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{
"title": "Photojournalist struck in head with pepper ball amid Minnesota protest",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/photojournalist-struck-in-head-with-pepper-ball-amid-minnesota-protest/",
"first_published_at": "2025-12-01T18:32:40.565269Z",
"last_published_at": "2025-12-01T18:32:40.565269Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2025-12-01T17:27:18.515496Z",
"date": "2025-11-25",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "St. Paul",
"longitude": null,
"latitude": null,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"xlq6o\">Aaron Nesheim, photojournalist for the Sahan Journal, was shot with a crowd-control munition by law enforcement while reporting on protests in response to a federal immigration enforcement raid in St. Paul, Minnesota, on Nov. 25, 2025.</p><p data-block-key=\"18h4j\">The Minnesota Star Tribune <a href=\"https://www.startribune.com/protesters-clash-with-agents-police-during-apparent-federal-raid-in-st-paul/601533779\">reported</a> that while federal authorities — including agents from Homeland Security Investigations — conducted a raid at a home, St. Paul Police Department officers formed a perimeter to keep the mounting protest at bay.</p><p data-block-key=\"21hr7\">Nesheim and two fellow photojournalists — <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/photojournalist-shot-with-crowd-control-munitions-amid-minnesota-protest\">Kerem Yücel</a> of Minnesota Public Radio and <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/photojournalist-struck-in-stomach-with-pepper-ball-at-minnesota-protest\">Tim Evans</a>, on assignment for Reuters — were working near each other much of the day, <a href=\"https://www.mprnews.org/story/2025/11/26/st-paul-police-use-of-force-during-ice-protests-raises-press-freedom-concerns\">according to MPR</a>. As federal officers prepared to leave, police tried to clear the area, but the scene devolved into chaos.</p><p data-block-key=\"86v75\">Evans told the outlet that police began shooting pepper balls at the feet of protesters, who in turn threw objects toward the officers. Amid the protest response, all three photojournalists were shot with crowd-control munitions.</p><p data-block-key=\"67nli\">Evans was shot in the stomach with a pepper ball, which left a black-and-blue welt. Nesheim, who did not respond to a request for comment, told MPR he witnessed the moment a crowd-control munition struck Yücel in the shoulder.</p><p data-block-key=\"dkeki\">“They opened fire,” he said of police officers. “And I heard Kerem yell, and saw him kind of grab himself just below his collarbone.” He was taken by ambulance to a local hospital and later released.</p><p data-block-key=\"cdqrb\">Moments after, Nesheim told MPR, he too was struck.</p><p data-block-key=\"4e3cg\">“I felt a round graze the side of my head and left a small bump,” he said. “A matter of an inch and I might have been in the ambulance there with [Yücel].”</p><p data-block-key=\"f0flr\">All three photojournalists told MPR that they were clearly identifiable as press and believe police deliberately targeted them for doing their jobs. None of them reported hearing any verbal warnings before officers opened fire.</p><p data-block-key=\"7144q\">In an emailed statement to the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, police Chief Axel Henry said that a full review of the department’s response Nov. 25 is underway.</p><p data-block-key=\"9vdg3\">“We are committed to a thorough review. This consists of viewing hundreds of hours of body camera footage, as well as footage being shared by community members,” Henry wrote. “We are also actively seeking to arrange meetings with local law enforcement leaders and federal law enforcement to create sustainable prevention strategies for our city and the rest of the state.”</p><p data-block-key=\"8ib7t\">The Minnesota Society of Professional Journalists <a href=\"https://www.mnspj.org/2025/11/26/mnspj-condemns-st-paul-police-attacks-on-journalists/\">condemned</a> the attacks, noting that, “Attacking journalists sends a message to both journalists and everyday citizens that their First Amendment rights will not be respected.</p><p data-block-key=\"cb375\">“Photojournalists are on the frontlines of documenting history and it is imperative that they are kept safe and their First Amendment rights are protected,” it added.</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
"teaser_image": "https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/2025-11-25T235715Z_461111638_RC2U.2e16d0ba.fill-1330x880.jpg",
"primary_video": null,
"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"96gcw\">Tear gas fills the air as law enforcement responds to protests around a federal immigration raid in St. Paul, Minnesota, on Nov. 25, 2025. Sahan Journal photojournalist Aaron Nesheim was shot with a pepper ball while covering the demonstration.</p>",
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"assailant": "law enforcement",
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"links": [],
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"state": {
"name": "Minnesota",
"abbreviation": "MN"
},
"updates": [],
"case_statuses": [],
"workers_whose_communications_were_obtained": [],
"target_nationality": [],
"targeted_institutions": [],
"tags": [
"chemical irritant",
"immigration",
"protest",
"shot / shot at"
],
"politicians_or_public_figures_involved": [],
"authors": [],
"categories": [
"Assault"
],
"targeted_journalists": [
"Aaron Nesheim (Sahan Journal)"
],
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},
{
"title": "Photojournalist shot with crowd-control munitions amid Minnesota protest",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/photojournalist-shot-with-crowd-control-munitions-amid-minnesota-protest/",
"first_published_at": "2025-12-01T18:28:22.611788Z",
"last_published_at": "2025-12-01T18:28:22.611788Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2025-12-01T16:56:05.012902Z",
"date": "2025-11-25",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "St. Paul",
"longitude": null,
"latitude": null,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"urtqx\">Kerem Yücel, senior visual journalist for Minnesota Public Radio, was shot with crowd-control munitions by law enforcement while reporting on protests in response to a federal immigration enforcement raid in St. Paul, Minnesota, on Nov. 25, 2025.</p><p data-block-key=\"9ve9g\">The Minnesota Star Tribune <a href=\"https://www.startribune.com/protesters-clash-with-agents-police-during-apparent-federal-raid-in-st-paul/601533779\">reported</a> that while federal authorities — including agents from Homeland Security Investigations — conducted a raid at a home, St. Paul Police Department officers formed a perimeter to keep the mounting protest at bay.</p><p data-block-key=\"eqhqr\">Yücel and fellow photojournalists <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/photojournalist-struck-in-stomach-with-pepper-ball-at-minnesota-protest\">Tim Evans</a> and <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/photojournalist-struck-in-head-with-pepper-ball-amid-minnesota-protest\">Aaron Nesheim</a> were working near each other much of the day, <a href=\"https://www.mprnews.org/story/2025/11/26/st-paul-police-use-of-force-during-ice-protests-raises-press-freedom-concerns\">according to MPR</a>. As federal officers prepared to leave, police tried to clear the area, but the scene devolved into chaos.</p><p data-block-key=\"iij\">Evans told the outlet that police began shooting pepper balls at the feet of protesters, who in turn threw objects toward the officers. Amid the protest response, all three photojournalists were shot with crowd-control munitions.</p><p data-block-key=\"5tod7\">Nesheim said he witnessed the moment Yücel was struck in the shoulder. “They opened fire,” he said of police officers. “And I heard Kerem yell, and saw him kind of grab himself just below his collarbone.”</p><p data-block-key=\"4k06q\">Moments later, Nesheim said, a round grazed his head; Evans was struck in the stomach.</p><p data-block-key=\"9i5fg\">As the photojournalists tried to leave the area, a canister of tear gas landed near them. Yücel told MPR that it blinded and burned him.</p><p data-block-key=\"bqs6p\">“Everybody tried to help me to get water and clean my eyes, but I couldn’t open my eyes and [it was] hard to breathe,” he said. “Paramedics came, and then they decided to send me to the ER with the ambulance.”</p><p data-block-key=\"4mfdb\">All three photojournalists told MPR that they were clearly identifiable as press and believe police deliberately targeted them for doing their jobs. None of them reported hearing any verbal warnings before officers opened fire.</p><p data-block-key=\"2mggv\">Neither Yücel nor MPR responded to requests for comment.</p><p data-block-key=\"bs12q\">In an emailed statement to the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, police Chief Axel Henry said that a full review of the department’s response Nov. 25 is underway.</p><p data-block-key=\"30ohj\">“We are committed to a thorough review. This consists of viewing hundreds of hours of body camera footage, as well as footage being shared by community members,” Henry wrote. “We are also actively seeking to arrange meetings with local law enforcement leaders and federal law enforcement to create sustainable prevention strategies for our city and the rest of the state.”</p><p data-block-key=\"69h34\">The Minnesota Society of Professional Journalists <a href=\"https://www.mnspj.org/2025/11/26/mnspj-condemns-st-paul-police-attacks-on-journalists/\">condemned</a> the attacks, noting that, “Attacking journalists sends a message to both journalists and everyday citizens that their First Amendment rights will not be respected.</p><p data-block-key=\"77cm2\">“Photojournalists are on the frontlines of documenting history and it is imperative that they are kept safe and their First Amendment rights are protected,” it added.</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
"teaser_image": "https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/2025-11-25T234041Z_2121741926_RC2.2e16d0ba.fill-1330x880.jpg",
"primary_video": null,
"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"2pizo\">Minnesota Public Radio photojournalist Kerem Yücel, center, has his eyes washed out after he was shot with pepper balls and caught in tear gas while reporting on protests of a federal immigration enforcement raid in St. Paul, Minnesota, on Nov. 25, 2025.</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,
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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,
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"assailant": "law enforcement",
"was_journalist_targeted": "yes",
"charged_under_espionage_act": false,
"subpoena_type": null,
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"mistakenly_released_materials": false,
"links": [],
"equipment_seized": [],
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"state": {
"name": "Minnesota",
"abbreviation": "MN"
},
"updates": [],
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"workers_whose_communications_were_obtained": [],
"target_nationality": [],
"targeted_institutions": [],
"tags": [
"chemical irritant",
"immigration",
"protest",
"shot / shot at"
],
"politicians_or_public_figures_involved": [],
"authors": [],
"categories": [
"Assault"
],
"targeted_journalists": [
"Kerem Yücel (Minnesota Public Radio)"
],
"subpoena_statuses": null,
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},
{
"title": "Photojournalist arrested at Miami immigration protest, gear seized",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/photojournalist-arrested-at-miami-immigration-protest-gear-seized/",
"first_published_at": "2025-11-24T20:42:41.745718Z",
"last_published_at": "2025-12-16T22:17:52.752585Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2025-12-16T22:17:52.463249Z",
"date": "2025-11-22",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Miami",
"longitude": -80.19366,
"latitude": 25.77427,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"gii2m\">Freelance photojournalist Dave Decker was arrested by Miami-Dade Sheriff’s deputies while documenting anti-deportation protests outside an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Miami, Florida, on Nov. 22, 2025. Decker was held in custody for more than 30 hours before being released on bond with two charges.</p><p data-block-key=\"capop\">Decker was on assignment to cover the protest for multiple outlets: Creative Loafing Tampa, an alt-weekly newspaper; News2Share, a collective that sells footage to news outlets; and Zuma Press, an independent press agency.</p><p data-block-key=\"7bn5s\">The activist group Sunrise Movement <a href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DRYUe7IDfLf/?img_index=1\">organized the protest</a> at the Krome North Service Processing Center. In a <a href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DRYI2_Zku5I/\">clip posted to the group’s Instagram</a>, more than a dozen activists are seen sitting and standing in front of a gate into the facility while singing and holding signs.</p><p data-block-key=\"5dvjq\">Decker told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that he had his National Press Photographers Association credentials and federal drone operator license around his neck and was photographing the protest. Once officers with the Miami-Dade Police and Florida Highway Patrol moved in, he began documenting the arrests of the protesters.</p><p data-block-key=\"23cnq\">“It just felt normal to do the work of photojournalism and document from the sides, to document the detainments as they were happening,” Decker t<a href=\"https://www.cltampa.com/news/tampa-photojournalist-arrested-outside-ice-detention-center-in-miami/\">old Creative Loafing</a>. He added that, without warning, an officer made eye contact with him and began placing him in flex cuffs.</p><p data-block-key=\"3u4vb\">“I said, ‘Hey officer, I’m a member of the press.’ They said, ‘You were warned, you’re getting arrested,’” he recounted. Decker was able to speak with a Highway Patrol sergeant and identified himself as a journalist yet again, but said it was to no avail.</p><p data-block-key=\"1lgao\">“He said, ‘I don’t care about any of this.’ And he said, ‘You’re going to get arrested too,’” Decker said. “So he arrested me, and then he isolated me on another side of the road.”</p><p data-block-key=\"3h1m2\">In <a href=\"https://x.com/FordFischer/status/1992999121637036490\">footage</a> captured by Decker, the photojournalist can be heard saying, “Oh my gosh, I’m not with them.” An officer then responds, “OK. Well, you’re here,” to which Decker replies, “I’m working.” “Anybody that’s here,” the officer continues. “OK, I’m not fighting,” Decker says. “I’m on assignment.”</p></div>\n<div class=\"block-tweet\"><div class=\"tweet-embed\">\n <div>\n <blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Dave was not on the street, and was indeed filming and photographing for myself and two other clients.<br><br>His arrest, captured in the video above, yielded the charges of "trespassing" and "resisting arrest," which were both apparently applied to the 30 activists as well.<br><br>For now,… <a href=\"https://t.co/5RFoPmXQnp\">pic.twitter.com/5RFoPmXQnp</a></p>— Ford Fischer (@FordFischer) <a href=\"https://twitter.com/FordFischer/status/1992999125185425553?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">November 24, 2025</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=\"gii2m\">Decker told the alt-weekly that he eventually convinced the officers to put his camera and other gear in his car, which was then impounded, and his belongings inventoried.</p><p data-block-key=\"d3ok1\">The publication reported that Decker was among more than 30 individuals arrested outside the facility that day. According to court records reviewed by the Tracker, the photojournalist was charged the same as the protesters, with trespassing on property after a warning and resisting an officer without violence to his or her person.</p><p data-block-key=\"47b6m\">Decker told the Tracker he was released sometime between 3-4 a.m. on Nov. 24 after paying a $1,000 bond. The photojournalist, who is based four hours away in Tampa, said he stayed with friends in town until the impound lot opened that morning, paying $600 to have his belongings released back to him.</p><p data-block-key=\"3e9hn\">He added that his car — inventoried by police as containing two cameras, a lens, four tripods, a camera flash, two external batteries and a drone — had been thoroughly searched in the process.</p><p data-block-key=\"9o2t8\">“It was all there, but they ransacked my car to do it. They turned my car upside down,” Decker said. He added that it wasn’t initially clear whether devices had been searched or suffered any damage.</p><p data-block-key=\"9045h\">Decker, who was held in custody for approximately 36 hours, said he was especially frustrated at the interference in his ability to work.</p><p data-block-key=\"avb4d\">“News is only news for a couple of hours, when it’s breaking like that,” he told the Tracker. “I would say that there were no wires out there, there were no local people, there were no stand-ups, no TV, no helicopter. There was none of that there. So I was literally the only journalist out there.</p><p data-block-key=\"c2arp\">“They effectively stopped the news from getting out. Talk about putting the brakes on press freedom,” Decker added.</p><p data-block-key=\"7lbno\"><i>Update: This article has been updated to include comment from Dave Decker and details from records shared with the Tracker.</i></p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
"teaser_image": "https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/Decker_FL_arrest_1122.2e16d0ba.fill-1330x880.png",
"primary_video": null,
"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"wcvjo\">Demonstrators detained outside an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Miami, Florida, on Nov. 22, 2025. Freelance photojournalist Dave Decker was filming the protesters’ arrests when he too was taken into custody.</p>",
"arresting_authority": "Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office",
"arrest_status": "arrested and released",
"release_date": "2025-11-24",
"detention_date": "2025-11-22",
"unnecessary_use_of_force": true,
"case_number": null,
"case_type": null,
"status_of_seized_equipment": "returned in full",
"is_search_warrant_obtained": false,
"actor": null,
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"target_us_citizenship_status": null,
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{
"quantity": 3,
"equipment": "camera"
},
{
"quantity": 1,
"equipment": "equipment bag"
},
{
"quantity": 1,
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}
],
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"state": {
"name": "Florida",
"abbreviation": "FL"
},
"updates": [
"(2025-12-16 22:10:00+00:00) Charges against photojournalist covering Miami protest dismissed"
],
"case_statuses": [],
"workers_whose_communications_were_obtained": [],
"target_nationality": [],
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"tags": [
"immigration",
"protest"
],
"politicians_or_public_figures_involved": [],
"authors": [],
"categories": [
"Arrest/Criminal Charge",
"Equipment Search or Seizure"
],
"targeted_journalists": [
"Dave Decker (Creative Loafing Tampa, News2Share & Zuma Press)"
],
"subpoena_statuses": null,
"type_of_denial": []
},
{
"title": "Brendan Carr targets news outlets as chair of the FCC",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/brendan-carr-targets-news-outlets-as-chair-of-the-fcc/",
"first_published_at": "2025-04-03T15:59:35.542582Z",
"last_published_at": "2025-11-20T18:57:58.002715Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2025-11-20T18:52:51.766518Z",
"date": "2025-11-19",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Washington",
"longitude": -77.03637,
