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{
"title": "Colorado judge lifts gag order in teen murder trial",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/colorado-judge-lifts-gag-order-in-teen-murder-trial/",
"first_published_at": "2025-12-19T16:37:32.543077Z",
"last_published_at": "2025-12-19T16:37:32.543077Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2025-12-19T16:37:32.307783Z",
"date": "2025-12-16",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Eagle",
"longitude": -106.82865,
"latitude": 39.65526,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"rhpci\">An Eagle, Colorado, judge issued a gag order on Dec. 16, 2025, prohibiting the media from reporting information disclosed in open court during a murder case involving a teenager.</p><p data-block-key=\"69h8s\">The Vail Daily filed a motion to vacate the publishing gag, and it was lifted the next day, according to the <a href=\"https://www.vaildaily.com/news/judge-lifts-gag-order-testimony-continues-in-teen-murder-case/\">outlet</a> and court filings reviewed by the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker.</p><p data-block-key=\"crvvs\">The newspaper <a href=\"https://www.vaildaily.com/news/eagle-county-judge-issues-gag-order-in-teen-murder-case-preventing-further-reporting/\">reported</a> that Judge Rachel Olguin-Fresquez imposed the order orally during a preliminary hearing in the case of a 17-year-old accused of killing a younger teenage boy during a fight in 2024.</p><p data-block-key=\"f1kh5\">On the first day of hearings on Dec. 15, the defense moved to restrict public access to the proceedings, which were being livestreamed, arguing that it could jeopardize the defendant’s ability to receive a fair trial.</p><p data-block-key=\"3d6ht\">The defense also asked the judge to impose a gag order limiting future media coverage. It alleged that the Vail Daily’s stories — which included photos of the victim and his family — were “highly inflammatory.”</p><p data-block-key=\"eic34\">At that point, Olguin-Fresquez halted the livestream but did not limit media coverage.</p><p data-block-key=\"84o8n\">However, the next day she imposed the gag order, citing the Vail Daily’s story about the Dec. 15 hearing.</p><p data-block-key=\"1d4oh\">“Looking at today’s paper, the court is concerned that the ability to obtain a conviction or the ability to obtain a not-guilty verdict is being compromised by evidence reported in the newspaper,” Olguin-Fresquez said.</p><p data-block-key=\"6hmj6\">Olguin-Fresquez also alleged that the Vail Daily printed “things that didn’t happen in trial.” The paper denied that claim.</p><p data-block-key=\"5369k\">In a motion filed later Dec. 16, Steve Zansberg, the attorney for the Vail Daily, argued that the judge’s order was an unconstitutional prior restraint because it prohibited the outlet from publishing “information on a matter of legitimate public concern that was lawfully obtained by its reporter in open court proceedings.”</p><p data-block-key=\"4kssm\">“Supreme Court precedent makes it unmistakably clear that a court cannot order a newspaper not to publish information that has been disclosed in open court,” Zansberg wrote, also citing rulings by the Colorado Supreme Court.</p><p data-block-key=\"2p8ju\">Olguin-Fresquez, in lifting the gag order Dec. 17, “warned the media against using the names of the juveniles involved in the case,” the Vail Daily <a href=\"https://www.vaildaily.com/news/judge-lifts-gag-order-testimony-continues-in-teen-murder-case/\">reported</a>.</p><p data-block-key=\"fpjqs\">The paper noted that it used the teen’s name because he was charged as an adult — though his attorneys were seeking to have his case transferred back to juvenile court — and that the victim’s family had granted permission for the media to use the victim’s name.</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
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"teaser_image": "https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/Eagle_County_Justice_Center.2e16d0ba.fill-1330x880.jpg",
"primary_video": null,
"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"vnpro\">Colorado’s Eagle County Justice Center, where a judge issued a gag order on media coverage of a murder trial on Dec. 16, 2025; the order was lifted the next day. Licensed under <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/\">Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International</a>.</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": "dropped",
"mistakenly_released_materials": false,
"links": [],
"equipment_seized": [],
"equipment_broken": [],
"state": {
"name": "Colorado",
"abbreviation": "CO"
},
"updates": [],
"case_statuses": [],
"workers_whose_communications_were_obtained": [],
"target_nationality": [],
"targeted_institutions": [
"Media"
],
"tags": [],
"politicians_or_public_figures_involved": [],
"authors": [],
"categories": [
"Prior Restraint"
],
"targeted_journalists": [],
"subpoena_statuses": null,
"type_of_denial": []
},
{
"title": "Trump, his administration move to punish outlets during second term",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/trump-administration-allies-move-to-punish-outlets-during-first-weeks-in-office/",
"first_published_at": "2025-01-30T20:43:36.335430Z",
"last_published_at": "2025-12-10T22:49:59.610836Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2025-12-10T22:49:59.363127Z",
