what the man was going to do next. “Thankfully he just ran off,” Hermes said.</p><p data-block-key=\"jntu\">“Our job can come with inherent dangers because we need to be where the news happens and it’s a privilege to be in those places,” Hermes said. “But a routine live shot isn’t what we should mean when we talk about danger.”</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
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"assailant": "private individual",
"was_journalist_targeted": "yes",
"charged_under_espionage_act": false,
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"links": [],
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"state": {
"name": "Massachusetts",
"abbreviation": "MA"
},
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"target_nationality": [],
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"categories": [
"Assault"
],
"targeted_journalists": [
"Grant Hermes (WHDH-TV)"
],
"subpoena_statuses": null,
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},
{
"title": "Freelance journalist detained while reporting on climate activists",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/freelance-journalist-detained-while-reporting-on-climate-activists/",
"first_published_at": "2023-11-22T21:03:11.987506Z",
"last_published_at": "2023-11-22T21:03:11.987506Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2023-11-22T20:30:55.121518Z",
"date": "2023-11-17",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Washington",
"longitude": -77.03637,
"latitude": 38.89511,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"7v151\">Freelance journalist Will Allen-DuPraw was detained by security at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., while reporting on climate activists at the museum on Nov. 17, 2023.</p><p data-block-key=\"2upoe\">Allen-DuPraw told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that he was on assignment for News2Share, a collective that sells footage to news outlets, to film as two protesters handed out flyers encouraging museum patrons to call on President Joe Biden to declare a climate emergency.</p><p data-block-key=\"1gfui\">Security officers told the protesters they needed to leave after approximately 20 minutes, <a href=\"https://twitter.com/FordFischer/status/1725899309114126453\">Allen-DuPraw</a> said, and he continued to film as one of them refused to immediately leave and was walked out in handcuffs. Shortly after, Allen-DuPraw was handcuffed as well.</p><p data-block-key=\"534cs\">In <a href=\"https://twitter.com/FordFischer/status/1725899296791249342\">footage</a> posted by News2Share co-founder and Editor-in-Chief Ford Fischer, Allen-DuPraw can be heard asking the detained protester whether he had any statements to make as a security officer led him away in handcuffs. As the man begins to answer, one security guard blocks the journalist’s camera while a second begins to place Allen-DuPraw under arrest.</p><p data-block-key=\"a7q4r\">“All of the sudden I was pushed from behind up against a pillar in the museum,” Allen-DuPraw said. “He seemed to be more of an actual police officer, he was wearing a white shirt and had a badge.”</p><p data-block-key=\"29f65\">The National Gallery employs a mix of federal and private security staff and it was unclear which were involved in the detention.</p><p data-block-key=\"dfaqt\">Allen-DuPraw said he identified himself as a journalist and while he wasn’t wearing credentials, he had his National Press Photographers Association identification in his wallet.</p><p data-block-key=\"5su9b\">“Sir, I’m an independent journalist, you cannot put your hands on me, sir,” Allen-DuPraw said. “You have no reason to detain me, I’m on assignment right now recording and exercising my First Amendment rights.”</p></div>\n<div class=\"block-tweet\"><div class=\"tweet-embed\">\n <div>\n <blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">VIDEO THREAD: On Friday, as freelance journalist <a href=\"https://twitter.com/wallendupraw?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@wallendupraw</a> filmed two climate activists and one bystander be handcuffed and detained over flyering in the National Gallery of Art in Washington DC, security handcuffed and detained him as well, apparently for filming. <a href=\"https://t.co/FKBiogCCQD\">pic.twitter.com/FKBiogCCQD</a></p>— Ford Fischer (@FordFischer) <a href=\"https://twitter.com/FordFischer/status/1725899296791249342?