"latitude": 38.89511,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"96x0e\">From the start of President Donald Trump’s second term, Brendan Carr, chair and senior Republican member of the Federal Communications Commission, has joined Trump in taking steps to punish and intimidate news outlets that have covered him and his administration unfavorably. We’re documenting Carr’s efforts in this regularly updated report.</p><p data-block-key=\"1fmn2\">Read about how Trump’s appointees and allies in Congress are striving to chill reporting, revoke funding, censor critical coverage and more <a href=\"/blog/trump-allies-pursue-multipronged-campaign-against-the-press/\">here</a>.</p><p data-block-key=\"6sksi\"><i>This article was first published on Jan. 22, 2025.</i></p></div>\n<div class=\"block-raw_html\"><p><a id=\"top\" name=\"top\"></a></p></div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"iybz8\"></p><hr/><p data-block-key=\"e2plj\"></p></div>\n<div class=\"block-raw_html\"><div class=\"article-content__block rich-text\"><p data-block-key=\"258po\">\r\n<p><a href=\"#Nov 19\">Nov. 19, 2025 | FCC launches ‘news distortion’ probe into BBC documentary</a>\r\n<p><a href=\"#July 29\">July 29, 2025 | FCC opens investigation into NBC over relationship with local affiliates</a>\r\n<p><a href=\"#April 16\">April 16, 2025 | FCC chair threatens Comcast licenses for alleged ‘news distortion’</a>\r\n<p><a href=\"#March 27\">March 27, 2025 | FCC opens investigation into ABC, Disney over DEI policy</a> \r\n<p><a href=\"#Feb 11\">Feb. 11, 2025 | FCC opens investigation into NBC parent over DEI program</a>\r\n<p><a href=\"#Feb 5\">Feb. 5, 2025 | FCC opens investigation into California radio station</a>\r\n<p><a href=\"#Jan 29\">Jan. 29, 2025 | FCC opens investigations into NPR, PBS; calls on CBS to turn over interview transcript</a>\r\n<p><a href=\"#Jan 22\">Jan. 22, 2025 | FCC chair reinstates complaints against three news outlets</a></p></div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"96x0e\"></p><hr/><p data-block-key=\"9mg5b\"></p></div>\n<div class=\"block-raw_html\"><a id=\"Nov 19\" name=\"Nov 19\"></a></div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><h4 data-block-key=\"m1875\">Nov. 19, 2025 | FCC launches ‘news distortion’ probe into BBC documentary</h4><p data-block-key=\"2ug44\">Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr informed the heads of BBC, NPR and PBS on Nov. 19, 2025, that he was launching an investigation into alleged “news distortion” by the British broadcaster.</p><p data-block-key=\"af47c\">In a <a href=\"https://bsky.app/profile/timkarr.bsky.social/post/3m5z7gjstpk2b\">copy of the letter</a> posted to social media, Carr wrote that by splicing together two portions of President Donald Trump’s speech on Jan. 6, 2021, the episode from BBC’s October 2024 “Panorama” documentary program “depicts President Trump voicing a sentence that, in fact, he never uttered.”</p><p data-block-key=\"dp24c\">“That would appear to meet the very definition of publishing a materially false and damaging statement,” Carr continued.</p><p data-block-key=\"aeeeh\">The letter was also addressed to the heads of NPR and PBS, to determine whether they or any other FCC-regulated broadcaster had aired the footage.</p><p data-block-key=\"aomeh\">“As you may know, broadcasters regulated by the FCC have a legal obligation to operate in the public interest,” Carr wrote. “Those public interest requirements include prohibitions on news distortion and broadcast hoax.”</p><p data-block-key=\"59c1h\">He also noted that both the BBC’s director and CEO <a href=\"https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c3vn25d5dq7o\">resigned</a> Nov. 9 in the wake of a <a href=\"https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/11/03/bbc-report-reveals-bias-donald-trump/\">Telegraph report</a> about the edit and a leaked internal memo written by a former adviser to the newsroom’s editorial standards committee.</p><p data-block-key=\"5q0si\">Carr’s investigation follows a <a href=\"https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/donald-trump-bbc-letter-full-panorama-edits-b2862392.html\">threat by Trump</a> to sue the BBC for $1 billion unless it issued a retraction, apologized and paid him compensation for the misleading edit. While the broadcaster <a href=\"https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c874nw4g2zzo\">issued an apology</a> for its editing decisions, it refused to pay the demanded damages and said there was no basis for his defamation claims.</p><p data-block-key=\"a9dq7\">In an <a href=\"https://www.bbc.co.uk/helpandfeedback/corrections_clarifications/\">entry</a> to the Corrections and Clarifications section of its website, the BBC wrote: “We accept that our edit unintentionally created the impression that we were showing a single continuous section of the speech, rather than excerpts from different points in the speech, and that this gave the mistaken impression that President Trump had made a direct call for violent action. The BBC would like to apologise to President Trump for that error of judgement.”</p><p data-block-key=\"fq489\">As of publication, Trump has not filed suit against the BBC. But the broadcaster has <a href=\"https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/britains-bbc-determined-fight-any-trump-case-chair-tells-staff-2025-11-17/\">announced</a> that it is prepared if and when he does sue, Reuters reported.</p><p data-block-key=\"ck3sj\">“I want to be very clear with you — our position has not changed. There is no basis for a defamation case, and we are determined to fight this,” BBC Chair Samir Shah wrote in a letter to staff.</p></div>\n<div class=\"block-raw_html\"><div class=\"article-content__block rich-text\"><p data-block-key=\"258po\">\r\n<p><a href=\"#top\"><i>Back to Top</i></a></p></div>\r\n<a id=\"July 29\" name=\"July 29\"></a></div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><h4 data-block-key=\"2s7l8\">July 29, 2025 | FCC opens investigation into NBC over relationship with local affiliates</h4><p data-block-key=\"74vd5\">Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr informed NBC’s parent company on July 29, 2025, that the agency had opened an investigation into NBCUniversal and its relationship with its local broadcast affiliates.</p><p data-block-key=\"aj4m2\">In a <a href=\"https://deadline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Chairman-Carr-Letter-to-Comcast-FINAL-7.29.25.pdf\">letter</a> to Comcast CEO Brian Roberts, reviewed by the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, Carr said he is investigating “numerous” reports that NBC and other similarly situated networks are attempting to “extract onerous financial and operational concessions from local broadcast TV stations” during affiliate negotiations.</p><p data-block-key=\"doeko\">“The FCC has an interest in and the authority to promote the public interest and to ensure that local broadcast TV stations retain the economic and operational independence necessary to meet their public interest obligations,” he wrote.</p><p data-block-key=\"3iosd\">Comcast <a href=\"https://www.reuters.com/business/media-telecom/fcc-opens-probe-into-comcast-relationships-with-local-tv-affiliates-2025-07-30/\">told Reuters</a> that it had received the letter and plans to cooperate with the investigation.</p><p data-block-key=\"99lu\">“We are proud that for many decades we have supported local broadcast TV stations with world-class sports and entertainment,” the statement said. “We will continue to invest heavily in this partnership to keep the broadcast business strong.”</p><p data-block-key=\"2560r\">The investigation is the latest in a series launched by Carr since he took over as chair in January under the Trump administration, including a <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/brendan-carr-targets-news-outlets-as-chair-of-the-fcc/#Feb%2011\">separate probe</a> into Comcast’s promotion of diversity, equity and inclusion programs.</p></div>\n<div class=\"block-raw_html\"><div class=\"article-content__block rich-text\"><p data-block-key=\"258po\">\r\n<p><a href=\"#top\"><i>Back to Top</i></a></p></div>\r\n<a id=\"April 16\" name=\"April 16\"></a></div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><h4 data-block-key=\"w1k1x\">April 16, 2025 | FCC chair threatens Comcast licenses for alleged ‘news distortion’</h4><p data-block-key=\"a2hc7\">Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr accused Comcast — the parent company of MSNBC and NBC News — of violating its broadcast licenses in a <a href=\"https://x.com/BrendanCarrFCC/status/1912641900558893377\">post</a> on the social platform X on April 16, 2025, citing the outlets’ reporting on the wrongful deportation of Maryland resident Kilmar Abrego Garcia.</p><p data-block-key=\"dhm7c\">“Comcast outlets spent days misleading the American public—implying that Abrego Garcia was merely a law abiding U.S. citizen, just a regular ‘Maryland man.’ When the truth comes out, they ignore it,” Carr wrote. “Comcast knows that federal law requires its licensed operations to serve the public interest. News distortion doesn’t cut it.”</p><p data-block-key=\"5pgs9\">According to the <a href=\"https://www.fcc.gov/broadcast-news-distortion\">FCC</a>, while broadcast stations like NBC News are subject to the agency’s jurisdiction, cable networks like MSNBC are not.</p><p data-block-key=\"e3d2h\">On April 21, the Center for American Rights filed a <a href=\"https://drive.google.com/file/d/14eP0vSwkhKjGetg9yw-PybuL7_aNL005/view\">complaint</a> with the FCC against NBC, ABC and CBS alleging the outlets provided “false or misleading information” during their coverage about Abrego Garcia. The outlets were already the subjects of investigations <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/brendan-carr-targets-news-outlets-as-chair-of-the-fcc/#Jan%2022\">reopened</a> by Carr in February following complaints filed by the conservative group.</p></div>\n<div class=\"block-raw_html\"><div class=\"article-content__block rich-text\"><p data-block-key=\"258po\">\r\n<p><a href=\"#top\"><i>Back to Top</i></a></p></div>\r\n<a id=\"March 27\" name=\"March 27\"></a></div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><h4 data-block-key=\"96x0e\">March 27, 2025 | FCC opens investigation into ABC, Disney over DEI policy</h4><p data-block-key=\"2phhf\">Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr, in a March 27, 2025, <a href=\"https://www.fcc.gov/sites/default/files/Carr-Letter-to-Disney-DEI-03252027.pdf\">letter</a> to ABC and its parent Disney, said the agency had launched an investigation into the company’s promotion of diversity, equity and inclusion programs.</p><p data-block-key=\"1r95j\">“Numerous reports indicate that Disney’s leadership went all in on invidious forms of DEI discrimination a few years ago and apparently did so in a manner that infected many aspects of your company’s decisions,” Carr wrote.</p><p data-block-key=\"5u0v6\">While Disney <a href=\"https://www.npr.org/2025/02/07/nx-s1-5288947/trump-dei-disney-pepsi-diversity\">scaled back its diversity efforts</a> in November 2024, Carr indicated that the changes may not have gone far enough. “I want to ensure that Disney ends any and all discriminatory initiatives in substance, not just name,” he added.</p><p data-block-key=\"4l21q\">Carr specified that the probe will apply to both past and current policies.</p><p data-block-key=\"a78he\">President Donald Trump has made eliminating DEI programs a pillar of his second term, signing a Jan. 22 <a href=\"https://www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/2025/01/fact-sheet-president-donald-j-trump-protects-civil-rights-and-merit-based-opportunity-by-ending-illegal-dei/\">executive order</a> eliminating them in the federal government and pressuring private companies to follow suit.</p><p data-block-key=\"9ne57\">A Disney spokesperson told Reuters, “We are reviewing the Federal Communications Commission’s letter, and we look forward to engaging with the commission to answer its questions.”</p><p data-block-key=\"17erv\">In an interview with Fox News on March 31, Carr suggested that the broadcaster’s license could be at risk, <a href=\"https://thehill.com/homenews/media/5224716-fcc-chair-abc-broadcast-license-disney-dei/\">The Hill reported</a>.</p><p data-block-key=\"1nbq6\">“If the evidence does in fact play out and shows that they were engaged in race- and gender-based discrimination, that’s a very serious issue at the FCC, that could fundamentally go to their character qualifications to even hold a license,” Carr said.</p><p data-block-key=\"e6hgg\">ABC News is also facing an FCC investigation into how the broadcaster moderated the debate between Trump and former President Joe Biden, which Carr <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/brendan-carr-targets-news-outlets-as-chair-of-the-fcc/#Jan%2022\">reopened in January</a>.</p></div>\n<div class=\"block-raw_html\"><div class=\"article-content__block rich-text\"><p data-block-key=\"258po\">\r\n<p><a href=\"#top\"><i>Back to Top</i></a></p></div>\r\n<a id=\"Feb 11\" name=\"Feb 11\"></a></div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><h4 data-block-key=\"96x0e\">Feb. 11, 2025 | FCC opens investigation into NBC parent over DEI program</h4><p data-block-key=\"45d71\">Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr, in a Feb. 11, 2025, <a href=\"https://www.fcc.gov/sites/default/files/Chairman-Carr-Letter%20to-Comcast-02112025.pdf\">letter</a> to NBC News parent Comcast, said the agency would launch an investigation into the company’s promotion of diversity, equity and inclusion programs.</p><p data-block-key=\"eeugk\">“The FCC will be taking fresh action to ensure that every entity the FCC regulates complies with the civil rights protections enshrined in the Communications Act,” Carr’s letter read, “including by shutting down any programs that promote invidious forms of DEI discrimination.”</p><p data-block-key=\"2vs7s\">President Donald Trump has made eliminating DEI programs a pillar of his second term, signing an <a href=\"https://www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/2025/01/fact-sheet-president-donald-j-trump-protects-civil-rights-and-merit-based-opportunity-by-ending-illegal-dei/\">executive order</a> eliminating such programs in the federal government on Jan. 22 and pressuring private companies to follow suit. PBS News <a href=\"https://bsky.app/profile/benmullin.bsky.social/post/3lhu6bpgyb22s\">told employees</a> on Feb. 11 that it was eliminating its DEI office to be in compliance with the administration’s policy.</p><p data-block-key=\"9id98\">Tom Wheeler, a former chair of the FCC, <a href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/12/business/media/fcc-comcast-nbc-dei-discrimination.html\">told The New York Times</a> that this latest investigation fits a pattern of Carr using the commission’s authority to advance Trump’s political aims.</p><p data-block-key=\"7l42\">“It’s clear that what is going on here is — whether it be Comcast and DEI or NPR and PBS, or CBS and the ‘60 Minutes’ interview — is how can you use the coercive authority of regulation to accomplish the goals of your master and mentor, Donald Trump?” Wheeler said.</p></div>\n<div class=\"block-raw_html\"><div class=\"article-content__block rich-text\"><p data-block-key=\"258po\">\r\n<p><a href=\"#top\"><i>Back to Top</i></a></p></div>\r\n<a id=\"Feb 5\" name=\"Feb 5\"></a></div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><h4 data-block-key=\"96x0e\">Feb. 5, 2025 | FCC opens investigation into California radio station</h4><p data-block-key=\"fp4mb\">Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr launched an investigation into San Francisco, California, radio station KCBS on Feb. 5, 2025, after the station broadcast the locations of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents during operations in the San Jose area, Fox News <a href=\"https://www.foxnews.com/media/fcc-launches-probe-soros-backed-radio-station-revealed-live-locations-undercover-ice-agents\">reported</a>.</p><p data-block-key=\"cvks\">Carr told Fox that he believes KCBS may have violated licensing rules requiring broadcasters to operate in the “public interest.”</p><p data-block-key=\"aq9a2\">Carr had <a href=\"https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/business/company-news/2024/09/30/soros-backed-group-wins-fcc-approval-for-us-radio-stations/\">previously opposed</a> the transfer of the station’s license, following Republican scrutiny of the ownership role of billionaire investor George Soros, a Democratic megadonor whose nonprofit now controls the broadcasting outlet.</p></div>\n<div class=\"block-raw_html\"><div class=\"article-content__block rich-text\"><p data-block-key=\"258po\">\r\n<p><a href=\"#top\"><i>Back to Top</i></a></p></div>\r\n<a id=\"Jan 29\" name=\"Jan 29\"></a></div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><h4 data-block-key=\"96x0e\">Jan. 29, 2025 | FCC opens investigations into NPR, PBS; calls on CBS to turn over interview transcript</h4><p data-block-key=\"8fo81\">Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr informed public broadcasters NPR and PBS on Jan. 29, 2025, that he had initiated an investigation into the news outlets, <a href=\"https://static01.nyt.com/newsgraphics/documenttools/340343f285781674/6da3eb69-full.pdf\">suggesting</a> that they may have violated federal law by airing commercial advertisements. A copy of the letter was also shared with members of Congress, Carr wrote, because of its potential relevance to ongoing debates.</p><p data-block-key=\"4h3fp\">“In particular, Congress is actively considering whether to stop requiring taxpayers to subsidize NPR and PBS programming,” the letter read. “For my own part, I do not see a reason why Congress should continue sending taxpayer dollars to NPR and PBS given the changes in the media marketplace since the passage of the Public Broadcasting Act of 1967.”</p><p data-block-key=\"433k7\">That same day, the FCC sent a letter of inquiry to CBS News demanding that the outlet turn over the “full, unedited transcript and camera feeds” from a Kamala Harris interview on “60 Minutes” in October 2024, according to a <a href=\"https://www.cbsnews.com/news/cbs-news-fcc-60-minutes/?intcid=CNR-02-0623\">statement</a> published by the broadcaster.</p><p data-block-key=\"ff5g4\">CBS said that it was working to comply with the inquiry, “as we are legally compelled to do.” The U.S. Press Freedom Tracker was unable to obtain a copy of the inquiry as of press time.</p><p data-block-key=\"749v8\">A spokesperson for CBS <a href=\"https://www.reuters.com/world/us/cbs-turns-over-documents-fcc-probe-into-then-vp-harris-60-minutes-interview-2025-02-04/\">told Reuters</a> that the news organization submitted the documents to the FCC on Feb. 3. In an <a href=\"https://www.foxnews.com/video/6368206882112\">interview with Fox News</a>, Carr said he was “open minded as to potential consequences” and that he would consider releasing the transcript in the interest of transparency.</p><p data-block-key=\"avh2v\">CBS <a href=\"https://www.cbsnews.com/news/60-minutes-publishes-transcripts-video-requested-by-fcc/?ftag=CNM-00-10aab7d&linkId=738794635\">published</a> the transcripts and video that it turned over to Carr on Feb. 5. “They show — consistent with 60 Minutes’ repeated assurances to the public — that the 60 Minutes broadcast was not doctored or deceitful,” the outlet wrote.</p><p data-block-key=\"2kjf3\">The Harris interview was the <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/trump-filed-or-threatened-multiple-lawsuits-against-outlets-ahead-of-election/\">focus of a federal lawsuit</a> filed against CBS on behalf of President Donald Trump, which alleged the network had “doctored” the broadcast in an attempt to influence the presidential election. Trump had demanded the network release unedited tapes and transcripts. CBS has maintained the claims are false and the suit without merit.</p></div>\n<div class=\"block-raw_html\"><div class=\"article-content__block rich-text\"><p data-block-key=\"258po\">\r\n<p><a href=\"#top\"><i>Back to Top</i></a></p></div>\r\n<a id=\"Jan 22\" name=\"Jan 22\"></a></div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><h4 data-block-key=\"96x0e\">Jan. 22, 2025 | FCC chair reinstates complaints against three news outlets</h4><p data-block-key=\"61dl2\">Brendan Carr, a Donald Trump appointee and the new chair of the Federal Communications Commission, reinstated complaints against multiple outlets that Trump targeted <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/blog/all-the-presidents-invective/\">leading up to</a> and <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/blog/media-in-the-courthouse/\">in the wake of</a> the election, alleging their reporting was biased and aimed at swaying favor toward his opponent.</p><p data-block-key=\"7c0di\">NPR <a href=\"https://www.npr.org/2025/01/16/nx-s1-5262424/fcc-trump-tv-licenses-rosenworcel\">reported</a> that, shortly before leaving office, then-FCC Chair Jessica Rosenworcel dismissed complaints about appearances by Kamala Harris on CBS’ “60 Minutes” and NBC’s “Saturday Night Live,” and about how ABC News moderated the debate between Trump and former President Joe Biden.</p><p data-block-key=\"9ae69\">“We don’t have the luxury of doing anything other than making very, very clear that this agency and its licensing authority should not be weaponized in a way that is fundamentally at odds with the First Amendment,” Rosenworcel said. “This agency should not be the president’s speech police and this agency shouldn’t be journalism’s censor-in-chief.”</p><p data-block-key=\"efm03\">Rosenworcel also <a href=\"https://www.phillyvoice.com/fcc-dismisses-petition-fox-29-license-renewal-complaint-6abc/\">dismissed</a> a complaint against a Philadelphia Fox station for allegedly promoting lies about election fraud in the 2020 election.</p><p data-block-key=\"f55g8\">Carr took over as FCC chair on Jan. 20, and reinstated the complaints against ABC, CBS and NBC two days later. In a statement, the agency said that the complaints had been dismissed “prematurely based on an insufficient investigatory record,” <a href=\"https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jan/22/fcc-reinstates-complaints-abc-cbs-nbc\">according to The Guardian</a>.</p><p data-block-key=\"7sdj0\">Carr had <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/fcc-commissioner-accuses-media-ratings-provider-of-censorship/\">previously demonstrated</a> his willingness to target news outlets based on alleged bias, and he has supported Trump’s calls for NBC, CBS and ABC to lose their broadcast licenses over their alleged mistreatment of him, NPR<a href=\"https://www.npr.org/2024/11/17/nx-s1-5193064/fcc-chair-brendan-carr-trump\"> reported</a>.</p></div>\n<div class=\"block-raw_html\"><div class=\"article-content__block rich-text\"><p data-block-key=\"258po\">\r\n<p><a href=\"#top\"><i>Back to Top</i></a></p></div></div>",
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"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"5mjqq\">The Federal Communications Commission’s Brendan Carr testifies during an oversight hearing at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., in June 2023.</p>",