"date": "2025-12-09",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Washington",
"longitude": -77.03637,
"latitude": 38.89511,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"63pix\">From the first weeks of President Donald Trump’s second term, he and his administration have taken steps to punish and intimidate news outlets that have covered them unfavorably. We’re documenting Trump’s direct actions in this regularly updated report.</p><p data-block-key=\"coqi2\">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=\"cv9ql\"><i>This article was first published on March 14, 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=\"m8ln1\"></p><hr/><p data-block-key=\"4vmk2\"></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=\"#Dec. 9\">Dec. 9, 2025 | Trump accuses NYT of treason, labels it the ‘enemy of the people’</a>\r\n<p><a href=\"#Aug. 1\">Aug. 1, 2025 | Corporation for Public Broadcasting to shutter following Trump funding cuts</a>\r\n<p><a href=\"#July 15\">July 15, 2025 | Trump administration, Congress target public broadcasting</a>\r\n<p><a href=\"#June 29\">June 29, 2025 | Trump says journalists will be forced to reveal sources in pursuit of Iran report leakers</a>\r\n<p><a href=\"#June 3\">June 3, 2025 | White House asks Congress to repeal $1.1 billion in funding to public media</a>\r\n<p><a href=\"#May 1\">May 1, 2025 | Trump signs executive order eliminating funding to NPR, PBS</a>\r\n<p><a href=\"#April 14\">April 14, 2025 | White House plans to formally ask Congress to cut PBS, NPR funding</a> \r\n<p><a href=\"#March 14-2\">March 14, 2025 | Trump signs executive order gutting government-funded news outlets</a> \r\n<p><a href=\"#March 14-1\">March 14, 2025 | Trump says negative press coverage ‘illegal’ during speech at DOJ</a></p></div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"3ocum\"></p><hr/><p data-block-key=\"a5gu5\"></p></div>\n<div class=\"block-raw_html\"><a id=\"Dec. 9\" name=\"Dec. 9\"></a></div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><h4 data-block-key=\"px9kc\">Dec. 9, 2025 | Trump accuses NYT of treason, labels it the ‘enemy of the people’</h4><p data-block-key=\"25u5n\">President Donald Trump posted on his Truth Social platform on Dec. 9, 2025, that The New York Times and unnamed others were seditious and “true Enemies of the People,” adding that “we should do something about it.”</p><p data-block-key=\"7goc5\">Trump’s ire appears to have been triggered by <a href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/01/health/trump-mri-results.html\">recent</a> <a href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/25/us/politics/trump-age-health.html\">Times</a> <a href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/27/us/politics/trump-mri-third-term.html\">reporting</a> about medical examinations the president underwent in October, and signs of growing fatigue and possible health conditions connected to his age.</p><p data-block-key=\"6um0g\">In his <a href=\"https://taps.pressfreedomtracker.us/post/03b4acd25e88/\">post</a>, Trump asserted that he works longer hours and harder than his predecessors and went out of his way to have medical examinations, accusing the Times and others of liking to “pretend that I am ‘slowing up,’ am maybe not as sharp as I once was, or am in poor physical health.”</p><p data-block-key=\"4k9kt\">“I actually believe it’s seditious, perhaps even treasonous, for The New York Times, and others, to consistently do FAKE reports in order to libel and demean ‘THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES,’” Trump continued. “They are true Enemies of the People, and we should do something about it.”</p><p data-block-key=\"4bbfv\">He reposted the attack almost two hours later, bringing the comments back to the top of his profile — where, as of this writing, they remain.</p><p data-block-key=\"a5n1h\">Trump’s post and repost mark the third and fourth time, respectively, that he referred to the newspaper as the “enemy of the people,” a <a href=\"https://taps.pressfreedomtracker.us/?tag=Enemy+of+the+people\">moniker</a> that he first deployed against the press in February 2017, shortly after he took office.</p><p data-block-key=\"5pp5q\">The Times defended its reporting in a <a href=\"https://x.com/NYTimesPR/status/1998756664691114046\">statement</a> the following day.</p><p data-block-key=\"b5mu\">“Mr. Trump welcomed our reporting on the age and fitness of his predecessors; we’re applying the same journalistic scrutiny to his vitality,” spokesperson Nicole Taylor said. “Our reporting is heavily sourced, based on interviews with people close to the president and with medical experts. We won’t be deterred by false and inflammatory language that distorts the role of a free press.”</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. 1\" name=\"Aug. 1\"></a></div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><h4 data-block-key=\"ztgt6\">Aug. 1, 2025 | Corporation for Public Broadcasting to shutter following Trump funding cuts</h4><p data-block-key=\"dj7ua\">The Corporation for Public Broadcasting announced Aug. 1, 2025, that it would cease its operations after Congress passed President Donald Trump’s request to cancel the $1.1 billion in funding earmarked for the organization for the next two years.