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">November 18, 2023</a></blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"></script>\n\n</div>\n\n</div>\n</div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"7v151\">The security officer is heard telling him that he will “come down” with the officers, they’ll identify him and then he can do whatever he wants to do. When Allen-DuPraw asks why he is being detained, the officer does not reply.</p><p data-block-key=\"cmuuc\">The National Gallery of Art did not respond to requests for comment.</p><p data-block-key=\"uja4\">Allen-DuPraw told the Tracker that he was led down to the basement conference room and, once there, he was patted down, his pockets emptied and his photo taken from the front and side by an officer. After approximately 30 minutes, he, the two protesters and the bystander were released without charges.</p><p data-block-key=\"4nflh\">Allen-DuPraw said that it was particularly alarming that — despite identifying himself as a journalist to multiple officers — no effort was made to verify his press credentials. “A lack of training was just evident,” he added.</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
"teaser_image": "https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/Allen-DuPraw.2e16d0ba.fill-1330x880.png",
"primary_video": null,
"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"3m79v\">Freelance journalist Will Allen-DuPraw, center, was detained while on assignment for News2Share documenting climate activists distributing flyers at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., on Nov. 17, 2023.</p>",
"arresting_authority": "National Gallery of Art Protection Services",
"arrest_status": "detained and released without being processed",
"release_date": null,
"detention_date": null,
"unnecessary_use_of_force": false,
"case_number": null,
"case_type": null,
"status_of_seized_equipment": null,
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"actor": null,
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"denial_of_entry": false,
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"assailant": "private security",
"was_journalist_targeted": "yes",
"charged_under_espionage_act": false,
"subpoena_type": null,
"name_of_business": null,
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"links": [],
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"state": {
"name": "District of Columbia",
"abbreviation": "DC"
},
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"tags": [
"environmentalism",
"protest"
],
"politicians_or_public_figures_involved": [],
"authors": [],
"categories": [
"Arrest/Criminal Charge",
"Assault"
],
"targeted_journalists": [
"Will Allen-DuPraw (News2Share)"
],
"subpoena_statuses": null,
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},
{
"title": "Freelancer tear-gassed, shoved while reporting on Atlanta forest protest",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/freelancer-tear-gassed-shoved-while-reporting-on-atlanta-forest-protest/",
"first_published_at": "2023-11-20T17:13:45.901450Z",
"last_published_at": "2023-11-20T17:13:45.901450Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2023-11-20T16:37:19.616094Z",
"date": "2023-11-13",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Atlanta",
"longitude": -84.38798,
"latitude": 33.749,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"y0n6i\">Freelance journalist Carlos Berríos Polanco was tear-gassed and pushed by police while documenting a demonstration against the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center on Nov. 13, 2023.</p><p data-block-key=\"bc7r3\">Berríos Polanco told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that approximately 500 protesters had gathered in Gresham Park for a “Block Cop City” protest march to the construction site for the center in a forest southeast of Atlanta.</p></div>\n<div class=\"block-tweet\"><div class=\"tweet-embed\">\n <div>\n <blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">(2/x) Activists gathered in Gresham Park early in the morning carrying puppets, signs, banners, trees, and gardening tools. The intention was to peacefully march to the site, occupy it, and plant trees there in hopes of reforesting. Before marching, multiple speakers addressed... <a href=\"https://t.co/aRSjPO31HJ\">pic.twitter.com/aRSjPO31HJ</a></p>— carlos (vibe describer) (@Vaquero2XL) <a href=\"https://twitter.com/Vaquero2XL/status/1724556250682106290?