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},
{
"title": "Kansas journalist hit with search warrant after photographing police range",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/kansas-journalist-hit-with-search-warrant-after-photographing-police-range/",
"first_published_at": "2025-12-04T22:01:51.386427Z",
"last_published_at": "2025-12-04T22:01:51.386427Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2025-12-04T22:01:48.256798Z",
"date": "2025-11-14",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Emporia",
"longitude": -96.18166,
"latitude": 38.4039,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"u7h1k\">Independent journalist Jarom Smith is under investigation for trespassing after photographing an old police shooting range on the outskirts of Emporia, Kansas — a minor incident that escalated when authorities sought search warrants for his news outlet’s Facebook account on Nov. 14, 2025.</p><p data-block-key=\"4tsjl\">Smith, who has run the digital-only Lyon County Observer on a part-time basis since April, told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that he walked around an open gate at the joint city-county range in October to take two photos while covering local officials’ plan for a new law enforcement shooting range and 911 communications center.</p><p data-block-key=\"c1pa6\">The project’s $2 million cost has been a frequent focus of his reporting, which mixes straight news with occasional viewpoint.</p><p data-block-key=\"c62p0\">“I was just trying to bring to light my opinion that they didn’t need to spend a couple million dollars on something that we already have,” he said.</p><p data-block-key=\"eckpt\">A few weeks after <a href=\"https://www.facebook.com/share/p/17Xz5b9Wyq/\">posting the pictures</a> to the social network, he was contacted by an Emporia police investigator about a trespass complaint.</p><p data-block-key=\"90qdd\">“I answered everything truthfully. I told them, ‘Yeah, I went on the property, but I didn’t see a “no trespassing” sign,’” he said. “I admitted everything. I even emailed the city and the county attorney and sent them the photos I took.”</p><p data-block-key=\"68c39\">But on Nov. 16, Meta Platforms, which owns Facebook, notified him that a judge had approved a warrant directing it to provide all records from the Observer’s account over a three-day period.</p><p data-block-key=\"cuhmi\">“They didn’t need it. I already admitted to what I did,” he said. “It was more like a witch hunt.”</p><p data-block-key=\"bl662\">The warrant, which Smith posted on <a href=\"https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1N53viFa8k/\">Facebook,</a> did not specify the suspected offense but would have required Meta to turn over stored messages, posts, photos, videos and location data.</p><p data-block-key=\"b44on\">“I can only assume this includes the protected conversations that I have had with hundreds of Lyon County citizens who wish for their voices to be heard,” he wrote in the Facebook post.</p><p data-block-key=\"e546j\">Smith, who covers local government for several thousand readers, said the detective assigned to his case has criticized his work in comments on the Observer’s page. He said he sees himself as a watchdog in the community — a role that has at times been unpopular with government officials — and that the investigation feels retaliatory.</p><p data-block-key=\"ac7o1\">“I’m very patriotic. I’m not trying to break the system,” he said. “What I’m trying to do is bring back local journalism in my community and hopefully other communities, because it is 100 percent necessary. It’s a vital thing for our nation.”</p><p data-block-key=\"713pa\">Smith retained a First Amendment attorney, who contacted authorities on his behalf. They then withdrew their warrant, but then got a second that narrowly tailored the search parameters, Smith said.</p><p data-block-key=\"cfbp6\">Lyon County Attorney Amy Aranda told the <a href=\"https://kansasreflector.com/2025/11/30/a-citizen-reporter-strayed-onto-a-police-gun-range-cops-sought-a-warrant-for-his-online-newspaper/\">Kansas Reflector</a> in a Nov. 30 report that the original warrant had been withdrawn, no records were produced and a second would not be served.</p><p data-block-key=\"32anl\">But Smith still does not know where the trespassing investigation stands.</p><p data-block-key=\"85qba\">“It’s kind of frustrating because I spent thousands of dollars on an attorney to basically save them the legal exposure from a federal lawsuit,” he said of local authorities. “And now I might still be facing criminal charges. Hopefully, it all just goes away.”</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
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"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"6urzt\">On Nov. 14, 2025, authorities issued a search warrant for the Lyon County Observer’s Facebook data after the digital Kansas outlet published a photo taken at the joint city-county shooting range.</p>",
"arresting_authority": null,
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],
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},
{
"title": "Independent photojournalist arrested at Illinois immigration protest",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/independent-photojournalist-arrested-at-illinois-immigration-protest/",
"first_published_at": "2026-02-13T21:32:42.801758Z",
"last_published_at": "2026-02-13T21:32:42.801758Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2026-02-13T21:28:50.774747Z",
"date": "2025-11-14",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Broadview",
"longitude": -87.85339,
"latitude": 41.86392,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"2xy1i\">An independent photojournalist was arrested and her equipment searched and damaged while documenting a protest against immigration raids in Broadview, Illinois, on Nov. 14, 2025.</p><p data-block-key=\"39qsa\">More than 20 people <a href=\"https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/protesters-arrested-clashing-police-chicago-area-immigration-facility-rcna244013\">were arrested</a> at the demonstration, which included about 300 protesters and a group of interfaith leaders, and occurred outside an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility near Chicago.</p><p data-block-key=\"b3bsa\">The photojournalist, who asked to remain anonymous because the charges against her could still be refiled, was the only member of the press detained.</p><p data-block-key=\"1c2ad\">In a written statement to the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, the journalist recounted that at one point during the protest, the Illinois State Police pushed clergy members backward, despite limited room to move.</p><p data-block-key=\"9uolk\">She had positioned herself near other members of the press by a police barrier, as officers continued pushing protesters into a confined area closer to the press line.</p><p data-block-key=\"mjr0\">“The crowd’s momentum looked like a white-water rapid,” the journalist wrote.</p><p data-block-key=\"9869n\">Police also repeatedly ordered journalists to stop filming and obstructed their cameras with their bodies and outstretched arms, the photographer recalled. At one point, an officer placed a gloved hand over her lens to block it.</p><p data-block-key=\"5a8l8\">When police shoved a bystander into the press gate, chaos erupted. The journalist said she was knocked over, struggling to see, with someone’s knees pressing into her neck.</p><p data-block-key=\"58ger\">“I realize I’m not beneath an arresting tackle, but a fellow journalist, unable to peel himself off as he is in turn trapped under collapsing camera gear,” she wrote.</p><p data-block-key=\"44gug\">As police continued ordering the press to stop filming, she watched a reverend get arrested and started documenting his speech dedicated to the immigrant detainees. She then heard an officer say, “No filming!”, before she was then struck in the side by a boot, baton or fist, which knocked a battery from her camera and shut it off.</p><p data-block-key=\"ei313\">“I missed the historic moment in its entirety,” the journalist recounted.</p><p data-block-key=\"2musa\">While documenting the arrests and police use of force, she at one point involuntarily shouted, “Stop!” An officer then lifted her from the media area and moved her into detention with other arrestees.</p><p data-block-key=\"c8kpu\">As she was zip-tied, she said, an officer searched her camera bag and removed her press badge. At the precinct hours later, she asked whether her camera bag had made it.</p><p data-block-key=\"5tnhn\">“Oh, you’re a ‘photojournalist’?” the officer asked, making air quotes, the journalist recounted. “Like a real journalist?”</p><p data-block-key=\"egp0i\">She said she affirmed that she was.</p><p data-block-key=\"eti11\">After her release, she found her press badge gone, and her camera bag ripped open and missing its protective separators. Water had leaked into the bag’s waterproof pocket, ruining three other batteries.</p><p data-block-key=\"5n8kf\">Her camera’s lens, shutter and battery door were dented, cracked and packed with dirt. She told the Tracker the camera now turns on but shuts off unpredictably and struggles to focus, the battery door no longer latches, and the viewfinder is obscured. She estimates $1,800 in repairs to her equipment.</p><p data-block-key=\"alboh\">“I can sometimes use my camera, but it’s never a guarantee,” she wrote. “I expect it to breathe its last gig any day now.”</p><p data-block-key=\"8b9c4\">The state police did not immediately respond to a request for comment.</p><p data-block-key=\"46vn5\">She was charged with resisting an officer, disorderly conduct and walking improperly on a highway. The charges were dropped Feb. 4, though prosecutors have until April to refile them.</p><p data-block-key=\"7f41l\">“It is concerning how ICE-related law enforcement go out of their way to lateralize and obscure storytelling rights by considering anyone in their way a ‘protester,’” she wrote.</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
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"primary_video": null,
"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"ej3bf\">An independent journalist, at center left, is arrested while documenting a protest outside a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Broadview, Illinois, on Nov. 14, 2025.</p>",
"arresting_authority": "Illinois State Police",
"arrest_status": "arrested and released",
"release_date": null,
"detention_date": "2025-11-14",
"unnecessary_use_of_force": false,
"case_number": null,
"case_type": null,
"status_of_seized_equipment": "returned in full",
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"actor": "law enforcement",
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"assailant": "law enforcement",
"was_journalist_targeted": "yes",
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"third_party_business": null,
"legal_order_venue": null,
"status_of_prior_restraint": null,
"mistakenly_released_materials": false,
"links": [],
"equipment_seized": [
{
"quantity": 1,
"equipment": "equipment bag"
}
],
"equipment_broken": [
{
"quantity": 1,
"equipment": "camera"
},
{
"quantity": 1,
"equipment": "camera lens"
},
{
"quantity": 4,
"equipment": "external battery"
},
{
"quantity": 1,
"equipment": "press identification"
},
{
"quantity": 1,
"equipment": "equipment bag"
}
],
"state": {
"name": "Illinois",
"abbreviation": "IL"
},
"updates": [],
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"target_nationality": [],
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"tags": [
"immigration",
"protest"
],
"politicians_or_public_figures_involved": [],
"authors": [],
"categories": [
"Arrest/Criminal Charge",
"Assault",
"Equipment Search or Seizure",
"Equipment Damage"
],
"targeted_journalists": [
"Anonymous photojournalist 9 (Independent)"
],
"subpoena_statuses": null,
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},
{
"title": "Photojournalist shot with pepper balls by state trooper at immigration protest",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/photojournalist-shot-with-pepper-balls-by-state-trooper-at-immigration-protest/",
"first_published_at": "2025-11-19T14:08:49.385114Z",
"last_published_at": "2025-11-19T14:08:49.385114Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2025-11-18T22:22:00.890198Z",
"date": "2025-11-01",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Broadview",
"longitude": -87.85339,
"latitude": 41.86392,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"62z14\">Photojournalist Jon Stegenga was shot twice with crowd-control munitions by Illinois State Police while reporting on protests outside an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in the Chicago suburb of Broadview on Nov. 1, 2025.</p><p data-block-key=\"7ud91\">The facility, where detainees are being held and processed ahead of deportation, has drawn escalating protests and federal response since early September, following the Department of Homeland Security’s <a href=\"https://www.dhs.gov/news/2025/09/08/ice-launches-operation-midway-blitz-honor-katie-abraham-target-criminal-illegal\">launch</a> of the federal immigration crackdown, Operation Midway Blitz.</p><p data-block-key=\"2agri\">Following pressure from Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, a unified command composed of local law enforcement agencies and headed by the Illinois State Police <a href=\"https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/10/02/unified-command-outside-broadview-ice-building/\">took over the protest response</a> Oct. 2, establishing designated protest zones around the building.</p><p data-block-key=\"csf4h\">Stegenga, co-founder of the independent outlet Humanizing Through Story, told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that he was covering one of a series of demonstrations outside the facility.</p><p data-block-key=\"du3bi\">“There was a line of probably about 50 protesters, and they were holding these three large foam shields that covered their entire line of people,” Stegenga said. “They were just holding their ground, facing off with a line of state police.”</p><p data-block-key=\"av4m1\">As the lines of law enforcement and protesters met, the only trooper armed with a pepper ball gun fired a series of the chemical munitions at the feet of the demonstrators. The troopers then struck at the shields and tried to rip them away, Stegenga told the Tracker.</p><p data-block-key=\"fgais\">“I was on the grass for the curb because the line of officers weren’t allowing us to get close enough to the people in the street,” he said. “But all of a sudden, I felt this sharp pain and looked down at my kneecap, and I had been hit by a pepper ball. And then, a few seconds after, I got shot again on my thigh.”</p></div>\n<div class=\"block-aligned_image\"><figure class=\"inline-media right\">\n \n\n\n<img src=\"https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/11-0_COSTUME_PROTEST__HTS-jonstegenga-497.width-828.jpg\" width=\"828\" height=\"552\" alt=\"HUMANIZING THROUGH STORY/JON STEGENGA\">\n\n \n <figcaption class=\"inline-media__caption\">\n\t\t\t<p data-block-key=\"txphx\">Photojournalist Jon Stegenga was shot in the knee and thigh with pepper balls by an Illinois State Patrol trooper amid protests outside an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Broadview on Nov. 1, 2025.</p>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<span\n\t\t\t\t\tclass=\"media-attribution\"\n\t\t\t\t> — HUMANIZING THROUGH STORY/JON STEGENGA\n\t\t\t\t</span>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t</figcaption>\n \n</figure>\n</div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"62z14\">The photojournalist added that only members of the press were standing along that strip, and no one was between him and the state police officer when he was shot. Stegenga added that he has no doubt that he was targeted.</p><p data-block-key=\"9j0q2\">“What other reasons would they have for firing at us? We weren’t moving forward. We were just kind of standing, photographing from the side,” Stegenga said. “We were all clearly marked with press credentials. I even had a shirt that says ‘Press.’ We had our gear on — all of us with cameras and mics and everything — and I don’t see how I could have been mistaken for a protester.”</p><p data-block-key=\"3kv3k\">When reached by email about the assault of Stegenga and <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/photojournalist-shot-with-pepper-balls-by-state-trooper-at-chicago-area-protest\">two</a> <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/photojournalist-shot-in-foot-with-pepper-ball-at-illinois-immigration-protest\">other</a> journalists, Illinois State Police Chief Public Information Officer Melaney Arnold wrote, “How were the individuals identified as press; what were they wearing? In situations like this, it can be difficult to distinguish between protestors and media.”</p><p data-block-key=\"3tprb\">Arnold did not respond to subsequent emails or the initial questions sent by the Tracker. In response to an <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/photojournalist-repeatedly-struck-with-baton-tackled-at-illinois-immigration-protest/\">incident in October</a>, Arnold told the Tracker, “ISP and the Unified Command’s highest priority is to protect the community and the rights of individuals to express their First Amendment rights — whether they are protestors or members of the media.”</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
"teaser_image": "https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/11-0_COSTUME_PROTEST__HTS-jonsteg.2e16d0ba.fill-1330x880.jpg",
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"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"hj1ki\">An Illinois State Police trooper, center, points a pepper ball gun at photojournalist Jon Stegenga. The officer shot him in the knee and thigh with the chemical irritant munitions amid protests outside a federal facility in Broadview on Nov. 1, 2025.</p>",
"arresting_authority": null,
"arrest_status": null,
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"assailant": "law enforcement",
"was_journalist_targeted": "yes",
"charged_under_espionage_act": false,
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"name_of_business": null,
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"state": {
"name": "Illinois",
"abbreviation": "IL"
},
"updates": [],
"case_statuses": [],
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"target_nationality": [],
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"tags": [
"chemical irritant",
"immigration",
"protest",
"shot / shot at"
],
"politicians_or_public_figures_involved": [],
"authors": [],
"categories": [
"Assault"
],
"targeted_journalists": [
"Jon Stegenga (Humanizing Through Story)"
],
"subpoena_statuses": null,
"type_of_denial": []
},
{
"title": "Photojournalist struck by projectile while covering World Series revelry in LA",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/photojournalist-struck-by-projectile-while-covering-world-series-revelry-in-la/",
"first_published_at": "2025-11-04T22:06:11.842104Z",
"last_published_at": "2025-11-04T22:06:11.842104Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2025-11-04T22:06:11.638287Z",
"date": "2025-11-01",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Los Angeles",
"longitude": -118.24368,
"latitude": 34.05223,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"tkt6d\">Freelance photojournalist Myraneli Fabian was shot with a crowd-control projectile fired by police while she documented celebrations in Los Angeles, California, after the Dodgers won the World Series on Nov. 1, 2025.</p><p data-block-key=\"60nno\">Seven people were arrested after thousands of fans thronged city streets and police issued dispersal orders and fired riot-control munitions, <a href=\"https://www.cbsnews.com/losangeles/news/dodgers-world-series-celebration-arrests/\">according to CBS News.</a></p><p data-block-key=\"46d15\">Fabian told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that she did not see the Los Angeles Police Department officer who fired the shot and did not believe she was targeted. At the time, she was photographing people vandalizing a city bus, and officers were coming from behind her to stop them.</p><p data-block-key=\"b8281\">The projectile struck her upper thigh, leaving a dark bruise. Fabian said she was wearing a press badge and protective gear clearly marked “press.”</p><p data-block-key=\"31usj\">“I had my back toward them,” she said. “It just happened so quickly. I did see the bullet jump off from me on the floor.”</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
"teaser_image": "https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/2025-11-02T050024Z_391102506_RC24.2e16d0ba.fill-1330x880.jpg",
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"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"onmqr\">Police line up on a road in Los Angeles, California, on Nov. 1, 2025, after the LA Dodgers win the World Series. Photojournalist Myraneli Fabian was struck by a police projectile while covering fan celebrations.</p>",
"arresting_authority": null,
"arrest_status": null,
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"detention_date": null,
"unnecessary_use_of_force": false,
"case_number": null,
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"is_search_warrant_obtained": false,
"actor": null,
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"denial_of_entry": false,
"stopped_previously": false,