</p><p data-block-key=\"4ekj1\">CPB and the public broadcasters it supports have been a target of Trump’s second administration since its earliest days. In a <a href=\"https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/2025/04/the-npr-pbs-grift-has-ripped-us-off-for-too-long/\">statement</a> published April 14, the White House asserted that NPR and PBS “spread radical, woke propaganda disguised as ‘news’” and that funding them is a waste of taxpayer money.</p><p data-block-key=\"2ldkv\">Trump <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/trump-administration-allies-move-to-punish-outlets-during-first-weeks-in-office/#June%203\">attempted to fire</a> three CPB board members in April, despite lacking the authority to do so under the law that established the private, nonprofit corporation. Just days later, on May 1, he signed an executive order instructing the CPB to cease federal funding for the public media outlets. In June, Trump filed the <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/trump-administration-allies-move-to-punish-outlets-during-first-weeks-in-office/#June%203\">rescission request</a> to Congress that would cancel already approved funding for the corporation.</p><p data-block-key=\"63ctp\">CPB President and CEO Patricia Harrison said in a <a href=\"https://cpb.org/pressroom/Corporation-Public-Broadcasting-Addresses-Operations-Following-Loss-Federal-Funding\">statement</a> Aug. 1 that, after more than 60 years, the corporation had begun winding down its operations, “despite the extraordinary efforts of millions of Americans who called, wrote, and petitioned Congress to preserve federal funding for CPB.”</p><p data-block-key=\"118s0\">“Public media has been one of the most trusted institutions in American life, providing educational opportunity, emergency alerts, civil discourse, and cultural connection to every corner of the country,” Harrison said. “We are deeply grateful to our partners across the system for their resilience, leadership, and unwavering dedication to serving the American people.”</p><p data-block-key=\"652ff\">While CPB and the three board members targeted by Trump sued to protect them from being fired, two have since withdrawn their claims and resigned their positions on CPB’s board of directors.</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 15\" name=\"July 15\"></a></div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><h4 data-block-key=\"vjjz1\">July 15, 2025 | Trump administration, Congress, target public broadcasting</h4><p data-block-key=\"6m6j0\">The Trump administration filed a federal lawsuit on July 15, 2025, against the Corporation for Public Broadcasting — which provides funding to NPR, PBS and their local affiliates — in an attempt to oust the three Democratic board members.</p><p data-block-key=\"d8ipg\">Trump had <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/trump-administration-allies-move-to-punish-outlets-during-first-weeks-in-office/#June%203\">attempted to fire</a> the board members in April, and just days later, on May 1, signed an executive order instructing the private nonprofit corporation to cease federal funding for the public media outlets.</p><p data-block-key=\"85dld\">NPR<a href=\"https://www.washingtonpost.com/style/media/2025/05/27/npr-lawsuit-trump-executive-order-funding-cuts/\"> sued</a> to halt the order, calling it “textbook retaliation.” NPR CEO Katherine Maher<a href=\"https://www.npr.org/2025/05/27/g-s1-69017/npr-and-katherine-maher-ceo-of-npr-statement\"> wrote</a>, “The intent could not be more clear — the Executive Order aims to punish NPR for the content of news and other programming the President dislikes.”</p><p data-block-key=\"4lmog\">The following month, Trump further targeted government support for the public broadcasters through a <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/trump-administration-allies-move-to-punish-outlets-during-first-weeks-in-office/#June%203\">rescission request</a>, asking Congress to cancel $1.1 billion in already-approved funding.</p><p data-block-key=\"571tq\">The House approved the package in a close vote — <a href=\"https://clerk.house.gov/Votes/2025168\">214-212</a> on June 12.</p><p data-block-key=\"ot3j\">In a <a href=\"https://taps.pressfreedomtracker.us/post/cfa69aeac4dd/\">July 10 post</a> on the social platform Truth Social, Trump called on Senate Republicans to grant the request, especially as it pertains to the broadcasters.</p><p data-block-key=\"79ts2\">“It is very important that all Republicans adhere to my Recissions Bill and, in particular, DEFUND THE CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING (PBS and NPR), which is worse than CNN & MSDNC put together,” Trump wrote. “Any Republican that votes to allow this monstrosity to continue broadcasting will not have my support or Endorsement.”</p><p data-block-key=\"c6lpn\">The Senate approved the request in a 51-48 vote early morning July 17, despite concerns from members of Congress that it surrendered the legislative branch’s power of the purse, The New York Times <a href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/17/us/politics/senate-vote-trump-bill-pbs-npr-foreign-aid.html\">reported</a>.</p><p data-block-key=\"61miv\">One holdout, Sen. Mike Rounds of South Dakota, voted in favor after he was assured by Trump officials that unspent funds would be used “to continue grants to tribal radio stations without interruption” for next year, according to the Times.