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">November 14, 2023</a></blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"></script>\n\n</div>\n\n</div>\n</div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"y0n6i\">As the marchers moved onto Constitution Road, they were met by approximately 70 law enforcement officers and dozens of police vehicles, Berríos Polanco said. When officers launched the first tear gas canister, it landed at the feet of a group of at least 30 journalists — including Berríos Polanco — who were standing ahead of the march.</p><p data-block-key=\"3dsea\">“I think it was purposefully sent toward this group of journalists,” he told the Tracker.</p><p data-block-key=\"41d4s\">Berríos Polanco said that the group was divided amid the resulting chaos, and he and approximately 10 other journalists were separated from the march. When they attempted to return, he said that DeKalb County Police and Georgia State Patrol officers stopped them under threat of arrest, stating that it was an “active crime scene.”</p><p data-block-key=\"8tdav\">“It was a very funny example of police just flying by the seat of their pants,” Berríos Polanco said. “One Georgia State Patrol officer told us to keep moving back while another one told us to keep moving forward. And at the exact same time, one had their hand aimed down the road and one had their hand aimed up the road.”</p><p data-block-key=\"816rd\">As he attempted to comply with the orders, Berríos Polanco said that an officer placed a hand on his backpack and pushed him in an apparent attempt to make him move faster. Berríos said that he and the other journalists were eventually allowed to move back toward the march and protesters ultimately returned to Gresham Park.</p></div>\n<div class=\"block-tweet\"><div class=\"tweet-embed\">\n <div>\n <blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">(7/x) continually threatened with arrest if we didn't obey, even though we were doing our jobs and also standing on public property. We were eventually allowed back towards the march and stood in a gap between activists and police. <a href=\"https://t.co/PtsnpNaeE5\">pic.twitter.com/PtsnpNaeE5</a></p>— carlos (vibe describer) (@Vaquero2XL) <a href=\"https://twitter.com/Vaquero2XL/status/1724556271926325664?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">November 14, 2023</a></blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"></script>\n\n</div>\n\n</div>\n</div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"y0n6i\">Berríos Polanco told the Tracker he believes the incident was emblematic of how law enforcement officers have treated the journalists covering protests against the training center as though they were themselves activists.</p><p data-block-key=\"4d0rm\">“Even mainstream media outlets were shuffled off,” Berríos Polanco said. “Even Atlanta Journal-Constitution, one of the biggest outlets here, was not allowed to return to the march.”</p><p data-block-key=\"du0hu\">The DeKalb County Police Department acknowledged the Tracker’s request for comment via email, but did not provide a response. The Georgia Patrol did not respond to requests for comment.</p></div>",
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"assailant": "law enforcement",
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"state": {
"name": "Georgia",
"abbreviation": "GA"
},
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"tags": [
"chemical irritant",
"environmentalism",
"protest"
],
"politicians_or_public_figures_involved": [],
"authors": [],
"categories": [
"Assault"
],
"targeted_journalists": [
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{
"title": "Czech TV reporter, cameraman robbed at gunpoint in San Francisco",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/czech-tv-reporter-cameraman-robbed-at-gunpoint-in-san-francisco/",
"first_published_at": "2023-11-20T21:30:28.746156Z",
"last_published_at": "2023-11-20T21:30:28.746156Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2023-11-20T21:30:24.861796Z",
"date": "2023-11-12",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "San Francisco",
"longitude": -122.41942,
"latitude": 37.77493,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"7c9hi\">A Česká Televize (Czech Television) reporter and photojournalist were robbed at gunpoint while filming a report in San Francisco, California, on Nov. 12, 2023.</p><p data-block-key=\"2t8v1\">Correspondent Bohumil Vostal told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker via email that he and <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/czech-tv-cameraman-reporter-robbed-at-gunpoint-in-san-francisco\">photographer Milan Nosek</a> were recording across the street from City Lights Bookstore in the city’s North Beach neighborhood. Shortly before 5 p.m., three masked men got out of a car with weapons drawn and ordered them to hand over their equipment.