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"assailant": "law enforcement",
"was_journalist_targeted": "unknown",
"charged_under_espionage_act": false,
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"links": [],
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"state": {
"name": "California",
"abbreviation": "CA"
},
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"tags": [
"shot / shot at"
],
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"authors": [],
"categories": [
"Assault"
],
"targeted_journalists": [
"Myraneli Fabian (Freelance)"
],
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},
{
"title": "Reporter shot in foot with pepper ball at Illinois immigration protest",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/photojournalist-shot-in-foot-with-pepper-ball-at-illinois-immigration-protest/",
"first_published_at": "2025-11-19T14:59:35.150730Z",
"last_published_at": "2026-01-14T19:31:10.159425Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2026-01-14T19:31:10.041374Z",
"date": "2025-11-01",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Broadview",
"longitude": -87.85339,
"latitude": 41.86392,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"fknnu\">JT Cestkowski, a reporter for the news outlet Status Coup, was shot in the foot with a crowd-control munition by Illinois State Police while reporting on protests outside an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in the Chicago suburb of Broadview on Nov. 1, 2025.</p><p data-block-key=\"6f32o\">The facility, where detainees are being held and processed ahead of deportation, has drawn escalating protests and federal response since early September, following the Department of Homeland Security’s <a href=\"https://www.dhs.gov/news/2025/09/08/ice-launches-operation-midway-blitz-honor-katie-abraham-target-criminal-illegal\">launch</a> of the federal immigration crackdown, Operation Midway Blitz.</p><p data-block-key=\"dt1mv\">Following pressure from Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, a unified command composed of local law enforcement agencies and headed by the Illinois State Police <a href=\"https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/10/02/unified-command-outside-broadview-ice-building/\">took over the protest response</a> Oct. 2, establishing designated protest zones around the building.</p><p data-block-key=\"6u7lq\">Cestkowski was reporting alongside photojournalist <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/photojournalist-shot-with-pepper-balls-by-state-trooper-at-chicago-area-protest\">Jon Farina</a>, <a href=\"https://youtu.be/Hjd7pLmSLMU?t=6\">livestreaming</a> as protesters gathered — some <a href=\"https://www.reddit.com/r/chicago/comments/1obritv/broadview_protest_nov_1/\">in Halloween costumes</a> — outside the facility.</p><p data-block-key=\"98tca\">“We’ve been going live out there in Broadview for weeks now,” Cestkowski said. “This protest started much like all the others, with folks just standing inside of the designated protest areas that are set up there for around the first hour or so that we were there.”</p><p data-block-key=\"9ai6m\">He told the Tracker that protesters then created a picket line across the street. After a while, police intervened, shoving back protesters and press alike: Cestkowski said that an officer directly told him and Farina that he didn’t care that they were media.</p><p data-block-key=\"5ago8\">“Then things began to calm down and I started to think that that was kind of going to be the end of the action for the day,” Cestkowski said. “But then a group of protesters had some signs that they used to form a wall, and they grouped up in the street again. This time, they started walking toward the detention facility rather than just picketing.”</p><p data-block-key=\"4k168\">At an hour and 15 minutes into <a href=\"https://youtu.be/Hjd7pLmSLMU?t=4518\">the livestream</a>, protesters are seen forming a line with shields that Cestkowski said appeared to be made of foam core board bearing messages including “Free our neighbors” and “Migra y policia la misma porqueria” (“ICE and police are the same old shit”). The protesters slowly march forward, eventually met by lines of state troopers.</p><p data-block-key=\"6skjb\">A trooper armed with a pepper ball gun then fires a series of the chemical munitions at the feet of the demonstrators, and another announces that it is an unlawful assembly. As troopers kneel to don gas masks, another walking with a bullhorn appears to directly order the gaggle of journalists to comply with the dispersal order.</p><p data-block-key=\"9no02\">“The protesters themselves were in the street proper, spilling over onto the sidewalks a little bit, and the press were basically the extreme flanks,” Cestkowski told the Tracker. “We were up on the grass to either side of the street, largely two groups, and it was pretty clear to me where the press was versus where the protesters were.</p><p data-block-key=\"60tvb\">“But that didn’t stop the police from firing those pepper balls directly into the crowd of press, at least on our side of the street.”</p><p data-block-key=\"ar20g\">Cestkowski said that he was shot in the foot while standing behind Farina, who he said was the intended target and was struck multiple times in the legs. While Cestkowski didn’t suffer any bruising from the shot to his foot, he said that after prolonged exposure to the chemical irritant, he was left coughing for three to four hours afterward.</p><p data-block-key=\"64ge2\">When reached by email about the assaults of Farina, Cestkowski and a <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/photojournalist-shot-with-pepper-balls-by-state-trooper-at-immigration-protest\">third journalist</a> that day, Illinois State Police Chief Public Information Officer Melaney Arnold wrote, “How were the individuals identified as press; what were they wearing? In situations like this, it can be difficult to distinguish between protestors and media.”</p><p data-block-key=\"23cqs\">Arnold did not respond to subsequent emails or the initial questions sent by the Tracker. In response to an <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/photojournalist-repeatedly-struck-with-baton-tackled-at-illinois-immigration-protest/\">incident in October</a>, Arnold told the Tracker, “ISP and the Unified Command’s highest priority is to protect the community and the rights of individuals to express their First Amendment rights — whether they are protestors or members of the media.”</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
"teaser_image": "https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/Cestkowski_IL_assault_111.18d2203d.fill-1330x880.png",
"primary_video": null,
"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"7m6dl\">Status Coup reporter JT Cestkowski, center left, and his colleague recount being struck with pepper balls moments after both were shot at by an Illinois State Police trooper amid protests outside a federal facility in Broadview on Nov. 1, 2025.</p>",
"arresting_authority": null,
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"name": "Illinois",
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"chemical irritant",
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"protest",
"shot / shot at"
],
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"authors": [],
"categories": [
"Assault"
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"JT Cestkowski (Status Coup)"
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},
{
"title": "Photojournalist shot with pepper balls by state trooper at Chicago-area protest",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/photojournalist-shot-with-pepper-balls-by-state-trooper-at-chicago-area-protest/",
"first_published_at": "2025-11-19T14:03:55.872522Z",
"last_published_at": "2025-11-19T14:03:55.872522Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2025-11-18T22:22:17.235726Z",
"date": "2025-11-01",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Broadview",
"longitude": -87.85339,
"latitude": 41.86392,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"n2fjc\">Photojournalist Jon Farina was shot multiple times with crowd-control munitions by Illinois State Police while reporting on protests outside an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in the Chicago suburb of Broadview on Nov. 1, 2025.</p><p data-block-key=\"fintv\">The facility, where detainees are being held and processed ahead of deportation, has drawn escalating protests and federal response since early September, following the Department of Homeland Security’s <a href=\"https://www.dhs.gov/news/2025/09/08/ice-launches-operation-midway-blitz-honor-katie-abraham-target-criminal-illegal\">launch</a> of the federal immigration crackdown, Operation Midway Blitz.</p><p data-block-key=\"c95eo\">Following pressure from Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, a unified command composed of local law enforcement agencies and headed by the Illinois State Police <a href=\"https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/10/02/unified-command-outside-broadview-ice-building/\">took over the protest response</a> Oct. 2, establishing designated protest zones around the building.</p><p data-block-key=\"98q69\">Farina and journalist <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/photojournalist-shot-in-foot-with-pepper-ball-at-illinois-immigration-protest\">JT Cestkowski</a> were reporting for the news outlet Status Coup, <a href=\"https://youtu.be/Hjd7pLmSLMU?t=6\">livestreaming</a> as protesters gathered — some <a href=\"https://www.reddit.com/r/chicago/comments/1obritv/broadview_protest_nov_1/\">in Halloween costumes</a> — outside the facility.</p><p data-block-key=\"1q2nb\">“This is what it’s actually like on the ground here in Chicago, as people stand up and try to resist the Trump administration right now,” Cestkowski said about an hour into the stream. “We are the only independent media that has been on the ground here for the last month showing you these demonstrations, that have played out in much the same way: Protesters come out, they try to demonstrate against ICE, they are met with force by not the federal agents but by Illinois state authorities.”</p><p data-block-key=\"71q25\">At approximately an hour and 15 minutes <a href=\"https://youtu.be/Hjd7pLmSLMU?t=4518\">into the footage</a> captured by Farina, protesters are seen forming a line with shields that Cestkowski said appeared to be made of foam core board, bearing messages including “Free our neighbors” and “Migra y policia la misma porqueria” (“ICE and police are the same shit”). The protesters slowly march forward, eventually met by lines of state troopers.</p><p data-block-key=\"5ms48\">A trooper armed with a pepper ball gun fires a series of the chemical munitions at the feet of the demonstrators and another announces that it is an unlawful assembly. As troopers kneel to don gas masks, another with a bullhorn walks along the grass on the side of the road and appears to directly order the journalists assembled there to comply with the dispersal order.</p><p data-block-key=\"44q8v\">A few minutes later, as troopers shove back protesters using long wooden rods, Cestkowski says, “I just got shot in the foot with a pepper ball just then. They’re shooting the press, pushing us.”</p><p data-block-key=\"2mtru\">Cestkowski told the Tracker that he was standing behind Farina, who he said was the intended target. “We were standing apart from the protesters, with other press, holding our camera and microphone and wearing our press credentials,” he said.</p><p data-block-key=\"81hm9\">He added that Farina was struck multiple times in his shins. In the footage, pepper ball residue is visible on his knee and foot.</p><p data-block-key=\"qgdp\">Cestkowski <a href=\"https://youtu.be/Hjd7pLmSLMU?t=5805\">asks him</a> if the shots hurt, to which Farina responds, “No, not at all, I didn’t feel it. I’m kind of upset that I didn’t bring my gas mask, though.”</p><p data-block-key=\"9cgk8\">When reached by email about the assaults of Farina, Cestkowski and a <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/photojournalist-shot-with-pepper-balls-by-state-trooper-at-immigration-protest\">third journalist</a> that day, Illinois State Police Chief Public Information Officer Melaney Arnold wrote, “How were the individuals identified as press; what were they wearing? In situations like this, it can be difficult to distinguish between protestors and media.”</p><p data-block-key=\"ceo2k\">Arnold did not respond to subsequent emails or the initial questions sent by the Tracker. In response to an <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/photojournalist-repeatedly-struck-with-baton-tackled-at-illinois-immigration-protest/\">incident in October</a>, Arnold told the Tracker, “ISP and the Unified Command’s highest priority is to protect the community and the rights of individuals to express their First Amendment rights — whether they are protestors or members of the media.”</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
"teaser_image": "https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/11-0_COSTUME_PROTEST__HTS-jonsteg.2e16d0ba.fill-1330x880_91kaA0U.jpg",
"primary_video": null,
"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"gzfq6\">Photojournalist Jon Farina, his legs visible at center, was filming for Status Coup when an Illinois State Police trooper shot him in the knee and foot with pepper balls amid protests outside a federal immigration facility in Broadview on Nov. 1, 2025.</p>",
"arresting_authority": null,
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"assailant": "law enforcement",
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"state": {
"name": "Illinois",
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"tags": [
"chemical irritant",
"immigration",
"protest",
"shot / shot at"
],
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"authors": [],
"categories": [
"Assault"
],
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"Jon Farina (Status Coup)"
],
"subpoena_statuses": null,
"type_of_denial": []
},
{
"title": "White House restricts reporter access to press secretary, staff’s offices",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/white-house-restricts-reporter-access-to-press-secretary-staffs-offices/",
"first_published_at": "2025-11-05T15:05:16.625101Z",
"last_published_at": "2025-11-05T15:05:16.625101Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2025-11-05T14:58:32.347808Z",
"date": "2025-10-31",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Washington",
"longitude": -77.03637,
"latitude": 38.89511,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"cyzi8\">Journalists will no longer be able to access the offices of senior press officials at the White House in Washington, D.C., in a sharp break with tradition announced by Trump administration officials on Oct. 31, 2025.</p><p data-block-key=\"d1mbq\">The New York Times <a href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/31/us/politics/trump-white-house-press.html\">reported</a> that for decades, White House correspondents have been permitted to roam through an area of the West Wing known as “Upper Press,” which houses the offices of the press secretary and other senior press aides. This access enabled reporters to ask impromptu questions outside of press briefings and keep up with breaking news events.</p><p data-block-key=\"7nb1v\">A White House memorandum released Oct. 31 announced the end of this practice, prohibiting journalists from accessing Upper Press without a prior appointment, citing security concerns with staffers now handling National Security Council materials.</p><p data-block-key=\"av6rp\">“This policy will ensure adherence to best practices pertaining to access to sensitive material,” the memo stated. Reporters will still have access to a separate office area adjacent to the briefing room, known as “Lower Press,” where lower-level communications staff are located.</p><p data-block-key=\"d12bl\">Communications Director Steven Cheung justified the restrictions in a <a href=\"https://x.com/StevenCheung47/status/1984400264661504307\">social media post</a>, claiming that reporters have surreptitiously recorded video and audio of the West Wing offices, entered restricted areas and eavesdropped on private meetings.</p><p data-block-key=\"akpmb\">The White House Correspondents’ Association <a href=\"https://x.com/whca/status/1984406570906607695\">condemned</a> the heightened constraints.</p><p data-block-key=\"5if9\">“The new restrictions hinder the press corps’ ability to question officials, ensure transparency, and hold the government accountable, to the detriment of the American public,” Weijia Jiang, the association’s president, wrote.</p><p data-block-key=\"8rvfs\">The move is the latest in the administration’s ongoing effort to curtail newsgathering activities at the White House and to punish news outlets for coverage that it deems unfavorable.</p><p data-block-key=\"cbk5o\">The <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/ap-reporters-barred-from-white-house-events-over-editorial-style-policy/\">Associated Press</a> and <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/wsj-reporter-pulled-from-press-pool-in-retaliation-for-epstein-article/\">The Wall Street Journal</a> have faced direct exclusion in retaliation for their reporting, and wire services were <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/white-house-wrests-control-of-presidential-press-pool-from-correspondents/#update-944\">collectively left out</a> of the press pool for President Donald Trump’s trip to the Middle East in May, a first since the White House press corps started traveling with American presidents abroad, <a href=\"https://x.com/whca/status/1922037075152457802?s=46&t=lMm46RtKimj2YtTSpzSANQ\">according to the correspondents’ association</a>.</p><p data-block-key=\"cd72t\">The White House also <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/white-house-wrests-control-of-presidential-press-pool-from-correspondents/\">wrested control of the presidential press pool</a> from the organization, and used that authority to censor two pool reports and remove the permanent wire service seat from the pool.</p><p data-block-key=\"7a7hs\">In recent weeks, Trump has <a href=\"https://x.com/Acyn/status/1978171676732100647\">floated</a> further restrictions on media access to the White House, suggesting that the press could be moved “very easily across the street.” He had also <a href=\"https://www.usnews.com/news/national-news/articles/2017-01-18/trump-wont-remove-press-from-white-house-but-says-he-will-pick-who-gets-in\">briefly entertained that possibility</a> ahead of his inauguration in 2017, and under his first administration all but <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/trump-stops-regular-press-briefings-citing-unfair-media-treatment/\">halted press briefings</a> and suspended <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/white-house-suspends-correspondents-press-pass-reporter-alleges-retaliation/\">multiple</a> <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/white-house-suspends-cnn-reporter-jim-acostas-press-credentials-and-falsely-accuses-him-manhandling-intern/\">correspondents’</a> press credentials.</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
"teaser_image": "https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/2025-10-23T175949Z_2069542184_RC2.2e16d0ba.fill-1330x880.jpg",
"primary_video": null,
"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"jkii2\">White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt takes questions during a news briefing in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 23, 2025. A week later, the White House issued new rules barring journalists from accessing Leavitt’s office or those of senior press aides.</p>",
"arresting_authority": null,
"arrest_status": null,
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"is_search_warrant_obtained": false,
"actor": null,
"border_point": null,
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"assailant": null,
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"charged_under_espionage_act": false,
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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": [
"Media"
],
"tags": [
"Donald Trump"
],
"politicians_or_public_figures_involved": [
"Federal government: White House"
],
"authors": [],
"categories": [
"Denial of Access"
],
"targeted_journalists": [],
"subpoena_statuses": null,
"type_of_denial": [
"Change in policy or practice"
]
},
{
"title": "Reporter temporarily blocked from Ohio courtroom proceedings",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/reporter-temporarily-blocked-from-ohio-courtroom-proceedings/",
"first_published_at": "2025-11-26T18:19:48.244884Z",
"last_published_at": "2025-11-26T18:19:48.244884Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2025-11-26T18:19:03.496161Z",
"date": "2025-10-29",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Lorain",
"longitude": -82.18237,