</p><p data-block-key=\"foith\">The House gave final approval for the White House’s request early July 18, The Associated Press <a href=\"https://apnews.com/article/pbs-npr-budget-cuts-trump-republicans-b0044285659ab708e23eb2dc2f3eabfa\">reported</a>, making it the first successful rescissions request to Congress in decades.</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=\"June 29\" name=\"June 29\"></a></div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><h4 data-block-key=\"0wuzj\">June 29, 2025 | Trump says journalists will be forced to reveal sources in pursuit of Iran report leakers</h4><p data-block-key=\"497pl\">In an interview with Fox News aired on June 29, 2025, President Donald Trump said that journalists could and should be forced to reveal their sources so that those behind the leaks of classified intelligence on U.S. strikes on Iran could be prosecuted.</p><p data-block-key=\"d03h3\">Following the airstrikes earlier in June, several news outlets — including <a href=\"https://www.cnn.com/2025/06/24/politics/intel-assessment-us-strikes-iran-nuclear-sites\">CNN</a>, <a href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/24/us/politics/iran-nuclear-sites.html\">The New York Times</a> and <a href=\"https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2025/06/24/us-iran-bomb-assessment-nuclear-sites-not-destroyed/\">The Washington Post</a> — reported that a preliminary assessment found that the bombings had set Iran’s nuclear program back by months, not “obliterated” it as Trump had been asserting.</p><p data-block-key=\"dt7k9\">Trump doubled down on the claim <a href=\"https://youtu.be/YdqKZDJQoDw\">during his interview</a> with Fox News host Maria Bartiromo on June 27, lamenting the coverage the strikes had received.</p><p data-block-key=\"bve19\">“They did obliterate it, it turned out. Then we had to suffer the fake news, where the fake news in CNN and The New York Times was saying, ‘Well, maybe it wasn’t as good as Trump said. Maybe it wasn’t totally obliterated, but it was destroyed,’” Trump said. “You know, just horrible. And I could see it happening and they tried to build that into a story.”</p><p data-block-key=\"avqub\">Trump added that those behind the leak should be prosecuted and, when asked whether his administration would be able to identify them, indicated that he has no issue forcing journalists to identify their sources.</p><p data-block-key=\"837as\">“We can find out. If they wanted, they could find out easily. You know, you go up and tell the reporter, ‘National security: Who gave it?’ You have to do that. And I suspect we’ll be doing things like that,” Trump said.</p><p data-block-key=\"4g10a\">White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt discredited CNN’s reporting on the assessment in a <a href=\"https://x.com/PressSec/status/1937599769544982577\">post on the social platform X</a>, writing “FAKE NEWS CNN STRIKES AGAIN.”</p><p data-block-key=\"c8s10\">“This alleged ‘assessment’ is flat-out wrong and was classified as ‘top secret’ but was still leaked to CNN by an anonymous, low-level loser in the intelligence community,” Leavitt continued.</p><p data-block-key=\"e5e4o\">In a <a href=\"https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/07/02/trump-journalists-source-leaked-iran-intelligence/\">statement to the Post</a>, Leavitt accused the newspaper of “helping people commit felonies by publishing out-of-context leaks.”</p><p data-block-key=\"9hfr8\">Trump’s <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/?date_upper=2021-01-19&tags=Department+of+Justice&categories=Leak+Case\">administrations</a> have <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/tulsi-gabbard-targets-press-leakers-as-national-intelligence-director/#March%2014\">routinely</a> <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/pete-hegseth-targets-news-outlets-leakers-as-defense-secretary/\">sought</a> <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/kash-patel-targets-press-leakers-as-fbi-director/\">to punish</a> <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/kristi-noem-targets-press-leakers-as-homeland-security-secretary/\">leakers</a> and have <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/pam-bondi-targets-journalists-leakers-as-us-attorney-general/\">demonstrated</a> a <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/?date_upper=2021-01-19&tags=Department+of+Justice&categories=Subpoena%2FLegal+Order\">willingness</a> to disregard journalists’ First Amendment protections in order to do so.</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=\"June 3\" name=\"June 3\"></a></div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><h4 data-block-key=\"mev26\">June 3, 2025 | White House asks Congress to repeal $1.1 billion in funding to public media</h4><p data-block-key=\"1a7qc\">The Trump White House budget office asked Congress on June 3, 2025, to cancel $1.1 billion in funding already approved for public broadcasting, multiple media outlets reported.</p><p data-block-key=\"cmc15\">The request, <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/trump-administration-allies-move-to-punish-outlets-during-first-weeks-in-office/#April%2014\">drafted in April</a>, calls for the elimination of two years’ worth of funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which in turn partially funds NPR and PBS. Only a simple majority vote is needed to approve the request.