</p><p data-block-key=\"1vaav\">“One of them told me ‘not to make any problems’ or something like that,” Vostal said. “It was all so shocking we could not even react.”</p><p data-block-key=\"d290l\">Vostal said more than $19,000 of equipment was lost, including the crew’s video camera, a GoPro, multiple camera lenses, external batteries, SD cards, microphones and tripods.</p><p data-block-key=\"cf3o6\">“The worst is we lost material we filmed about San Francisco,” Vostal said. Footage from a tour around the city and interviews with a representative of the Transgender District and a gallery owner were lost.</p><p data-block-key=\"crai8\">The journalists quickly called the police and filed a report, but were forced to purchase replacement equipment in order to refilm and to cover the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit taking place in San Francisco at that time. Vostal told the Tracker the experience did impact how they approached their reporting.</p><p data-block-key=\"db4sh\">“We were concerned about our safety afterwards and so we made our [live shots] for the Czech TV News Channel only with the police behind us or nearby our hotel,” he said.</p><p data-block-key=\"82vgi\">The San Francisco Police Department <a href=\"https://sfstandard.com/2023/11/13/camera-crew-robbed-san-francisco-city-lights/\">told the San Francisco Standard</a> that its robbery unit was investigating. SFPD did not respond to a request for additional information.</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
"teaser_image": "https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/Vostal.2e16d0ba.fill-1330x880.jpg",
"primary_video": null,
"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"oqo8m\">Česká Televize (Czech Television) reporter Bohumil Vostal and his cameraman were robbed at gunpoint in San Francisco, California, on Nov. 12, 2023, losing $19,000 in equipment and their footage, including of the Painted Ladies landmark pictured above.</p>",
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"actor": "private individual",
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"assailant": "private individual",
"was_journalist_targeted": "yes",
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"mistakenly_released_materials": false,
"links": [],
"equipment_seized": [],
"equipment_broken": [
{
"quantity": 1,
"equipment": "miscellaneous equipment"
},
{
"quantity": 4,
"equipment": "recording equipment"
}
],
"state": {
"name": "California",
"abbreviation": "CA"
},
"updates": [],
"case_statuses": [],
"workers_whose_communications_were_obtained": [],
"target_nationality": [],
"targeted_institutions": [],
"tags": [
"robbery"
],
"politicians_or_public_figures_involved": [],
"authors": [],
"categories": [
"Assault",
"Equipment Damage"
],
"targeted_journalists": [
"Bohumil Vostal (Česká Televize)"
],
"subpoena_statuses": null,
"type_of_denial": []
},
{
"title": "Czech TV cameraman, reporter robbed at gunpoint in San Francisco",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/czech-tv-cameraman-reporter-robbed-at-gunpoint-in-san-francisco/",
"first_published_at": "2023-11-20T21:30:09.600764Z",
"last_published_at": "2023-11-20T21:30:09.600764Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2023-11-20T21:30:04.684146Z",
"date": "2023-11-12",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "San Francisco",
"longitude": -122.41942,
"latitude": 37.77493,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"cleja\">A Česká Televize (Czech Television) photojournalist and reporter were robbed at gunpoint while filming a report in San Francisco, California, on Nov. 12, 2023.</p><p data-block-key=\"cvi9p\">Photographer Milan Nosek and <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/czech-tv-reporter-cameraman-robbed-at-gunpoint-in-san-francisco\">correspondent Bohumil Vostal</a> were recording shortly before 5 p.m. across the street from City Lights Bookstore in the city’s North Beach neighborhood when three masked men approached them. With weapons drawn, the men ordered the journalists to hand over their equipment, Vostal told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker via email.</p><p data-block-key=\"em0b9\">Vostal said more than $19,000 of equipment was lost, including the crew’s video camera, a GoPro, multiple camera lenses, external batteries, SD cards, microphones and tripods. Footage from a tour around the city and interviews with a representative of the Transgender District and a gallery owner were lost as well.</p><p data-block-key=\"eaacr\">The journalists quickly called the police and filed a report, but were forced to purchase replacement equipment in order to refilm and to cover the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit taking place in San Francisco at that time.</p><p data-block-key=\"dbgbc\">The San Francisco Police Department <a href=\"https://sfstandard.com/2023/11/13/camera-crew-robbed-san-francisco-city-lights/\">told the San Francisco Standard</a> that its robbery unit was investigating. SFPD did not respond to a request for additional information.</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