"latitude": 41.45282,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"qvu9v\">Investigative reporter Mark Puente was blocked from observing court proceedings and briefly ordered out of a Lorain, Ohio, municipal courtroom by security on Oct. 29, 2025.</p><p data-block-key=\"c1rl4\">Puente, an investigative reporter for The Marshall Project, told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that he had passed through two security checkpoints at Lorain Municipal Court when a security officer directed him toward a courtroom. Puente’s media badge was visible around his neck.</p><p data-block-key=\"7b4u1\">As he entered, another security officer rushed toward him and asked what he was doing. Puente told the Tracker he identified himself as a journalist, there to observe the proceedings. The officer ordered him to leave. Puente asked for a copy of the policy restricting his access.</p><p data-block-key=\"8p080\">“He approached, saying: ‘Get out.’ I could only walk backwards. I did,” Puente <a href=\"https://www.linkedin.com/posts/mark-puente-90a11812_journalismmatters-activity-7389753210363731968-dNNu/?utm_medium=ios_app&rcm=ACoAAAAtmcYBypcylQRXS1k1eyQz7GzFCzS35nE&utm_source=social_share_send&utm_campaign=copy_link\">wrote in an account on LinkedIn.</a></p><p data-block-key=\"aeaa8\">Once Puente was outside the courtroom, the officer locked the door. When Puente asked to speak with a supervisor, the judge’s bailiff came out and said she required him to submit his request in writing.</p><p data-block-key=\"5po9i\">“I pulled out my reporter’s notebook, wrote out the question and refused to leave,” wrote Puente.</p><p data-block-key=\"2uv4j\">He was later directed to wait in another room until the judge was available, and meanwhile completed the required form to photograph and record proceedings. He was eventually allowed into the courtroom.</p><p data-block-key=\"buigh\">Moments later, however, during the subsequent arraignments, a security officer yelled at Puente to put away his phone while he was taking photos. Puente explained he was using it as a camera, and the bailiff confirmed he had completed the required paperwork, so he was able to continue documenting the proceedings.</p><p data-block-key=\"8omqk\">Afterward, the judge called Puente to the bench, saying, “I know who you are.” Puente explained that he objected to being denied entry. The judge cited courtroom confidentiality but did not provide a written policy. He said he had called the Ohio Supreme Court for guidance and was following a “common policy.”</p><p data-block-key=\"bv4v3\">“He started talking in circles, and I knew there and then, he had no policy,” Puente told the Tracker.</p><p data-block-key=\"aqpi9\">In his LinkedIn account, he wrote that he told the judge: “Your honor, with all due respect, sir, my takeaway from this discussion is that you have no policy and you are looking for an excuse. I object.”</p><p data-block-key=\"e79vf\">The incident prevented Puente from observing court for about 45 minutes, though he returned later that week without issue. He called the treatment “odd” and said the excuse that he was mistaken for a “citizen journalist” was unacceptable.</p><p data-block-key=\"2ib1m\">“What it says to me is they don’t want media in their courtroom, because they don’t want the media to see what they’re doing,” Puente said. “People have a right to report, even if they’re critical. They have a right to be in that building.”</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
"teaser_image": "https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/2024-08-06T180834Z_623795020_RC2I.2e16d0ba.fill-1330x880.jpg",
"primary_video": null,
"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"vtwqo\">Security in a Lorain, Ohio, municipal courtroom briefly blocked reporter Mark Puente from reporting on the proceedings on Oct. 29, 2025. Allowed in later, he was then scolded for taking photos, despite court permission.</p>",
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"did_authorities_ask_for_device_access": null,
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"charged_under_espionage_act": false,
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"state": {
"name": "Ohio",
"abbreviation": "OH"
},
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"workers_whose_communications_were_obtained": [],
"target_nationality": [],
"targeted_institutions": [],
"tags": [],
"politicians_or_public_figures_involved": [
"Judiciary: Local Court"
],
"authors": [],
"categories": [
"Denial of Access"
],
"targeted_journalists": [
"Mark Puente (The Marshall Project)"
],
"subpoena_statuses": null,
"type_of_denial": [
"Government event"
]
},
{
"title": "Student journalists ousted from immigration court in Maryland",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/student-journalists-ousted-from-immigration-court-in-maryland/",
"first_published_at": "2025-11-07T22:05:18.359151Z",
"last_published_at": "2025-12-01T14:19:23.762276Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2025-12-01T14:19:23.648485Z",
"date": "2025-10-28",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Hyattsville",
"longitude": -76.94553,
"latitude": 38.95594,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"51m31\">Student journalists Lillian Glaros and Ruby Siefken were ordered out of an immigration court in Hyattsville, Maryland, on Oct. 28, 2025, and told they couldn’t return until they obtained the correct permissions.</p><p data-block-key=\"fa64p\">Glaros and Siefken, reporters for the Capital News Service, a student-run publication out of the University of Maryland in College Park, were ultimately allowed to come back a week later.</p><p data-block-key=\"285mb\">Siefken told the Tracker that they arrived at the courthouse at approximately 8:30 a.m. As in previous visits, they passed through the standard security measures at the front door and went directly to the part of the building where the Hyattsville Immigration Court is housed.</p><p data-block-key=\"ckga3\">“We checked out the docket for the day, and we were really just looking to see if there were any available master cases for us to sit in on and observe,” Siefken said, referring to the first hearing in the removal process when multiple individuals are informed of the charges against them and their rights.</p><p data-block-key=\"88scp\">The pair ultimately entered Judge Dinesh Verma’s courtroom during a transition between two asylum-related cases.</p><p data-block-key=\"ccfie\">“We were seated for about 15 or 20 seconds before Judge Verma addressed us directly and said, ‘Are you all here to participate in a hearing or just to observe?’ To which I responded, ‘We are just here to observe,’” Siefken said. “He then questioned further and said, ‘Are you all law students? Are you lawyers? Are you members of the media? What exactly is bringing you here today?’”</p><p data-block-key=\"2ld89\">When Siefken said they were journalists there to report for an article, Verma asked if they had checked in with a public affairs officer at the front desk, to which they replied no, as they weren’t aware that was expected or required.</p><p data-block-key=\"r4ng\">Verma then referred them to his legal assistant Tiffany Baker, and said she would escort them to the public affairs officer “to make sure that you have all of the proper press permissions to be media members in the courtroom,” Siefken told the Tracker.</p><p data-block-key=\"bmmr\">There, they were informed that they needed permission from an official with the Department of Justice. Each time they attempted to call the number provided, they connected with an automated response. And when they pressed the button to identify as members of the media, the line would go dead.</p><p data-block-key=\"e9eoc\">The two then tried emailing two addresses they were provided, but both came back with automated responses, Siefken said.</p><p data-block-key=\"50ks8\">One was from Kathryn Mattingly, the DOJ representative tied to the Hyattsville courthouse. “That exact message read: ‘The appropriation that funds my salary lapsed, and as a result I have been furloughed and I’m currently out of the office,’” Siefken recounted.</p><p data-block-key=\"cb166\">“Lillian and I start to realize that there was no way for us to actually get in touch with this person that would be able to give us the correct press permission to enter back into the courthouse that day, let alone any time in the future,” she added.</p><p data-block-key=\"b540a\">The journalists pursued other avenues — calling the courthouse and a court administrator, and reaching back out to Baker. Each told them that there was no other person who could authorize their entry.</p><p data-block-key=\"5pqpr\">“That is when we decided to go ahead and write this story and move to publication,” Siefken said, referencing their <a href=\"https://cnsmaryland.org/2025/10/28/local-immigration-court-ousts-reporters-from-hearings/\">co-authored article</a>, “so that the general public was aware of the fact that media was not being accurately represented in immigration courthouses, at least this specific immigration courthouse.”</p><p data-block-key=\"6fakr\">Glaros told the Tracker that she and Siefken, as well as a third CNS reporter, had observed proceedings in the immigration court in September and October without issue. She added that she had even sat in Verma’s courtroom, and had always complied with judges’ requests and identified herself as a journalist when asked.</p><p data-block-key=\"dtjje\">The ejection drew national attention and condemnation from alumni and press freedom advocates — including Freedom of the Press Foundation, of which the Tracker is a project.</p><p data-block-key=\"bp34o\">Then, on Oct. 31, the DOJ’s Executive Office for Immigration Review emailed the journalists informing them that “immigration court hearings are generally open to the public.”</p><p data-block-key=\"2918n\">Siefken said they printed out a copy of the letter and brought it with them to the immigration court Nov. 4, in case they received any pushback.</p><p data-block-key=\"26qc3\">“We actually went back to Judge Verma’s courtroom and were able to observe without issue,” she told the Tracker.</p><p data-block-key=\"6lc6m\">She added that as a student journalist, this was her first experience facing restrictions on her journalistic work and that she hadn’t seen any other reporters attempting to cover these hearings.</p><p data-block-key=\"10bla\">“This is something that is so relevant and pertinent to the public right now,” Siefken said. “This just drove home how important our reporting is, and CNS will continue to provide this coverage.”</p><p data-block-key=\"6a71t\">In November, the DOJ issued a <a href=\"https://www.justice.gov/eoir/media/1416861/dl?inline\">new fact sheet</a> on observing immigration court hearings, updating the language to say that members of the media are “encouraged” to coordinate visits with the Executive Office for Immigration Review’s Office of Policy and identify themselves to front desk staff upon arrival.</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
"teaser_image": "https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/Screenshot_2025-11-07_at_11.04.14.2e16d0ba.fill-1330x880.png",
"primary_video": null,
"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"2dg8i\">The Capital News Service, a student-run outlet at the University of Maryland, reported that two of its journalists were removed from the Hyattsville Immigration Court on Oct. 28, 2025, and told they couldn’t return without the proper permissions.</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": "Maryland",
"abbreviation": "MD"
},
"updates": [],
"case_statuses": [],
"workers_whose_communications_were_obtained": [],
"target_nationality": [],
"targeted_institutions": [],
"tags": [
"Department of Justice",
"immigration",
"student journalism"
],
"politicians_or_public_figures_involved": [
"Judiciary: Federal Court"
],
"authors": [],
"categories": [
"Denial of Access"
],
"targeted_journalists": [
"Lillian Glaros ([University of Maryland] Capital News Service)",
"Ruby Siefken ([University of Maryland] Capital News Service)"
],
"subpoena_statuses": null,
"type_of_denial": [
"Change in policy or practice"
]
},
{
"title": "Reporter denied access at DHS news conference in Minnesota",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/reporter-denied-access-at-dhs-news-conference-in-minnesota/",
"first_published_at": "2025-10-31T20:58:15.913054Z",
"last_published_at": "2025-10-31T20:58:15.913054Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2025-10-31T20:58:15.709284Z",
"date": "2025-10-24",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Fort Snelling",
"longitude": null,
"latitude": null,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"nx89y\">Clint Combs, a reporter for the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder, said he was removed from the approved media list and denied access to a Department of Homeland Security news conference in the Minneapolis, Minnesota, area on Oct. 24, 2025.</p><p data-block-key=\"9lup9\">Combs told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that he had RSVP’d for the event at the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building in Fort Snelling, bordering Minneapolis, and received an email confirming his registration, including the address and arrival instructions for the press.</p><p data-block-key=\"7e89d\">When he checked in, a security guard asked for the name of his publication. On the guard’s clipboard, Combs saw a spreadsheet listing several news outlets — some highlighted in yellow and others crossed out in pen.</p><p data-block-key=\"ebuac\">The guard looked at the list and said, “You’re off the list.”</p><p data-block-key=\"d0324\">Combs said he was not given a reason for his removal but was denied entry to the event.</p><p data-block-key=\"7o32u\">The news conference, which was met with <a href=\"https://www.mprnews.org/story/2025/10/24/kristi-noem-visits-minneapolis-for-ice-briefing-protests-planned\">protests</a>, featured Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem and focused on U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area.</p><p data-block-key=\"ojt5\">Combs told the Tracker he was “shocked and a little bit upset” by the exclusion and concerned about how selective access limits accountability. He said he has previously written stories on DHS activities and interviewed people who have been critical of its operations, but he can’t say if that is the reason for the denial.</p><p data-block-key=\"2vlde\">“Preventing people from asking public questions has a chilling effect,” Combs said. “I just wish there were clear explanations from the top down why certain outlets were denied. If it’s a logistical issue or a timing issue, let me know that.”</p><p data-block-key=\"fs2p5\">DHS did not immediately respond to a request for comment.</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
"teaser_image": "https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/AP25297810056554.2e16d0ba.fill-1330x880.jpg",
"primary_video": null,
"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"nozkj\">Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem speaks during a news conference in the Minneapolis area on Oct. 24, 2025. Reporter Clint Combs was denied access to cover the event.</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": "Minnesota",
"abbreviation": "MN"
},
"updates": [],
"case_statuses": [],
"workers_whose_communications_were_obtained": [],
"target_nationality": [],
"targeted_institutions": [],
"tags": [
"Department of Homeland Security"
],
"politicians_or_public_figures_involved": [
"Federal government: Agency"
],
"authors": [],
"categories": [
"Denial of Access"
],
"targeted_journalists": [
"Clint Combs (Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder)"
],
"subpoena_statuses": null,
"type_of_denial": [
"Government event"
]
},
{
"title": "Andrew Ferguson targets news media as FTC chair",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/andrew-ferguson-targets-news-media-as-ftc-chair/",
"first_published_at": "2025-05-23T16:48:42.006809Z",
"last_published_at": "2026-02-27T20:32:53.576582Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2026-02-27T20:32:53.412957Z",
"date": "2025-10-23",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Washington",
"longitude": -77.03637,
"latitude": 38.89511,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"hxo03\">Shortly after President Donald Trump’s second term began, Federal Trade Commission Chair Andrew Ferguson joined Trump in taking steps to intimidate news media that have covered him and his administration unfavorably. We’re documenting Ferguson’s efforts in this regularly updated report.</p><p data-block-key=\"cucrp\">Read about how Trump’s appointees and allies in Congress are striving to chill reporting, revoke funding, censor critical coverage and more <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/blog/trump-allies-pursue-multipronged-campaign-against-the-press/\">here</a>.</p><p data-block-key=\"be50\"><i>This article was first published on May 23, 2025.</i></p></div>\n<div class=\"block-raw_html\"><p><a id=\"top\" name=\"top\"></a></p></div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"c5ogg\"></p><hr/><p data-block-key=\"crs10\"></p></div>\n<div class=\"block-raw_html\"><div class=\"article-content__block rich-text\"><p data-block-key=\"258po\">\r\n<p><a href=\"#Oct 23\">Oct. 23, 2025 | Federal appeals court preserves block on FTC investigation of Media Matters</a></p>\r\n<p><a href=\"#Aug 15\">Aug. 15, 2025 | Media Matters granted preliminary injunction against FTC</a></p>\r\n<p><a href=\"#May 21\">May 21, 2025 | FTC chair announces investigation into Media Matters for America</a></p>\r\n<p><a href=\"#May 20a\">May 20, 2025 | FTC demands records from NewsGuard about its media ratings</a></p>\r\n<p><a href=\"#May 20b\">May 20, 2025 | FTC targets media ratings service with demand for records</a></p></div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"hxo03\"></p><hr/><p data-block-key=\"64jt0\"></p></div>\n<div class=\"block-raw_html\"><a id=\"Oct 23\" name=\"Oct 23\"></a></div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><h4 data-block-key=\"c5ogg\">Oct. 23, 2025 | Federal appeals court preserves block on FTC investigation of Media Matters</h4><p data-block-key=\"du3rb\">A U.S. appeals court upheld a preliminary injunction on Oct. 23, 2025, protecting the nonprofit Media Matters from being forced to hand over a trove of newsgathering and editorial materials to the Federal Trade Commission.</p><p data-block-key=\"92qj6\">The FTC, under Chair Andrew Ferguson, <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/andrew-ferguson-targets-news-media-as-ftc-chair/#May%2021\">opened</a> an investigation in May into Media Matters over its alleged collusion with companies that paused their advertising on the social platform X after the media watchdog <a href=\"https://www.mediamatters.org/twitter/musk-endorses-antisemitic-conspiracy-theory-x-has-been-placing-ads-apple-bravo-ibm-oracle\">reported</a> that ads for major brands were appearing next to pro-Nazi posts.</p><p data-block-key=\"6lc00\">The agency ordered the nonprofit to turn over scores of internal records, including communications, budget documents and any evidence of coordination with other advocacy groups.</p><p data-block-key=\"10ntt\">In August, a district judge granted the nonprofit a preliminary injunction protecting it from the investigation demand. The FTC appealed the ruling, but on Oct. 23, a divided three-judge appeals panel <a href=\"https://media.cadc.uscourts.gov/orders/docs/2025/10/25-5302LDSN2.pdf\">upheld</a> the lower court’s decision.</p><p data-block-key=\"d64t8\">The deciding majority — U.S. Circuit Judges Patricia Millett and Robert Wilkins — jointly wrote that the FTC had failed to show that it could successfully argue that the investigation was not retaliatory. Further, they wrote that “nothing in the Demand the Commission issued said what, if any, law Media Matters was being investigated for possibly violating, or what conduct of Media Matters is under investigation.”</p><p data-block-key=\"97lug\">The judges noted, however, that the commission could still demonstrate that it would have issued the demand on nonretaliatory grounds.</p><p data-block-key=\"90pmn\">Media Matters Chairman and President Angelo Carusone said in a <a href=\"https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/us-appeals-court-blocks-ftc-subpoena-targeting-media-matters-now-2025-10-23/\">statement to Reuters</a> that the order was a victory for free speech rights.</p><p data-block-key=\"bmd7k\">“This case is about more than the Trump administration’s effort to punish Media Matters,” Carusone said. “It’s a critical test for whether any administration — from any political party — can bully and silence media and non-profit organizations through illegal abuses of power.”</p></div>\n<div class=\"block-raw_html\"><div class=\"article-content__block rich-text\"><p data-block-key=\"258po\">\r\n<p><a href=\"#top\"><i>Back to Top</i></a></p></div>\r\n<a id=\"Aug 15\" name=\"Aug 15\"></a></div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><h4 data-block-key=\"hfa7u\">Aug. 15, 2025 | Media Matters granted preliminary injunction against FTC</h4><p data-block-key=\"3f5g2\">Media Matters for America was granted a preliminary injunction on Aug. 15, 2025, protecting the nonprofit from being forced to hand over a trove of newsgathering and editorial materials to the Federal Trade Commission.</p><p data-block-key=\"9t520\">The FTC, under Chair Andrew Ferguson, <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/andrew-ferguson-targets-news-media-as-ftc-chair/#May%2021\">opened</a> an investigation in May into Media Matters over its alleged collusion with companies that paused their advertising on the social platform X after the media watchdog <a href=\"https://www.mediamatters.org/twitter/musk-endorses-antisemitic-conspiracy-theory-x-has-been-placing-ads-apple-bravo-ibm-oracle\">reported</a> that ads for major brands were appearing next to pro-Nazi posts.