</p><p data-block-key=\"7tu6a\">The Washington Post <a href=\"https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/06/03/trump-asks-congress-repeal-9-billion-npr-pbs-global-aid/\">reported</a> that Russell Vought, head of the Office of Management and Budget, proposed the cuts in a letter to Trump, writing, “federal spending on CPB subsidizes a public media system that is politically biased and is an unnecessary expense to the taxpayer.”</p><p data-block-key=\"fvecm\">Trump, individuals in his administration and allies in Congress have repeatedly targeted public broadcasters since his return to office in January.</p><p data-block-key=\"3j4la\">Trump <a href=\"https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/1904610620659687944\">said</a> during a March 25 meeting with U.S. ambassadors that he would “love” to eliminate funding for the public broadcasters. In April, he <a href=\"https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/114264549657133828\">called on Republicans in Congress</a> to defund and disassociate themselves from “THE RADICAL LEFT ‘MONSTERS’ THAT SO BADLY HURT OUR COUNTRY,” and the White House <a href=\"https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/2025/04/the-npr-pbs-grift-has-ripped-us-off-for-too-long/\">asserted in an official statement</a> that NPR and PBS are publishing “trash” and have engaged in a “grift.”</p><p data-block-key=\"e3e7g\">In April, Trump attempted to illegally fire three CPB board members and just days later, on May 1, signed an executive order instructing the private nonprofit corporation to cease federal funding for the outlets.</p><p data-block-key=\"dve0t\">NPR <a href=\"https://www.washingtonpost.com/style/media/2025/05/27/npr-lawsuit-trump-executive-order-funding-cuts/\">sued</a> to halt the order, calling it “textbook retaliation.” NPR CEO Katherine Maher <a href=\"https://www.npr.org/2025/05/27/g-s1-69017/npr-and-katherine-maher-ceo-of-npr-statement\">wrote</a>, “The intent could not be more clear — the Executive Order aims to punish NPR for the content of news and other programming the President dislikes.”</p><p data-block-key=\"43olm\">Within Congress, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/rep-marjorie-taylor-greene-targets-press-as-doge-subcommittee-chair/\">has led a campaign</a> against the broadcasters and Rep. Ronny Jackson <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/rep-ronny-jackson-targets-press-as-member-of-congress/#March%2027\">introduced a bill</a> to eliminate all direct and indirect government funding for NPR and PBS.</p><p data-block-key=\"6dfi1\">In a <a href=\"https://www.npr.org/2025/04/15/nx-s1-5352827/npr-pbs-public-media-trump-rescission-funding\">statement</a> published when the draft recision request became public, NPR said eliminating funding for CPB would have a devastating impact on communities that rely on public broadcasting each day.</p><p data-block-key=\"7hho\">“We serve the public interest,” the outlet wrote. “It’s not just in our name — it’s 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 1\" name=\"May 1\"></a></div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><h4 data-block-key=\"8udpj\">May 1, 2025 | Trump signs executive order eliminating funding to NPR, PBS</h4><p data-block-key=\"4s8m1\">President Donald Trump signed an <a href=\"https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/05/ending-taxpayer-subsidization-of-biased-media/\">executive order</a> on May 1, 2025, instructing the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to cease federal funding for NPR and PBS, citing their alleged “biased and partisan news coverage.”</p><p data-block-key=\"3limi\">In a <a href=\"https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/2025/05/president-trump-finally-ends-the-madness-of-npr-pbs/\">news release</a> the following day, the White House accused the news outlets of using “millions of dollars in taxpayer funds each year to spread radical, woke propaganda disguised as ‘news.’”</p><p data-block-key=\"a70ca\">Patricia Harrison, president and CEO of CPB, issued a <a href=\"https://cpb.org/pressroom/Corporation-Public-Broadcasting-Statement-Regarding-Executive-Order-Public-Media\">statement</a> pushing back against the executive order, citing provisions expressly forbidding government actors from attempting to direct the corporation’s work.</p><p data-block-key=\"d2077\">“CPB is not a federal executive agency subject to the President’s authority,” Harrison wrote. “Congress directly authorized and funded CPB to be a private nonprofit corporation wholly independent of the federal government.”</p><p data-block-key=\"eoev4\">Trump’s executive order came just days after he directed a staff member to email three of CPB’s five board members to alert them that they had been removed from their positions. The board as a whole and the targeted members — Diane Kaplan, Laura Ross and Thomas Rothman — <a href=\"https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.279991/gov.uscourts.dcd.279991.1.0.pdf\">sued</a> Trump on April 29, seeking a judicial declaration that the order is unenforceable, as the president has no power to remove them.