"teaser_image": "https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/Nosek.2e16d0ba.fill-1330x880.jpg",
"primary_video": null,
"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"7ltwh\">Česká Televize (Czech Television) photographer Milan Nosek and reporter Bohumil Vostal were robbed at gunpoint in San Francisco, California, on Nov. 12, 2023, losing $19,000 in equipment, including the camera he is seen carrying earlier that day.</p>",
"arresting_authority": null,
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"actor": "private individual",
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"assailant": "private individual",
"was_journalist_targeted": "yes",
"charged_under_espionage_act": false,
"subpoena_type": null,
"name_of_business": null,
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"legal_order_venue": null,
"status_of_prior_restraint": null,
"mistakenly_released_materials": false,
"links": [],
"equipment_seized": [],
"equipment_broken": [
{
"quantity": 2,
"equipment": "camera"
},
{
"quantity": 11,
"equipment": "camera equipment"
},
{
"quantity": 2,
"equipment": "camera lens"
},
{
"quantity": 1,
"equipment": "equipment bag"
},
{
"quantity": 3,
"equipment": "external battery"
},
{
"quantity": 1,
"equipment": "miscellaneous equipment"
},
{
"quantity": 2,
"equipment": "storage device"
}
],
"state": {
"name": "California",
"abbreviation": "CA"
},
"updates": [],
"case_statuses": [],
"workers_whose_communications_were_obtained": [],
"target_nationality": [],
"targeted_institutions": [],
"tags": [
"robbery"
],
"politicians_or_public_figures_involved": [],
"authors": [],
"categories": [
"Assault",
"Equipment Damage"
],
"targeted_journalists": [
"Milan Nosek (Česká Televize)"
],
"subpoena_statuses": null,
"type_of_denial": []
},
{
"title": "Independent journalist pushed, arrested at NYC pro-Palestinian march",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/independent-journalist-pushed-arrested-at-nyc-pro-palestinian-march/",
"first_published_at": "2023-12-01T20:53:40.594798Z",
"last_published_at": "2024-03-14T16:17:50.755730Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2024-03-14T16:17:50.638709Z",
"date": "2023-11-11",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "New York",
"longitude": -74.00597,
"latitude": 40.71427,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"pz12y\">Independent journalist Ashoka Jegroo was pushed and arrested by police officers while documenting a pro-Palestinian demonstration in New York City on Nov. 11, 2023.</p><p data-block-key=\"qq5k\">Jegroo told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that as the crowd began to disperse near Grand Central Terminal in midtown Manhattan, some demonstrators noticed a pole with American and United Nations flags and one climbed up to replace them with the Palestinian flag. Police then surrounded the pole, pushing everyone back, and prepared to arrest him once he climbed down.</p><p data-block-key=\"8rdmk\">After the protester was placed in handcuffs, Jegroo and other press and protesters followed as officers led the protester to a police van. In <a href=\"https://twitter.com/AshAgony/status/1723568566425866270\">footage</a> Jegroo posted to social media, an NYPD officer is heard ordering Jegroo to back up and saying that he was pushing the journalist to get him to move.</p><p data-block-key=\"95t09\">“I’m at a reasonable distance,” Jegroo replies. Moments later, multiple officers appear to form a line forcing everyone back, and Jegroo is pushed again as officers order the crowd to get on the sidewalk.</p><p data-block-key=\"4pfj2\">Jegroo asks, “Why are you touching me?” Seconds later, he too is arrested.</p></div>\n<div class=\"block-tweet\"><div class=\"tweet-embed\">\n <div>\n <blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\"><a href=\"https://twitter.com/hashtag/FreePalestine?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#FreePalestine</a> protesters marched in Midtown Manhattan last nite.