</p><p data-block-key=\"fc3ot\">The agency ordered the nonprofit to turn over scores of internal records, including communications, budget documents and any evidence of coordination with other advocacy groups, Status reported.</p><p data-block-key=\"ijf1\">In a <a href=\"https://www.status.news/p/ftc-investigates-media-matters-elon-musk\">statement to Status</a>, a spokesperson for Media Matters described the FTC probe as a political hit job, and the nonprofit <a href=\"https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.281859/gov.uscourts.dcd.281859.1.0.pdf\">filed a lawsuit</a> June 23 to halt the order.</p><p data-block-key=\"dcajg\">“Media Matters faces an ongoing campaign of retribution for exercising its First Amendment rights,” attorneys for the nonprofit wrote. “Now the Federal Trade Commission seeks to punish Media Matters for its journalism and speech in exposing matters of substantial public concern—including how X.com has enabled and profited from extremist content that proliferated after Elon Musk took over the platform formerly known as Twitter.”</p><p data-block-key=\"eompq\">In late 2023 and early 2024, Republican attorneys general in <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/texas-attorney-general-subpoenas-media-matters-after-report-on-x/\">Texas</a> and <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/missouri-attorney-general-subpoenas-media-matters-after-report-on-x/\">Missouri</a> issued civil investigative demands — a form of subpoena — to the nonprofit for documents related to its reporting. Media Matters ultimately won preliminary injunctions blocking the requests.</p><p data-block-key=\"b8nnj\">District Judge Sparkle Sooknanan <a href=\"https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.281859/gov.uscourts.dcd.281859.34.0_1.pdf\">ruled</a> in favor of Media Matters on Aug. 15, writing that the case “presents a straightforward First Amendment violation.”</p><p data-block-key=\"e5f6a\">“It should alarm all Americans when the Government retaliates against individuals or organizations for engaging in constitutionally protected public debate,” she continued. “And that alarm should ring even louder when the Government retaliates against those engaged in newsgathering and reporting.”</p><p data-block-key=\"6ct2n\">Sooknanan issued an order barring the FTC from implementing or enforcing the request for the nonprofit’s files and communications.</p><p data-block-key=\"47u4v\">Angelo Carusone, chairman and president of Media Matters, praised the decision in a <a href=\"https://www.mediamatters.org/justice-civil-liberties/media-matters-wins-preliminary-injunction-against-retaliatory-ftc\">statement</a>, citing the importance of standing up to what he described as “intimidation from the Trump administration.”</p><p data-block-key=\"4n238\">“This case is not just about the campaign to punish and silence Media Matters,” Carusone wrote. “It is a critical test for whether the courts will allow any administration - from any political party - to bully media and non-profit organizations through illegal abuses of power. We will continue to stand up and fight for the First Amendment rights that protect every American.”</p><p data-block-key=\"9938q\">Attorneys for the agency appealed the ruling Aug. 18 and it will be heard by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.</p></div>\n<div class=\"block-raw_html\"><div class=\"article-content__block rich-text\"><p data-block-key=\"258po\">\r\n<p><a href=\"#top\"><i>Back to Top</i></a></p></div>\r\n<a id=\"May 21\" name=\"May 21\"></a></div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><h4 data-block-key=\"hxo03\">May 21, 2025 | FTC chair announces investigation into Media Matters for America</h4><p data-block-key=\"e184p\">Federal Trade Commission Chair Andrew Ferguson opened an investigation on May 21, 2025, into Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit Media Matters for America concerning its alleged illegal collusion with advertisers, The New York Times <a href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/22/technology/ftc-investigates-media-matters.html\">reported</a>.</p><p data-block-key=\"arjhq\">In November 2023, the media watchdog published a <a href=\"https://www.mediamatters.org/twitter/musk-endorses-antisemitic-conspiracy-theory-x-has-been-placing-ads-apple-bravo-ibm-oracle\">report</a> written by its investigative reporter Eric Hananoki that found advertisements for major brands appeared next to pro-Nazi posts on the social platform X. <a href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/17/technology/elon-musk-twitter-x-advertisers.html\">Several</a> major companies subsequently <a href=\"https://www.theverge.com/2023/11/17/23965928/apple-x-ads-elon-musk-antisemitic-posts\">paused</a> their advertising on the platform.</p><p data-block-key=\"7icj1\">Elon Musk, the owner of X, promptly <a href=\"https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.txnd.383454/gov.uscourts.txnd.383454.1.0_1.pdf\">sued</a> Media Matters and Hananoki in federal court, alleging they had manipulated the platform’s algorithms to harm X’s relationship with advertisers. The suit is ongoing, and in 2025, Musk became a senior adviser to Trump and the de facto head of the newly minted Department of Government Efficiency.</p><p data-block-key=\"53g6j\">In late 2023 and early 2024, Republican attorneys general in <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/texas-attorney-general-subpoenas-media-matters-after-report-on-x/\">Texas</a> and <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/missouri-attorney-general-subpoenas-media-matters-after-report-on-x/\">Missouri</a> issued civil investigative demands — a form of subpoena — to the nonprofit for documents related to its reporting. Media Matters ultimately won preliminary injunctions blocking the requests.</p><p data-block-key=\"7hk06\"><a href=\"https://www.status.news/p/ftc-investigates-media-matters-elon-musk\">According to Status</a>, Musk’s targeting of the outlet has contributed to budgetary strain that forced Media Matters to lay off employees and scale back its work in 2024.</p><p data-block-key=\"5l3pc\">The FTC investigation marks an escalation in the targeting of the nonprofit, and the agency has ordered Media Matters to turn over scores of internal records, including communications, budget documents and any evidence of coordination with other advocacy groups, Status reported.</p><p data-block-key=\"ehi5f\">Ferguson has previously detailed his concern over “colluding” in advertising, the Times reported, in which coordinated advertising boycotts could threaten the “free exchange of ideas.”</p><p data-block-key=\"7osul\">In a statement to Status, a spokesperson for Media Matters described the FTC probe as a political hit job.</p><p data-block-key=\"ad2nu\">“The Trump administration has been defined by naming right-wing media figures to key posts and abusing the power of the federal government to bully political opponents and silence critics,” the representative said. “It’s clear that’s exactly what’s happening here, given Media Matters’ history of holding those same media figures to account. These threats won’t work; we remain steadfast to our mission.”</p></div>\n<div class=\"block-raw_html\"><div class=\"article-content__block rich-text\"><p data-block-key=\"258po\">\r\n<p><a href=\"#top\"><i>Back to Top</i></a></p></div>\r\n<a id=\"May 20a\" name=\"May 20a\"></a></div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><h4 data-block-key=\"gkek5\">May 20, 2025 | FTC demands records from NewsGuard about its media ratings</h4><p data-block-key=\"4623u\">The Federal Trade Commission issued a sweeping legal order on May 20, 2025, in Washington, D.C., for documentation from NewsGuard, an outlet that uses journalistic methods to generate reliability ratings of media outlets.</p><p data-block-key=\"b7c3a\">NewsGuard <a href=\"/all-incidents/ftc-demands-records-from-newsguard-about-its-media-ratings/\">has opposed the civil investigative demand</a>, which functions like a subpoena, arguing to the FTC in a Jan. 16, 2026, petition that the investigation constitutes retaliation against NewsGuard for exercising its protected First Amendment rights.</p><p data-block-key=\"ahn5\">“The CID’s unconstitutionally broad and intrusive demands impermissibly chill NewsGuard’s speech,” the petition states.</p><p data-block-key=\"9igs5\">The FTC ordered NewsGuard to produce extensive records related to its rating system, journalistic materials, methodologies and communications. It also asks for the identities of rated entities and employees dating back to 2018. NewsGuard said the request effectively encompasses all of its work since its founding.</p><p data-block-key=\"90obt\">Despite objecting to the scope of the demand, NewsGuard said it cooperated with the FTC, producing more than 41,000 pages of documents and participating in at least 10 work sessions designed to avoid court intervention, but FTC staff continued to seek additional materials.</p><p data-block-key=\"flb7h\">NewsGuard’s petition outlined public criticism by Ferguson and other officials that culminated in the May 2025 demand, including allegations that it is part of a <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/fcc-commissioner-accuses-media-ratings-provider-of-censorship/\">“censorship cartel”</a> and that it led <a href=\"https://x.com/AFergusonFTC/status/1856152760850243905?s=20\">“collusive ad-boycotts”</a> to the detriment of conservative and independent media.</p><p data-block-key=\"24mgs\">In its <a href=\"https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/ftc_gov/pdf/NewsGuard-PTQ.pdf\">Jan. 16 petition</a>, NewsGuard disputed those claims, saying its ratings are based on transparent, apolitical criteria. The organization has reported on foreign propaganda campaigns and misinformation while also facing criticism and litigation from outlets across the political spectrum over low ratings, according to the petition.</p><p data-block-key=\"dojif\">“NewsGuard’s guiding principle has been that no government entity should be in the business of deciding what news people consume,” the document states.</p></div>\n<div class=\"block-raw_html\"><div class=\"article-content__block rich-text\"><p data-block-key=\"258po\">\r\n<p><a href=\"#top\"><i>Back to Top</i></a></p></div>\r\n<a id=\"May 20b\" name=\"May 20b\"></a></div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><h4 data-block-key=\"0wpfp\">May 20, 2025 | FTC targets media ratings service with demand for records</h4><p data-block-key=\"in67\">In the wake of a Federal Trade Commission demand for internal records issued May 20, 2025, in Washington, D.C., the British media ratings service, Global Disinformation Index, is suing the agency, describing the request as exhaustive and unconstitutional.</p><p data-block-key=\"ojci\">The FTC, under Chairman Andrew Ferguson, <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/ftc-targets-media-ratings-service-with-sweeping-document-demand/\">directed GDI to produce 29 categories of documents</a> dating back to its 2018 founding, including internal research, methodologies, communications and operational records.</p><p data-block-key=\"acpak\">GDI asserted journalistic privilege in federal court filings and argued that the FTC’s civil investigative demand is retaliation against the outlet for exercising its First Amendment rights.</p><p data-block-key=\"9evlv\">According to the <a href=\"https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/71963446/29/disinformation-index-inc-v-federal-trade-commission/\">London-based outlet</a>, which publishes research and risk ratings of online news sites, the order encompasses nearly every aspect of its work, including its assessments of news outlets based on their journalistic standards, ownership and funding transparency, editorial independence and fact-based reporting.</p><p data-block-key=\"av90h\">The demand – which acts as a subpoena – also came shortly after Ferguson became FTC chair. Before assuming his role, Ferguson publicly admitted he intended to punish GDI for its mission of promoting transparency online, GDI wrote in court filings.</p><p data-block-key=\"c06r9\">“Chairman Ferguson launched a specious investigation into GDI in direct retaliation to its First Amendment protected speech, media, and associational activities,” the nonprofit’s complaint states.</p><p data-block-key=\"7kdnd\">The outlet pointed to a November 2024 post on the <a href=\"https://x.com/AFergusonFTC/status/1856152760850243905?s=20\">social platform X</a>, in which Ferguson accused it of having “led collusive ad-boycotts—possibly in violation of our antitrust laws—to censor the speech of conservative and independent media in the United States.”</p><p data-block-key=\"10fu9\">“The CID is part of the coordinated effort among Chairman Ferguson and a cadre of other former, current, or future Trump administration officials and House Republicans who claimed—and continue to claim—that GDI led a conspiracy to boycott conservative and independent media,” the nonprofit wrote of the civil investigative demand.</p><p data-block-key=\"ejl05\">After receiving the demand, GDI provided some documentation to the FTC regarding its nonprofit status on June 10, 2025, and asked the FTC to <a href=\"https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/ftc_gov/pdf/2510061GlobalDisinformationIndexPTQ.pdf\">withdraw the rest of its request</a> Sept. 17, ultimately filing suit Nov. 25. The Commission <a href=\"https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/ftc_gov/pdf/GDI-OrderDenyingPTQ.pdf\">denied the request</a> to withdraw the full demand Dec. 10.</p><p data-block-key=\"94ahn\">In its denial, the commission rejected GDI’s constitutional claims and disputed its assertion of a journalist’s privilege, arguing that licensing the Dynamic Exclusion List, a database identifying websites it assesses as high risk for publishing disinformation, to paying “clients and subscribers” under private agreements constitutes commercial activity rather than public dissemination of journalism.</p></div>\n<div class=\"block-raw_html\"><div class=\"article-content__block rich-text\"><p data-block-key=\"258po\">\r\n<p><a href=\"#top\"><i>Back to Top</i></a></p></div></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
"teaser_image": "https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/2025-02-08T195338Z_960488062_RC2I.2e16d0ba.fill-1330x880.jpg",
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"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"1cd2d\">Andrew Ferguson, commissioner of the Federal Trade Commission, speaks at a conference in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on Feb. 8, 2025.</p>",
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{
"title": "University of Maryland police detain student journalist covering protest",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/university-of-maryland-police-detain-student-journalist-covering-protest/",
"first_published_at": "2026-01-12T18:24:46.225330Z",
"last_published_at": "2026-01-13T17:12:15.404189Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2026-01-13T17:12:15.296975Z",
"date": "2025-10-21",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "College Park",
"longitude": -76.93692,
"latitude": 38.98067,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"koood\">Rumaysa Drissi, a journalist with Al-Hikmah, the University of Maryland’s independent Muslim student newspaper, was detained on Oct. 21, 2025, while covering a protest outside an event that featured speakers from the Israeli military on the school’s campus in College Park.</p><p data-block-key=\"2hbtb\">The event, hosted by a pro-Israel student group, took place inside the university’s Jiménez Hall and featured Israel Defense Forces soldiers speaking about their experiences during the war in Gaza, according to <a href=\"https://alhikmahnews.com/about/#\">Al-Hikmah</a> Editor-in-Chief <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/university-of-maryland-student-journalist-detained-while-covering-protest/\">Riona Sheikh</a> and <a href=\"https://dbknews.com/2025/12/11/advocacy-group-urges-umd-to-drop-charges-against-student-journalists-detained-in-october/\">The Diamondback</a>, another student newspaper that <a href=\"https://dbknews.com/2025/10/22/umpd-detains-protesters-journalists-israel-soldier-event/\">covered</a> the event.</p><p data-block-key=\"egsn8\">Sheikh told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that she and Drissi were initially covering a protest held outside the building by a pro-Palestinian group.</p><p data-block-key=\"3q6t2\">She said that before the soldiers’ event began, she had asked a university police officer if she could sit in, identifying herself as a journalist. She was denied access.</p><p data-block-key=\"augla\">Later, a small group of protesters entered Jiménez Hall, and began chanting and holding signs outside the classroom where the evening event was taking place.</p><p data-block-key=\"30u3\">Sheikh said she and Drissi followed the group into the building, but stayed apart from the protesters. She added that she was recording on her cellphone, and Drissi was holding a professional camera.</p><p data-block-key=\"3nqgd\">Two or three University of Maryland police officers were standing in front of the classroom door. Once more officers arrived at the scene, Sheikh said they surrounded her and two protesters.</p><p data-block-key=\"1v8r5\">She identified herself as a journalist and said she was covering the event; the protesters said they did not know her, she added. The officers replied that it did not matter that she was a journalist, alleging that she was disrupting the event, Sheikh said. She attempted to leave, but they blocked her path.</p><p data-block-key=\"17r00\">Drissi then approached the group that was detained and explained to the officers that she and Sheikh were reporters covering the story, Sheikh said. The officers surrounded her as well, and alleged that they came as a group with the protesters.</p><p data-block-key=\"7euh9\">“They never asked me for press credentials, but I did ask them if they wanted to speak to my editor, and they said ‘no,’” Sheikh said.</p><p data-block-key=\"1hvbk\">Sheikh added that the officers asked her and Drissi for their student identifications so they could obtain their ID numbers to report them to the Office of Student Conduct. They declined to provide the IDs because they felt they were “wrongfully detained,” she said.</p><p data-block-key=\"54jb5\">The two journalists were released after around an hour.</p><p data-block-key=\"a57u3\">According to a letter sent to the university by the <a href=\"https://www.thefire.org/research-learn/fire-letter-university-maryland-december-8-2025\">Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression</a>, citing video footage of the incident, Drissi and Sheikh “repeatedly” identified themselves as journalists; nevertheless, an officer accused them of screaming and being disruptive.</p><p data-block-key=\"bl85j\">FIRE added that the footage “shows neither Sheikh nor Drissi shouting as they documented the interaction between protesters and university police.”</p><p data-block-key=\"aju8b\">The Diamondback — citing its review of officer body camera footage obtained in a public records request, witness videos and videos from staff reporters — <a href=\"https://dbknews.com/2025/10/22/umpd-detains-protesters-journalists-israel-soldier-event/\">also</a> <a href=\"https://dbknews.com/2025/12/11/advocacy-group-urges-umd-to-drop-charges-against-student-journalists-detained-in-october/\">reported</a> that Drissi and Sheikh were “holding cameras and standing behind protesters who chanted and held signs,” and not participating.</p><p data-block-key=\"ba0k4\">The paper also noted that its own reporters, who were wearing credentials around their necks, covered the incident and were not asked to leave.</p><p data-block-key=\"d537j\">FIRE wrote that Drissi and Sheikh were informed Nov. 17 by a university official that they faced charges for violating the code of student conduct, including interfering with the lawful freedom of expression of others and participating in disorderly or disruptive action.</p><p data-block-key=\"6g2pp\">The group urged the university to drop the charges, which would “sanction Sheikh and Drissi for exercising their rights as members of the student press to document newsworthy events on campus.”</p><p data-block-key=\"aunr8\">Christopher Lord, the university’s associate general counsel, in a Dec. 18 <a href=\"https://www.thefire.org/research-learn/university-maryland-response-fire-december-18-2025\">response</a> to FIRE, said Drissi and Sheikh were facing charges “because evidence indicates that they may have been part of the active disruption” of the event.</p><p data-block-key=\"5l6cg\">He added that Drissi and Sheikh were “not entitled to special treatment just because they claimed to be student journalists,” and noted that the outcome of their disciplinary conferences was pending.</p><p data-block-key=\"9eoto\">Lt. Rosanne Hoaas, public information officer for the University of Maryland Police Department, told the Tracker that officers “stopped four people for their failure to obey a command from law enforcement and for disrupting a university-sanctioned event,” adding that the students were required to provide identification to police.</p><p data-block-key=\"14fip\">She also noted that of the “group of six people” who approached the room where the event occurred, none displayed media credentials.</p><p data-block-key=\"9livh\">Sheikh said the incident left Al-Hikmah’s staff more hesitant amid an already fearful climate, especially for reporters and photographers who wear a hijab.</p><p data-block-key=\"71mbe\">“The whole reason I was covering it was because already a lot of Muslims are afraid to go and cover things like this,” she said.</p><p data-block-key=\"d08o4\">“But now even I am a little nervous. Am I going to be able to cover protests without experiencing this kind of harassment from the police?”</p><p data-block-key=\"62smk\"><i>Update: This report has been revised for clarity of quoted material.</i></p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