</p><p data-block-key=\"edl4d\">“Put simply, Congress conceived CPB as a vehicle for infusing federal money into public broadcasting without the introduction of government direction or control,” the suit states. “Moreover, Congress protected the CPB from the executive branch by withholding from CPB any form, pure or quasi, of legislative, judicial, or regulatory power.”</p><p data-block-key=\"9mfat\">White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers dismissed CPB’s assertions in a <a href=\"https://www.npr.org/2025/04/29/nx-s1-5381045/cpb-board-members-trump-lawsuit-npr-pbs\">statement to NPR</a>. “As numerous courts have repeatedly affirmed, the Constitution gives President Trump the power to remove personnel who exercise his executive authority,” Rogers said. “The Trump Administration looks forward to ultimate victory on the issue.”</p><p data-block-key=\"73dcs\">District Judge Randolph Moss has <a href=\"https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/69966304/corporation-for-public-broadcasting-v-trump/\">ordered</a> both sides to file arguments on CPB’s motion, which seeks a temporary restraining order to prevent Trump’s order from taking effect.</p><p data-block-key=\"aqc9u\">Trump’s executive order and attempt to remove CPB board members were the latest attacks on public broadcasting by his administration or allies in Congress. Earlier, the White House <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/trump-administration-allies-move-to-punish-outlets-during-first-weeks-in-office/#April%2014\">drafted a recision request</a> to revoke $1.1 billion in approved funding for the corporation, FCC Chair Brendan Carr <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/brendan-carr-targets-news-outlets-as-chair-of-the-fcc/#Jan%2029\">launched investigations</a> into PBS and NPR over their advertising and sponsorship practices, and Reps. <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/rep-ronny-jackson-targets-press-as-member-of-congress/#March%2027\">Ronny Jackson</a> and <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/rep-marjorie-taylor-greene-targets-press-as-doge-subcommittee-chair/\">Marjorie Taylor Greene</a> have demeaned the outlets and threatened their funding.</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 14\" name=\"April 14\"></a></div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><h4 data-block-key=\"qezxr\">April 14, 2025 | White House plans to formally ask Congress to cut PBS, NPR funding</h4><p data-block-key=\"bfp4o\">The Trump White House plans to formally ask Congress to cancel $1.1 billion in funding already approved for public broadcasting, multiple news outlets reported on April 14, 2025.</p><p data-block-key=\"94l7i\"><a href=\"https://www.npr.org/2025/04/15/nx-s1-5352827/npr-pbs-public-media-trump-rescission-funding\">According to NPR</a>, the White House has drafted a rescission request that calls for the elimination of two years’ worth of funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which in turn partially funds NPR and PBS.</p><p data-block-key=\"fnilc\">The administration intends to send it to Congress when lawmakers return from a two-week recess on April 28. Only a simple majority vote is needed to approve the request.</p><p data-block-key=\"2oum8\">In a <a href=\"https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/2025/04/the-npr-pbs-grift-has-ripped-us-off-for-too-long/\">statement</a> published April 14, which did not mention the draft request, the White House asserted that NPR and PBS are publishing “trash” and have engaged in a “grift.”</p><p data-block-key=\"79mab\">“For years, American taxpayers have been on the hook for subsidizing National Public Radio (NPR) and the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), which spread radical, woke propaganda disguised as ‘news,’” the statement said. “As President Trump has stated, taxpayer funding of NPR’s and PBS’s biased content is a waste.”</p><p data-block-key=\"di1s6\">Trump <a href=\"https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/1904610620659687944\">said</a> during a March 25 meeting with U.S. ambassadors that he would “love” to eliminate funding for the public broadcasters, and in an April 1 <a href=\"https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/114264549657133828\">social media post</a> called on Republicans in Congress to “DEFUND AND TOTALLY DISASSOCIATE THEMSELVES FROM NPR & PBS, THE RADICAL LEFT ‘MONSTERS’ THAT SO BADLY HURT OUR COUNTRY.”</p><p data-block-key=\"a2fle\">In a statement published by NPR, the outlet said, “Eliminating funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting would have a devastating impact on American communities across the nation that rely on public radio for trusted local and national news, culture, lifesaving emergency alerts, and public safety information.</p><p data-block-key=\"2ri6t\">“We serve the public interest. It’s not just in our name — it’s 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=\"March 14-2\" name=\"March 14-2\"></a></div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><h4 data-block-key=\"3ocum\">March 14, 2025 | Trump signs executive order gutting government-funded news outlets</h4><p data-block-key=\"8bsve\">In a late-night executive order, President Donald Trump eliminated all functions not required by law for the United States Agency for Global Media, along with a half-dozen other federal agencies, referring to them as “unnecessary governmental entities.”