<br><br>As I was recording NYPD arrest a protester, cops began pushing folks. You can hear me tell cops “I’m at a reasonable distance.” Then you can hear me complain about being pushed & then you hear the cuffs put on me. <a href=\"https://t.co/d8ME4Aw1WX\">pic.twitter.com/d8ME4Aw1WX</a></p>— Ash J (@AshAgony) <a href=\"https://twitter.com/AshAgony/status/1723568566425866270?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">November 12, 2023</a></blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"></script>\n\n\n</div>\n\n</div>\n</div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"pz12y\">Jegroo told the Tracker that he was held in a cell at NYPD headquarters at One Police Plaza for two to three hours before being released with two citations for disorderly conduct. Both citations were signed by Inspector Frank DiGiacomo, the commanding officer for the department’s Technical Assistance Response Unit.</p><p data-block-key=\"5iva7\">“When I finally was released,” Jegroo said, “the cop who was escorting me out of the precinct and to the door outside, he remarked that, like, ‘Wow, the inspector himself filled out your tickets. That usually never happens, you must have done something. What did you do?’”</p><p data-block-key=\"470l7\">At an initial hearing on Nov. 29, the judge informed Jegroo that police had not properly filed the tickets so he was free to go. Jegroo said that as far as the court records show, the charges against him never happened, but he doesn’t know whether the department could choose to refile them at a later date.</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
"teaser_image": "https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/Jegroo.2e16d0ba.fill-1330x880.jpg",
"primary_video": null,
"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"ufbd7\">Independent journalist Ashoka Jegroo was arrested by New York Police Department officers while reporting on a pro-Palestinian march in Manhattan on Nov. 11, 2023. The two charges of disorderly conduct against him have since been dropped.</p>",
"arresting_authority": "New York City Police Department",
"arrest_status": "arrested and released",
"release_date": "2023-11-11",
"detention_date": "2023-11-11",
"unnecessary_use_of_force": false,
"case_number": null,
"case_type": null,
"status_of_seized_equipment": null,
"is_search_warrant_obtained": false,
"actor": null,
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"target_us_citizenship_status": null,
"denial_of_entry": false,
"stopped_previously": false,
"did_authorities_ask_for_device_access": null,
"did_authorities_ask_about_work": null,
"assailant": "law enforcement",
"was_journalist_targeted": "yes",
"charged_under_espionage_act": false,
"subpoena_type": null,
"name_of_business": null,
"third_party_business": null,
"legal_order_venue": null,
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"links": [],
"equipment_seized": [],
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"state": {
"name": "New York",
"abbreviation": "NY"
},
"updates": [],
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"workers_whose_communications_were_obtained": [],
"target_nationality": [],
"targeted_institutions": [],
"tags": [
"Israel-Gaza war",
"protest"
],
"politicians_or_public_figures_involved": [],
"authors": [],
"categories": [
"Arrest/Criminal Charge",
"Assault"
],
"targeted_journalists": [
"Ashoka Jegroo (Independent)"
],
"subpoena_statuses": null,
"type_of_denial": []
},
{
"title": "Senator calls on Justice Department to investigate news outlets",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/senator-calls-on-justice-department-to-investigate-news-outlets/",
"first_published_at": "2023-11-13T20:28:18.796967Z",
"last_published_at": "2024-03-14T16:11:02.217229Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2024-03-14T16:11:02.138311Z",
"date": "2023-11-09",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Washington",
"longitude": -77.03637,