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"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"tyivx\">The campus of the University of Maryland in College Park, where two student journalists were detained while covering an Oct. 21, 2025, pro-Palestinian protest. Licensed under <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/en:Creative_Commons\">Creative Commons</a><a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en\"> Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International</a>.</p>",
"arresting_authority": "University of Maryland Police Department",
"arrest_status": "detained and released without being processed",
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"detention_date": "2025-10-21",
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"name": "Maryland",
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"tags": [
"Israel-Gaza war",
"protest",
"student journalism"
],
"politicians_or_public_figures_involved": [],
"authors": [],
"categories": [
"Arrest/Criminal Charge"
],
"targeted_journalists": [
"Rumaysa Drissi ([University of Maryland] Al-Hikmah)"
],
"subpoena_statuses": null,
"type_of_denial": []
},
{
"title": "University of Maryland student journalist detained while covering protest",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/university-of-maryland-student-journalist-detained-while-covering-protest/",
"first_published_at": "2026-01-12T18:18:15.535214Z",
"last_published_at": "2026-01-13T17:11:15.269122Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2026-01-13T17:11:15.157899Z",
"date": "2025-10-21",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "College Park",
"longitude": -76.93692,
"latitude": 38.98067,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"rr7r8\">Riona Sheikh, editor-in-chief of Al-Hikmah, the University of Maryland’s independent Muslim student newspaper, was detained on Oct. 21, 2025, while covering a protest outside an event that featured speakers from the Israeli military on the school’s campus in College Park.</p><p data-block-key=\"drdd2\">The event, hosted by a pro-Israel student group, took place inside the university’s Jiménez Hall and featured Israel Defense Forces soldiers speaking about their experiences during the war in Gaza, according to Sheikh and <a href=\"https://dbknews.com/2025/12/11/advocacy-group-urges-umd-to-drop-charges-against-student-journalists-detained-in-october/\">The Diamondback</a>, another student newspaper at the university that <a href=\"https://dbknews.com/2025/10/22/umpd-detains-protesters-journalists-israel-soldier-event/\">covered</a> the event.</p><p data-block-key=\"5vnsu\">Sheikh told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that she and <a href=\"https://alhikmahnews.com/about/#\">Al-Hikmah</a> colleague <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/university-of-maryland-police-detain-student-journalist-covering-protest/\">Rumaysa Drissi</a> were initially covering a protest held outside the building by a pro-Palestinian group.</p><p data-block-key=\"9teen\">She said that before the soldiers’ event began, she had asked a university police officer if she could sit in, identifying herself as a journalist. She was denied access.</p><p data-block-key=\"cc8nr\">Later, a small group of protesters entered Jiménez Hall, and began chanting and holding signs outside the classroom where the evening event was taking place.</p><p data-block-key=\"gi3i\">Sheikh said she and Drissi followed the group into the building, but stayed apart from the protesters. She added that she was recording on her cellphone, and Drissi was holding a professional camera.</p><p data-block-key=\"a9tqk\">Two or three University of Maryland police officers were standing in front of the classroom door. Once more officers arrived at the scene, Sheikh said they surrounded her and two protesters.</p><p data-block-key=\"9oevv\">She identified herself as a journalist and said she was covering the event; the protesters said they did not know her, she added. The officers replied that it did not matter that she was a journalist, alleging that she was disrupting the event, Sheikh said. She attempted to leave, but they blocked her path.</p><p data-block-key=\"dml32\">Drissi then approached the group that was detained and explained to the officers that she and Sheikh were reporters covering the story, Sheikh said. The officers surrounded her as well, and alleged that they came as a group with the protesters.</p><p data-block-key=\"9st3\">“They never asked me for press credentials, but I did ask them if they wanted to speak to my editor, and they said ‘no,’” Sheikh said.</p><p data-block-key=\"2ov9e\">Sheikh added that the officers asked her and Drissi for their student identifications so they could obtain their ID numbers to report them to the Office of Student Conduct. They declined to provide the IDs because they felt they were “wrongfully detained,” she said.</p><p data-block-key=\"dnmjr\">The two journalists were released after around an hour.</p><p data-block-key=\"c7214\">According to a letter sent to the university by the <a href=\"https://www.thefire.org/research-learn/fire-letter-university-maryland-december-8-2025\">Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression</a>, citing video footage of the incident, Sheikh and Drissi “repeatedly” identified themselves as journalists; nevertheless, an officer accused them of screaming and being disruptive.</p><p data-block-key=\"b9q35\">FIRE added that the footage “shows neither Sheikh nor Drissi shouting as they documented the interaction between protesters and university police.”</p><p data-block-key=\"5jgkk\">The Diamondback — citing its review of officer body camera footage obtained in a public records request, along with witness videos and videos from staff reporters — <a href=\"https://dbknews.com/2025/10/22/umpd-detains-protesters-journalists-israel-soldier-event/\">also</a> <a href=\"https://dbknews.com/2025/12/11/advocacy-group-urges-umd-to-drop-charges-against-student-journalists-detained-in-october/\">reported</a> that Sheikh and Drissi were “holding cameras and standing behind protesters who chanted and held signs,” and not participating.</p><p data-block-key=\"6fur7\">The paper also noted that its own reporters, who were wearing credentials around their necks, covered the incident and were not asked to leave.</p><p data-block-key=\"6rqqs\">FIRE wrote that Sheikh and Drissi were informed Nov. 17 by a university official that they faced charges for violating the code of student conduct, including interfering with the lawful freedom of expression of others, and participating in disorderly or disruptive action.</p><p data-block-key=\"ds18t\">The group urged the university to drop the charges, which would “sanction Sheikh and Drissi for exercising their rights as members of the student press to document newsworthy events on campus.”</p><p data-block-key=\"bpfln\">Christopher Lord, the university’s associate general counsel, in a Dec. 18 <a href=\"https://www.thefire.org/research-learn/university-maryland-response-fire-december-18-2025\">response</a> to FIRE, said Sheikh and Drissi were facing charges “because evidence indicates that they may have been part of the active disruption” of the event.</p><p data-block-key=\"e4n0e\">He added that Sheikh and Drissi were “not entitled to special treatment just because they claimed to be student journalists,” and noted that the outcome of their disciplinary conferences was pending.</p><p data-block-key=\"b8rgu\">Lt. Rosanne Hoaas, public information officer for the University of Maryland Police Department, told the Tracker that officers “stopped four people for their failure to obey a command from law enforcement and for disrupting a university-sanctioned event,” adding that the students were required to provide identification to police.</p><p data-block-key=\"fboca\">She also noted that of the “group of six people” who approached the room where the event occurred, none displayed media credentials.</p><p data-block-key=\"bi3md\">Sheikh said the incident left Al-Hikmah’s staff more hesitant amid an already fearful climate, especially for reporters and photographers who wear a hijab.</p><p data-block-key=\"g2i2\">“The whole reason I was covering it was because already a lot of Muslims are afraid to go and cover things like this,” she said.</p><p data-block-key=\"dqtkj\">“But now even I am a little nervous,” Sheikh added. “Am I going to be able to cover protests without experiencing this kind of harassment from the police?”</p><p data-block-key=\"65g8t\"><i>Update: This report has been revised for clarity of quoted material.</i></p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
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"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"i3gi2\">An entrance to the University of Maryland in College Park. Two student journalists were detained on campus while covering an Oct. 21, 2025, pro-Palestinian protest. Licensed under <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/en:Creative_Commons\">Creative Commons</a><a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en\"> Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International</a>.</p>",
"arresting_authority": "University of Maryland Police Department",
"arrest_status": "detained and released without being processed",
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"detention_date": "2025-10-21",
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"tags": [
"Israel-Gaza war",
"protest",
"student journalism"
],
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"Arrest/Criminal Charge"
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"Riona Sheikh ([University of Maryland] Al-Hikmah)"
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{
"title": "Reporter shoved, struck by police while documenting LA protest",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/reporter-shoved-struck-by-police-while-documenting-la-protest/",
"first_published_at": "2025-10-23T21:19:04.936101Z",
"last_published_at": "2025-10-23T21:19:04.936101Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2025-10-23T21:19:04.777210Z",
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"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"u7by9\">Los Angeles Daily News reporter Ryanne Mena was pushed by police and struck with a baton by an officer on horseback while documenting the “No Kings” protest in downtown Los Angeles, California, on Oct. 18, 2025.</p><p data-block-key=\"429ot\">Mena told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that she was not on assignment that evening but had gone to document the event, informing her editors.</p><p data-block-key=\"1qeu3\">She said the protest, one of thousands nationwide that day voicing opposition to the Trump administration, was peaceful up until 7:30 p.m., when the Los Angeles Police Department declared an unlawful assembly.</p><p data-block-key=\"7v1ci\">By that point, Mena was near the Metropolitan Detention Center, where officers had already blocked off part of the area with police tape.</p><p data-block-key=\"bqkm3\">“They wouldn’t let members of the press through,” she said.</p><p data-block-key=\"af3a6\">When the police line began advancing down the street, Mena said mounted officers pushed through both protesters and members of the press. When one officer on foot pushed her, Mena reminded her she was a journalist.</p><p data-block-key=\"elu5p\">“She looked down and saw my credentials and kind of backed off,” Mena said.</p><p data-block-key=\"83o13\">As the crowd was pushed farther down the street, Mena remained on the sidewalk filming when she said she and other journalists were violently shoved. She said she felt a pole-like object, which she believes was a police baton, swing against her left arm, leaving a bruise.</p><p data-block-key=\"e28gl\">“It all happened so fast,” said Mena, who added that police officers also deployed crowd-control munitions into the gathering.</p><p data-block-key=\"a0v3h\">Mena, who was wearing a tactical vest marked “press” and two visible press credentials around her neck, said she couldn’t definitively say if she was targeted as a member of the media in either incident.</p><p data-block-key=\"dpqa3\">“It was pretty clear that we were there just documenting events, and that didn’t protect us,” she added.</p><p data-block-key=\"eedr5\">The police actions at the rally appeared to violate a state law prohibiting officers from using force against members of the press.</p><p data-block-key=\"ah9c\">They also seemed to flout <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/journalist-struck-with-baton-finger-injured-amid-protests-in-downtown-la/\">a preliminary injunction</a> issued earlier this fall that bars the LAPD during protests from restricting press access to areas that are not crime scenes.</p><p data-block-key=\"fkrgs\">The LAPD said in a statement that it is investigating all use-of-force incidents from Oct. 18 and could not comment on active investigations.</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
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"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"5p8st\">Demonstrators and police officers face off during a “No Kings” protest against the Trump administration in Los Angeles, California, on Oct. 18, 2025. Reporter Ryanne Mena was struck with a police baton while covering the rally.</p>",
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"name": "California",
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"protest"
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"Assault"
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"Ryanne Mena ([Los Angeles] Daily News)"
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{
"title": "Photojournalist knocked to the ground by mounted officer at LA protest",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/photojournalist-knocked-to-the-ground-by-mounted-officer-at-la-protest/",
"first_published_at": "2025-10-23T16:59:25.119961Z",
"last_published_at": "2025-10-23T16:59:25.119961Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2025-10-23T16:59:24.999918Z",
"date": "2025-10-18",
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"city": "Los Angeles",
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"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"gd5c2\">Independent photojournalist Nick Stern was felled by a policeman on horseback and threatened with arrest while covering a “No Kings” protest in downtown Los Angeles, California, on Oct. 18, 2025. </p><p data-block-key=\"2ivsi\">The police actions at the rally, one of thousands nationwide that day voicing opposition to the Trump administration, appeared to violate a state law prohibiting officers from firing munitions at members of the press.</p><p data-block-key=\"d6cpq\">They also seemed to flout <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/journalist-struck-with-baton-finger-injured-amid-protests-in-downtown-la/\">a preliminary injunction</a> issued earlier this fall that bars the Los Angeles Police Department during protests from restricting press access to areas that are not crime scenes.</p><p data-block-key=\"6u075\">Stern told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that he arrived at the protest late in the day and found a peaceful march underway. Around 7 p.m., the LAPD issued a dispersal warning.</p><p data-block-key=\"ertt6\">Shortly after, about 10 officers on horseback descended on the group near the Metropolitan Detention Center and started pushing the crowd back. Stern said one mounted officer instructed him to move onto the sidewalk. But moments later, another officer charged onto the sidewalk, toppling him and ordering him to disperse. </p><p data-block-key=\"6brej\">In a video Stern posted to <a href=\"https://www.instagram.com/reel/DQDIpr1ku5I/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==\">Instagram</a>, he is seen falling, which he said caused a scrape on his right knee. An officer can be heard shouting, “You’re obstructing, leave the area!” </p><p data-block-key=\"1ehf3\">When Stern identified himself as press, the officer said he needed to identify himself, despite Stern clearly wearing a press badge around his neck.</p><p data-block-key=\"1khcu\">“I was threatened with arrest at least a couple of times for not dispersing,” he told the Tracker. “On one occasion, I was told that because I was protesting their order to disperse, and protesting the fact that I was media, that then means I am a protester and not a journalist.”</p><p data-block-key=\"fc02n\">The LAPD said in a statement that it is investigating all use-of-force incidents from Oct. 18 and could not comment on active investigations. </p><p data-block-key=\"egni0\">Stern has been documenting protests in LA since June, following federal raids of workplaces and areas in and around the city where immigrant day laborers gather. During his coverage, he was <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/photojournalist-struck-with-baton-press-credential-damaged-at-la-protest/\">struck in the face with a baton</a> and suffered a <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/munition-strikes-photojournalist-at-la-protest-shrapnel-surgically-removed/\">severe leg injury</a> from shrapnel caused by a crowd-control munition. </p><p data-block-key=\"divlp\">With the federal injunction still in place — under which the LAPD is barred from using force against clearly identified journalists engaged in news gathering — Stern asked: “What more can we do? What will it take to get LAPD to respect the constitutional rights of journalists?”</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
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"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"lptvb\">Mounted police officers push through a group of protesters and media during a “No Kings” protest in Los Angeles, California, on Oct. 18, 2025. Photojournalist Nick Stern was knocked to the ground by an officer while covering the protest. </p>",
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"name": "California",
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"protest"
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"Nick Stern (Independent)"
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{
"title": "Reporter struck by foam rounds at LA protest",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/reporter-struck-by-foam-rounds-at-la-protest/",
"first_published_at": "2025-10-24T17:12:13.135738Z",
"last_published_at": "2025-10-27T13:31:40.627097Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2025-10-27T13:31:40.511084Z",
"date": "2025-10-18",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Los Angeles",
"longitude": -118.24368,
"latitude": 34.05223,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"7hb54\">MintPress News reporter Jalyssa Dugrot was hit twice in the legs by police impact projectiles while covering the “No Kings” protest in downtown Los Angeles, California, on Oct. 18, 2025.</p><p data-block-key=\"cjqi0\">Dugrot told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that she was documenting interactions between Los Angeles Police Department officers, demonstrators and members of the press when officers declared the protest an unlawful assembly.</p><p data-block-key=\"4jvv5\">Police instructed Dugrot and others to get behind them as they pushed through the crowd, which made documenting what was going on unfeasible.</p><p data-block-key=\"5qmm9\">“That made it very difficult for press and media to even report,” she said.</p><p data-block-key=\"2gp6a\">After receiving permission from one officer to move closer, Dugrot, who wore a large “PRESS” label on her vest, said she began filming at the front of the police line as mounted officers advanced on the crowd, waiving their batons, and firing flash bangs and other munitions.</p><p data-block-key=\"a2ihl\">One officer deliberately aimed a projectile launcher at her, <a href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DQFYZ4JElwE/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==\">video of which Dugrot posted on Instagram.</a></p><p data-block-key=\"fkni6\">“They were very familiar with who I was,” she said. “So for him to take his nonlethal and deliberately shoot me, it was pretty intentional.”</p><p data-block-key=\"m0tf\">Dugrot said she was struck twice in the legs, leaving deep bruises.</p></div>\n<div class=\"block-image\">\n\n\n<img src=\"https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/Attachment-1_bJkEeiC.width-828.jpg\" width=\"828\" height=\"1104\" alt=\"COURTESY JALYSSA DUGROT\">\n</div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"7hb54\">“It definitely makes you a lot more wary of having to cover these kinds of things,” Dugrot said. “It’s a bit worrisome when even if you’re complying, you’re still at risk of being shot and targeted.”</p><p data-block-key=\"1f1ur\">The police actions at the rally, one of thousands nationwide that day voicing opposition to the Trump administration, appeared to violate a state law prohibiting officers from firing munitions at members of the press.</p><p data-block-key=\"e7rcp\">It also seemed to flout <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/journalist-struck-with-baton-finger-injured-amid-protests-in-downtown-la/\">a preliminary injunction</a> issued earlier this fall that bars the LAPD from restricting press access to areas that are not crime scenes during protests.</p><p data-block-key=\"4436d\">The LAPD said in a statement that it is investigating all use-of-force incidents from Oct. 18 and could not comment on active investigations.</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