"latitude": 38.89511,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"oihz0\">Sen. Tom Cotton on Nov. 9, 2023, called for the Justice Department to investigate multiple news outlets for their alleged employment of Hamas-affiliated journalists in the Gaza Strip.</p><p data-block-key=\"7jt9r\">The Arkansas Republican, in a letter to the U.S. attorney general, <a href=\"https://twitter.com/sentomcotton/status/1722994349972095174\">alleged</a> that The Associated Press, CNN, The New York Times and Reuters had employed freelance journalists who had ties to the armed Palestinian militant group and prior knowledge of its Oct. 7 attack against Israel. The senator cited unspecified “reports” as the basis for his accusations, in apparent reference to <a href=\"https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-photographers-attack-200be1ba47361f1c1fc113cdaeb65d04\">since-debunked claims</a> pushed by pro-Israel watchdog group HonestReporting.</p><p data-block-key=\"d190h\">“Providing material support or assistance, including funding, to a terrorist organization such as Hamas is a federal crime,” Cotton wrote. “The Department of Justice must immediately open a national security investigation into these four media outlets to determine whether they or their leadership committed federal crimes by supporting Hamas terrorists.”</p><p data-block-key=\"20a4g\">In <a href=\"https://www.cotton.senate.gov/news/press-releases/cotton-demands-answers-on-journalists-embedded-with-hamas\">additional letters</a> to each of the news outlets, Cotton asked how many journalists employed by the news organizations were embedded with Hamas on Oct. 7 and how many are currently embedded. He also asked the outlets for an itemized total of their “funding” to Hamas and affiliates in Gaza over the past five years.</p><p data-block-key=\"7ei43\">The four news outlets <a href=\"https://www.thewrap.com/news-outlets-deny-hamas-attacks-advance-knowledge-gaza-photojournalists/\">categorically denied</a> having any prior knowledge of the Oct. 7 attack and defended their reporting. The Times stood by its decision to work with freelancer Yousef Masoud, <a href=\"https://www.nytco.com/press/statement-on-yousef-masoud/\">writing in a statement</a> that there was no basis for HonestReporting’s claims.</p><p data-block-key=\"4hvcn\">“Our review of his work shows that he was doing what photojournalists always do during major news events, documenting the tragedy as it unfolded,” the statement read. “We are gravely concerned that unsupported accusations and threats to freelancers endangers them and undermines work that serves the public interest.”</p><p data-block-key=\"8g0ij\">Both CNN and AP said, however, they have suspended their relationship with freelance photojournalist Hassan Eslaiah, <a href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/09/world/middleeast/israel-gaza-hamas-photographers.html\">according to the Times</a>. Eslaiah told the outlet that he had no prior knowledge of the attack and had no ties to Hamas.</p><p data-block-key=\"5ot3q\">Freedom of the Press Foundation, which oversees the operation of the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, <a href=\"https://freedom.press/news/disinformation-campaign-puts-journalists-lives-at-risk-in-gaza/\">characterized</a> HonestReporting’s claims as a “malicious disinformation campaign” that endangers the lives of journalists covering the war.</p><p data-block-key=\"1g1fk\">“It’s a virtual certainty that, despite HonestReporting’s about-face, its nonsense report will be cited to justify past and future attacks against journalists in what’s already by far the <a href=\"https://cpj.org/2023/11/journalist-casualties-in-the-israel-gaza-conflict/\">deadliest war</a> for the press in modern memory,” FPF Advocacy Director Seth Stern wrote.</p><p data-block-key=\"1fjms\">Cotton’s office did not respond to a voicemail requesting comment as of press time.</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
"teaser_image": "https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/RTSIBBNF.2e16d0ba.fill-1330x880.jpg",
"primary_video": null,
"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"i65ke\">Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas, seen here ahead of a briefing in Washington, D.C., in April 2023, wrote a Nov. 9 letter to the U.S. attorney general calling for an investigation into four news outlets for allegedly employing Hamas-affiliated freelancers.</p>",
"arresting_authority": null,
"arrest_status": null,
"release_date": null,
"detention_date": null,
"unnecessary_use_of_force": false,
"case_number": null,
"case_type": null,
"status_of_seized_equipment": null,
"is_search_warrant_obtained": false,
"actor": null,
"border_point": null,
"target_us_citizenship_status": null,
"denial_of_entry": false,
"stopped_previously": false,
"did_authorities_ask_for_device_access": null,
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"mistakenly_released_materials": false,
"links": [],
"equipment_seized": [],
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"state": {
"name": "District of Columbia",
"abbreviation": "DC"
},
"updates": [],
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"workers_whose_communications_were_obtained": [],