"teaser_image": "https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/2025-10-19T021958Z_1412104190_RC2.2e16d0ba.fill-1330x880.jpg",
"primary_video": null,
"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"h3lsw\">Police officers hold batons and green munition launchers during a “No Kings” protest in Los Angeles, California, on Oct. 18, 2025. Reporter Jalyssa Dugrot was shot twice with foam rounds while she covered the demonstration.</p>",
"arresting_authority": null,
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"name": "California",
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"shot / shot at"
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{
"title": "Freelance photojournalist grabbed by officer at LA protest",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/freelance-photojournalist-grabbed-by-officer-at-la-protest/",
"first_published_at": "2025-10-29T20:07:42.227237Z",
"last_published_at": "2025-10-29T20:07:42.227237Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2025-10-29T20:04:56.145771Z",
"date": "2025-10-18",
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"city": "Los Angeles",
"longitude": -118.24368,
"latitude": 34.05223,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"ge4t6\">A freelance photojournalist was physically restrained by a police officer while covering a “No Kings” protest in downtown Los Angeles, California, on Oct. 18, 2025.</p><p data-block-key=\"3h8tr\">The photographer — who has previously asked not to be named due to fear of legal trouble when traveling abroad — did not respond to a U.S. Press Freedom Tracker request for comment. Another journalist who filmed the incident confirmed that he was the individual involved.</p><p data-block-key=\"1clj0\">According to the reporter who witnessed the assault, the photographer was clearly identifiable as press, wearing visible credentials and carrying his camera, when a Los Angeles Police Department officer grabbed him.</p><p data-block-key=\"644f6\">In a video the journalist shared with the Tracker, an officer can be seen seizing the photographer and appearing to try to tackle him.</p><p data-block-key=\"1hta2\">The journalist said she and the photojournalist later tried to alert an LAPD public information officer about what had happened, but were told to go to another area to find one.</p><p data-block-key=\"6ref8\">The LAPD said in a statement that it is investigating all use-of-force incidents from Oct. 18 and could not comment on active investigations.</p><p data-block-key=\"4dnrg\">The LAPD’s actions at the rally, one of thousands nationwide that day voicing opposition to the Trump administration, appeared to violate a state law and <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/journalist-struck-with-baton-finger-injured-amid-protests-in-downtown-la/\">preliminary injunction</a> prohibiting officers from using force against members of the press.</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
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"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"700iq\">A demonstrator holds his hands up in front of police officers at a “No Kings” protest in Los Angeles, California, on Oct. 18, 2025. A photojournalist covering the demonstration was grabbed by an officer.</p>",
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"categories": [
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],
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"Anonymous photojournalist 8 (Freelance)"
],
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{
"title": "Reporter injured while dodging police munition at LA protest",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/reporter-injured-while-dodging-police-munition-at-la-protest/",
"first_published_at": "2025-10-22T19:50:56.752710Z",
"last_published_at": "2025-10-22T19:50:56.752710Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2025-10-22T19:44:10.039853Z",
"date": "2025-10-18",
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"city": "Los Angeles",
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"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"aqch0\">Lexis-Olivier Ray, an investigative reporter with L.A. Taco, was targeted by a police officer who fired a crowd-control round during a “No Kings” protest in downtown Los Angeles on Oct. 18, 2025.</p><p data-block-key=\"4cba0\">Though the projectile missed him, Ray stumbled over a curb while dodging it and fell, sustaining bruises and scrapes to his side, hand, thumb and knee.</p><p data-block-key=\"7mboc\">The police actions at the rally, one of thousands nationwide that day voicing opposition to the Trump administration, appeared to violate a state law prohibiting officers from firing munitions at members of the press.</p><p data-block-key=\"5k9pm\">It also seemed to flout <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/journalist-struck-with-baton-finger-injured-amid-protests-in-downtown-la/\">a preliminary injunction</a> issued earlier this fall that bars the Los Angeles Police Department during protests from restricting press access to areas that are not crime scenes.</p><p data-block-key=\"5re6\">After sunset that day, the LAPD issued dispersal orders, and mounted officers began pushing back the crowds, Ray told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker.</p><p data-block-key=\"d6t4n\">He was wearing a shirt labeling him as press, along with a press badge, and standing with a small group of protesters and fellow journalists when an officer on foot fired a crowd-control projectile directly at him.</p><p data-block-key=\"88e5l\"><a href=\"https://x.com/FilmThePoliceLA/status/1979765853840409023\">Video from the scene</a> captured the shooting and another officer dismissively calling Ray “fake press” after the incident. LAPD said in a statement Oct. 21 that it was investigating all use-of-force incidents from Oct. 18 and could not comment on active investigations.</p><p data-block-key=\"c1fgf\">“It was probably some of the most significant injuries I’ve suffered while covering protests,” commented Ray, who said his thumb is still swollen from bearing the brunt of his fall and is difficult to move.</p><p data-block-key=\"3cqec\">In<a href=\"https://bsky.app/profile/lataco.bsky.social/post/3m3jfrmja4c2e\"> another video posted that night</a>, a mounted journalist charged at Ray, who identified himself as a member of the media. The officer responded, “It doesn’t matter.”</p><p data-block-key=\"8vke0\">Ray was also denied access to large portions of the street near the Metropolitan Detention Center, after officers had designated the area an incident command post. In one video, Ray asked an officer why the street was blocked off and reminded him that he is a member of the press.</p><p data-block-key=\"eag3u\">“Nobody can walk through here,” the officer replied.</p><p data-block-key=\"bvis\">When Ray asked why the road was closed, the officer replied, “We say so, that’s why.”</p><p data-block-key=\"c8p3e\">Ray asked to speak to a police supervisor, as outlined in state law and the federal judge’s <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/journalist-struck-with-baton-finger-injured-amid-protests-in-downtown-la/\">preliminary injunction</a>, but was ignored.</p><p data-block-key=\"b3rhe\">“It’s extremely discouraging to see that even after these court orders and state laws, the LAPD continues to violate our rights as members of the press,” he told the Tracker. “I’ve had to remind myself that state law or a judge’s order isn’t necessarily going to keep you safe. The police are going to do what they want and face consequences later.”</p><p data-block-key=\"castf\">During anti-deportation protests over the summer, Ray was <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/journalist-shoved-by-officer-during-la-immigration-protest/\">shoved by a police officer</a> and blocked from filming, <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/reporter-struck-with-pepper-balls-while-covering-la-immigration-protest/\">struck with pepper balls by federal law enforcement</a> (over which he later sued), and <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/sheriffs-deputy-searches-journalists-bag-during-la-immigration-protest/\">searched by a sheriff’s deputy</a>.</p><p data-block-key=\"7nago\">The Tracker has documented other incidents in which Ray, covering protests and gatherings in LA, was <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/journalist-repeatedly-shoved-while-covering-la-reproductive-rights-protests/\">shoved,</a> <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/la-taco-reporter-detained-while-covering-echo-park-protest/\">detained,</a> <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/journalist-tackled-equipment-damaged-while-covering-dodgers-celebrations/\">tackled</a> and <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/multiple-journalists-covering-protests-los-angeles-assaulted/\">struck with a baton</a>.</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
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"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"41tbz\">Mounted police clash with protesters at a “No Kings” rally against the Trump administration in Los Angeles, California, on Oct. 18, 2025. One officer fired a crowd-control munition at reporter Lexis-Olivier Ray, who was injured while trying to dodge it.</p>",
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{
"title": "Photojournalist hit by police projectile at LA protest, damaging armor",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/photojournalist-hit-by-police-projectile-at-la-protest-damaging-armor/",
"first_published_at": "2025-10-24T18:49:28.634608Z",
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"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"5otj1\">Freelance photojournalist Ted Soqui was struck in the back with a crowd-control munition fired by police officers while he was covering a “No Kings” protest in downtown Los Angeles, California, on Oct. 18, 2025. </p><p data-block-key=\"51ckv\">In a <a href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DP_6jtjkTWw/\">post on Instagram</a>, Soqui said that mounted police officers were dispersing the crowd when they began firing crowd-control munitions. </p><p data-block-key=\"ai8ce\">Soqui was clearly marked as a member of the press when a round struck him, penetrating the outer fabric of his protective gear and chipping an armored plate beneath.</p><p data-block-key=\"5akab\">His metal helmet also sustained impact from stick strikes by police on horseback, according to Soqui’s post. </p><p data-block-key=\"8srvo\">Soqui did not return U.S. Press Freedom Tracker requests for comment. The LAPD said in a statement that it is investigating all use-of-force incidents from Oct. 18 and could not comment on active investigations.</p><p data-block-key=\"e29o4\">The police actions at the rally, one of thousands nationwide that day voicing opposition to the Trump administration, appeared to violate a state law and <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/journalist-struck-with-baton-finger-injured-amid-protests-in-downtown-la/\">a preliminary injunction</a> prohibiting officers from firing munitions at members of the press.</p><p data-block-key=\"dud3h\">Soqui was also struck by <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/?targeted_journalists=Ted%20Soqui\">crowd-control munitions</a> while covering LA protests in June, which occurred after federal raids of workplaces and areas in and around the city where immigrant day laborers gather. </p></div>",
"introduction": "",
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"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"1qou1\">Mounted police clash with protesters at a “No Kings” rally against the Trump administration in Los Angeles, California, on Oct. 18, 2025. Photojournalist Ted Soqui was struck with a police-fired munition while covering the protest.</p>",
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{
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],
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},
{
"title": "Student reporter hit by projectile, charged by police horse at LA protest",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/student-reporter-hit-by-projectile-charged-by-police-horse-at-la-protest/",
"first_published_at": "2025-11-13T14:30:59.140720Z",
"last_published_at": "2025-11-14T18:31:26.006533Z",
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"date": "2025-10-18",
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"city": "Los Angeles",
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"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"27gvi\">Kayjel Mairena, a student journalist for Santa Monica College’s The Corsair, was struck in the side with a police-fired projectile and nearly trampled by a mounted officer while covering a “No Kings” protest in downtown Los Angeles, California, on Oct. 18, 2025.</p><p data-block-key=\"3p6ij\">The police actions at the rally, which was one of thousands nationwide that day voicing opposition to the Trump administration, appeared to violate a state law and federal injunction prohibiting officers from firing munitions at members of the press.</p><p data-block-key=\"d6g1m\">Mairena, news editor for The Corsair, told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that Los Angeles Police Department officers on horseback charged at a group of journalists and protesters as police blocked entry to parts of the demonstration.</p><p data-block-key=\"4oj7j\">The crowd, including Mairena and other members of the press, was pushed into a tight area as the horses advanced, forcing people to back away to avoid being trampled. As police lines moved forward, Mairena said officers restricted journalists’ movement and forced them behind a line of vehicles, where visibility was limited.</p><p data-block-key=\"3oef\">“Once they said the press were agitators, whatever they were doing felt intentional,” Mairena said. “If you run, you kind of risk being shot in the back, but if you’re walking backwards, you can also risk falling. If you walk too slow, you can get trampled.”</p><p data-block-key=\"2um5c\">It was in that confusion, he said, that he was struck on the side by a crowd-control munition fired by the LAPD to disperse demonstrators. Mairena, who was wearing clothing and credentials identifying him as press, said he had moved behind a group of other credentialed journalists when the round struck him on his right side. He said he was not seriously injured.</p><p data-block-key=\"de3fp\">The experience, though, has worsened his post-traumatic stress from previous military service and revisiting the photos later triggered a panic attack.</p><p data-block-key=\"57l17\">“I am terrified of the mounted units,” he said. “I’m at more risk now than when I was in the Navy.”</p><p data-block-key=\"89v1c\">The LAPD said in a statement that it is investigating all use-of-force incidents from Oct. 18 and could not comment on active investigations.</p><p data-block-key=\"6lbhc\">Mairena, while on assignment <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/student-journalist-hit-with-pepper-ball-and-pepper-sprayed-at-la-protest/\">Sept. 1</a>, was also pepper-sprayed and hit with a pepper ball fired by Department of Homeland Security officers.</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
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"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"czgrq\">A mounted police officer at a “No Kings” protest in Los Angeles, California, on Oct. 18, 2025. Reporter Kayjel Mairena was struck with a projectile and nearly trampled by a horse while covering the demonstration.</p>",
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"state": {
"name": "California",
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],
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],
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},
{
"title": "Indiana University orders student paper to stop printing after firing adviser",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/indiana-university-orders-student-paper-to-stop-printing-after-firing-adviser/",
"first_published_at": "2025-10-29T14:08:35.890110Z",
"last_published_at": "2025-11-04T17:14:32.348716Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2025-11-04T17:14:32.140857Z",
"date": "2025-10-14",
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"city": "Bloomington",
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"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"mlpjl\">Administrators at Indiana University Bloomington fired the adviser to the Indiana Daily Student on Oct. 14, 2025, and then hours later ordered the newspaper to cease all print publication. The outlet has continued publishing online.</p><p data-block-key=\"98p5t\">Founded in 1867, the independently-run newspaper reduced its print production in January to seven times per semester due to financial challenges and a new business plan launched by the university’s media school.</p><p data-block-key=\"411js\">After the paper’s spring run, the university began pushing for its “special editions” to include no news but just themed coverage about topics like fall sports, Homecoming and Thanksgiving.</p><p data-block-key=\"62nt0\">Student media director Jim Rodenbush and newspaper editors opposed the demand. Then, when Rodenbush pushed back against an order to remove news content from the newspaper’s print editions Oct. 14, he was fired.</p><p data-block-key=\"acgqt\">“I was terminated because I was unwilling to censor student media,” Rodenbush <a href=\"https://www.indystar.com/story/news/education/2025/10/15/indiana-university-orders-student-newspaper-ids-to-stop-printing/86709732007/\">told</a> The Indianapolis Star.</p><p data-block-key=\"34p1m\">The next day, administrators ordered the newspaper to halt all printing entirely.</p><p data-block-key=\"dbhc8\">“Telling us what we can and cannot print is unlawful censorship,” Co-Editors-in-Chief Mia Hilkowitz and Andrew Miller <a href=\"https://www.idsnews.com/article/2025/10/ids-print-indiana-university-daily-student-fired-newspaper\">wrote</a> on the online site Oct. 15. “We will continue to resist as long as the university disregards the law.”</p><p data-block-key=\"dg7db\">University Chancellor David Reingold <a href=\"https://www.indystar.com/story/news/education/2025/10/15/indiana-university-orders-student-newspaper-ids-to-stop-printing/86709732007/\">maintained</a> the school “is firmly committed to the free expression and editorial independence of student media” and that the decision “concerns the medium of distribution, not editorial content.”</p><p data-block-key=\"1ed4o\">Spokesperson Mark Bode likewise said that the university is prioritizing digital media over print due to the newspaper’s financial status.</p><p data-block-key=\"bm5sv\">But for Hilkowitz, the decision is still a violation. “The Media School thinks they can violate the First Amendment if it’s under a business decision,” she told the Indy Star. “That’s a really, really dangerous thought process for administrators to have. The fact that they’re trying to frame clear censorship as business is so disrespectful to every party involved.”</p><p data-block-key=\"du1rb\">Attorney Kris Cundiff of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press is representing Hilkowitz and Miller.</p><p data-block-key=\"776t9\">In a letter to Reingold, President Pamela Whitten, Media School Dean David Tolchinsky and other school leadership, Cundiff <a href=\"https://www.idsnews.com/article/2025/10/ids-editors-attorney-censorship-iu-print\">wrote</a> the termination of Rodenbush and cuts to the print paper were “ill-advised, unconstitutional, and appear to be aimed at suppressing core press and speech rights.”</p><p data-block-key=\"cdfa7\">“Telling student journalists what they can and cannot include in a newspaper is censorship of ‘editorial content’ by any definition,” Cundiff added.</p><p data-block-key=\"9kmdu\">The news outlet had <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/indiana-student-paper-says-state-politicians-posts-about-outlet-threatening/\">previously been targeted</a> by Indiana Lt. Gov Micah Beckwith, who, after his election last November, called the paper’s political coverage “elitist leftist propaganda,” and said university officials should evaluate the publication and investigate any financial support for it.</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
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"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"4gea6\">The Indiana Daily Student was ordered by officials at Indiana University Bloomington to cease publishing its print version on Oct. 15, 2025. Above, a statue of journalist and alum Ernie Pyle in front of the building housing the student-run news outlet.</p>",
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"(2025-10-30 15:01:00+00:00) Indiana University reverses order that student paper stop printing"
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]