"target_nationality": [],
"targeted_institutions": [
"CNN",
"Reuters",
"The Associated Press",
"The New York Times"
],
"tags": [
"Israel-Gaza war"
],
"politicians_or_public_figures_involved": [],
"authors": [],
"categories": [
"Chilling Statement"
],
"targeted_journalists": [],
"subpoena_statuses": null,
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},
{
"title": "Student journalist reports being pushed while filming Princeton protest",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/student-journalist-reports-being-pushed-while-filming-princeton-protest/",
"first_published_at": "2023-11-28T14:01:18.624780Z",
"last_published_at": "2024-03-14T16:18:27.388432Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2024-03-14T16:18:27.307061Z",
"date": "2023-11-09",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Princeton",
"longitude": -74.65905,
"latitude": 40.34872,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"8dahk\">Student journalist Alexandra Orbuch said she was pushed and stepped on by a fellow student while documenting a pro-Palestinian protest at Princeton University in New Jersey on Nov. 9, 2023.</p><p data-block-key=\"e219j\">Orbuch <a href=\"https://twitter.com/OrbuchA/status/1722796352474644511\">wrote on social media</a> that she was covering a student-led “<a href=\"https://www.theprincetontory.com/princeton-sjp-hosts-walkout-for-palestine-journalists-face-harassment/\">Walkout for Palestine</a>” in her capacity as a reporter for The Princeton Tory. Orbuch also <a href=\"https://www.theprincetontory.com/author/alexandra-orbuch/\">serves as its editor-in-chief</a> and has authored multiple news articles on antisemitism and op-eds in support of Israel and Zionism.</p><p data-block-key=\"5dcqp\">“I stood at a distance, gathering footage and audio of the protestors, but protesters continued to stalk and harass me,” she wrote. Footage from the incident shows participants deliberately using signs and flags to block Orbuch’s camera.</p><p data-block-key=\"79d51\">As the event continued, Orbuch <a href=\"https://twitter.com/OrbuchA/status/1722799564652990502\">wrote</a> that one individual became emboldened and ultimately pushed her and stepped on her foot.</p></div>\n<div class=\"block-tweet\"><div class=\"tweet-embed\">\n <div>\n <blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">I repeatedly told him that his level of closeness made me extremely uncomfortable, and I attempted to move away a number of times. He refused to leave me alone. It escalated to the point that he pushed me and stepped on my foot. Free speech is one thing. Assault is another. <a href=\"https://t.co/YA3HyVdrgB\">pic.twitter.com/YA3HyVdrgB</a></p>— Alexandra Orbuch (@OrbuchA) <a href=\"https://twitter.com/OrbuchA/status/1722799564652990502?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">November 10, 2023</a></blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"></script>\n\n</div>\n\n</div>\n</div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"8dahk\">The Princeton Committee on Palestine <a href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/CzhnlFTr5sS/?hl=en&img_index=1\">posted a statement</a> to social media claiming that the protester that Orbuch publicly identified had kept a respectful distance and that Orbuch ran into him, then baselessly accused him of assault.</p><p data-block-key=\"a3atj\">Orbuch did not respond to multiple requests for comment.</p></div>",
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"actor": null,
"border_point": null,
"target_us_citizenship_status": null,
"denial_of_entry": false,
"stopped_previously": false,
"did_authorities_ask_for_device_access": null,
"did_authorities_ask_about_work": null,
"assailant": "private individual",
"was_journalist_targeted": "yes",
"charged_under_espionage_act": false,
"subpoena_type": null,
"name_of_business": null,
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"status_of_prior_restraint": null,
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"links": [],
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"state": {
"name": "New Jersey",
"abbreviation": "NJ"
},
"updates": [],
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"workers_whose_communications_were_obtained": [],
"target_nationality": [],
"targeted_institutions": [],
"tags": [
"Israel-Gaza war",
"protest",
"student journalism"
],
"politicians_or_public_figures_involved": [],
"authors": [],
"categories": [
"Assault"
],
"targeted_journalists": [
"Alexandra Orbuch (The Princeton Tory)"
],
"subpoena_statuses": null,
"type_of_denial": []
}
]