</p><p data-block-key=\"1cbav\">The USAGM oversees Voice of America and the office that manages Radio and TV Martí, as well as provides funding for private international broadcasters Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Radio Free Asia and the Middle East Broadcasting Networks.</p><p data-block-key=\"2frfm\">Michael Abramowitz, director of Voice of America, confirmed in a March 15 <a href=\"https://www.facebook.com/abramowitzmj/posts/pfbid02ocNQehfifbHeAAv5qDWW55BSkwEhB9L91UyxfsJBApKw38j2fzY4DdLkc7SorUJUl\">statement</a> on his personal Facebook page that he and nearly the entire staff of the news organization — more than 1,300 journalists, producers and support staff — had been suspended.</p><p data-block-key=\"fn0a6\">“I am deeply saddened that for the first time in 83 years, the storied Voice of America is being silenced,” Abramowitz wrote. “VOA needs thoughtful reform, and we have made progress in that regard. But today’s action will leave Voice of America unable to carry out its vital mission.”</p><p data-block-key=\"9ji7j\">No articles have been published on the VOA website since around 2 p.m. on March 15. The Independent <a href=\"https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-media-voice-america-bloody-saturday-b2716583.html\">reported</a> that by the following night, many of the employees placed on leave had been fired, including <a href=\"https://x.com/liamjscott/status/1901416015352811693\">press freedom reporter Liam Scott</a>.</p><p data-block-key=\"e5i1s\">NPR <a href=\"https://www.npr.org/2025/03/15/nx-s1-5329244/bloody-saturday-voiceofamerica-radio-free-asia-europe-trump-kari-lake\">reported</a> that USAGM also severed its contracts with the private international broadcasters it funds.</p><p data-block-key=\"8n9hf\">In a March 15 <a href=\"https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/2025/03/the-voice-of-radical-america/\">news release</a>, the White House railed against “The Voice of Radical America,” and said Trump’s executive order “will ensure that taxpayers are no longer on the hook for radical propaganda.”</p><p data-block-key=\"4pou4\">Elon Musk, head of the new Department of Government Efficiency, had <a href=\"https://x.com/elonmusk/status/1888574212316582230?lang=en\">called</a> for the USAGM news outlets to be shut down in early February, writing, “It’s just radical left crazy people talking to themselves while torching $1B/year of US taxpayer money.”</p><p data-block-key=\"5f0g7\">Grant Turner, a former senior executive at USAGM, called the cuts “Bloody Saturday” and told NPR, “It took decades to build this goodwill and an audience of hundreds of millions every week. Seeing arsonists just set fire to it all is awful.”</p><p data-block-key=\"cmu5k\">Steve Capus, the president of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, said in a statement shared with NPR, “The cancellation of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s grant agreement would be a massive gift to America’s enemies.”</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 14-1\" name=\"March 14-1\"></a></div>\n<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><h4 data-block-key=\"3ocum\">March 14, 2025 | Trump says negative press coverage ‘illegal’ during speech at DOJ</h4><p data-block-key=\"5mqt4\">President Donald Trump called the critical news coverage of his administration “illegal” and “corrupt” during a speech at the Department of Justice on March 14, 2025.</p><p data-block-key=\"5d8fd\">Amid his <a href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6i41Av4eYO8\">nearly hourlong remarks</a>, Trump said that many judges, including those on the Supreme Court, “take tremendous abuse” from news outlets, including The New York Times, The Washington Post and broadcast networks, likening the coverage to judicial interference. “It’s truly interference in my opinion and it should be illegal and it probably is illegal in some form,” Trump said.</p><p data-block-key=\"ecl8u\">He went on to claim that CNN and MSNBC are “political arms of the Democrat Party.”</p><p data-block-key=\"vpnv\">“These networks and these newspapers are really no different than a highly paid political operative and it has to stop, it has to be illegal,” Trump said.</p><p data-block-key=\"d5tm7\">As Trump decried his perceived enemies in the media, justice system and nonprofit sector, he advanced the DOJ as a tool to exact his personal vengeance. He asserted that he is the chief law enforcement officer — which The Associated Press <a href=\"https://apnews.com/article/trump-bondi-patel-justice-fbi-retribution-ec275e730c6e75f2d6ee29eeec30fa07\">reported</a> is technically Attorney General Pam Bondi — and as such will demand “full and complete accountability for the wrongs and abuses that have occurred.”</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/2025-03-15T003457Z_176944555_RC29.2e16d0ba.fill-1330x880.jpg",
"primary_video": null,
"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"7bspe\">President Donald Trump speaks to reporters before boarding Air Force One as he departs from Joint Base Andrews in Maryland on March 14, 2025.</p>",
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"CNN",
"Media",
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"National Public Radio",
"PBS News",
"Radio Free Asia",
"Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty",
"Radio y Televisión Martí",
"The New York Times",
"Voice of America"
],
"tags": [
"Donald Trump"
],
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},
{
"title": "Photojournalist denied entry to federal building in San Diego",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/photojournalist-denied-entry-to-federal-building-in-san-diego/",
"first_published_at": "2025-12-16T17:27:28.006023Z",
"last_published_at": "2025-12-16T17:27:28.006023Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2025-12-16T17:27:27.828050Z",
"date": "2025-12-05",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "San Diego",
"longitude": -117.16472,
"latitude": 32.71571,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"fgmb9\">Independent photojournalist Jonathan Chang was barred from bringing his professional camera into a federal building in San Diego, California, on Dec. 5, 2025.</p><p data-block-key=\"brlb4\">In an <a href=\"https://latenfour.com/2025/12/10/guest-column-san-diego-federal-building-is-barring-journalists-from-entry/\">account</a> for digital news outlet The LA Ten Four, Chang wrote that he had previously visited the Edward J. Schwartz Federal Building multiple times without issue as part of his ongoing efforts to cover the immigration court housed there.</p><p data-block-key=\"93es4\">“I would state my purpose with security guards at the entrance, they would scan my camera. I would walk through a metal detector and make my way into the building,” he wrote.</p><p data-block-key=\"5jio6\">His experience when visiting Dec. 5, he added, was far different.</p><p data-block-key=\"ah494\">Two private security guards contracted with the federal building pulled him aside, informing him that he couldn’t enter with his camera but that he could take pictures with his cellphone. Chang wrote that he then spoke with a Department of Homeland Security police officer, who confirmed the restrictions.</p><p data-block-key=\"72rvg\">“I affirmed to her I understand I could not take photos inside the courtroom. I was not going to the courtroom; I was going into the building,” he wrote. “I told her I’d be staying in the hallways to document the story of the volunteers inside the building to capture any detentions that may happen while I was there.”</p><p data-block-key=\"ck3ck\">The officer referred Chang to a <a href=\"https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-6/chapter-I/part-139/subpart-B/section-139.65\">DHS policy</a> that took effect in November, asserting that the photojournalist needed permission from one of the federal building’s tenants to bring in his camera.</p><p data-block-key=\"cm1fh\">The policy only speaks to active use of a camera, not simply carrying one, and also provides exceptions for members of the media filming in publicly accessible areas in and around the federal building.</p><p data-block-key=\"3uu4q\">A <a href=\"https://www.justice.gov/eoir/media/1416861/dl?inline\">fact sheet</a> from the Department of Justice’s Executive Office for Immigration Review, however, specifies that immigration court hearings are generally open to the public with limited exceptions.</p><p data-block-key=\"8mbk2\">“Access to observe immigration court hearings necessarily entails access to EOIR space, which includes courtrooms, interior entrances, exits, corridors, conference rooms, and the waiting areas that are in direct view or control of security, the immigration court, or are otherwise part of EOIR’s daily operations,” it continues.</p><p data-block-key=\"fkipb\">Chang told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that the officers didn’t seem to understand the rules governing their own buildings, and he was frustrated by their apparent unwillingness to engage with him.</p><p data-block-key=\"26j5\">“It’s another data point of the government’s censorship of the press,” he said.</p><p data-block-key=\"38akh\">Adam Rose, deputy director of advocacy for Freedom of the Press Foundation, of which the Tracker is a project, said in a statement, “There’s no excuse for obstructing photography in public hallways of a federal building.</p><p data-block-key=\"6vetg\">“Violations should be alarming to federal courts, which depend on public participation and trust,” he continued. “The press contributes to both by serving as the eyes and ears of the public.”</p><p data-block-key=\"1u9es\">Neither the Executive Office for Immigration Review nor official contacts for the federal building responded to requests for additional information or comment.</p></div>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
"teaser_image": "https://media.pressfreedomtracker.us/media/images/AP25171734397319.2e16d0ba.fill-1330x880.jpg",
"primary_video": null,
"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"89h1b\">An interfaith group entering a federal building during immigration hearings on June 20, 2025, in San Diego, California. Photojournalist Jonathan Chang was prevented from bringing his camera into the same building on Dec. 5.</p>",
"arresting_authority": null,
"arrest_status": null,
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"unnecessary_use_of_force": false,
"case_number": null,
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"status_of_seized_equipment": null,
"is_search_warrant_obtained": false,
"actor": null,
"border_point": null,
"target_us_citizenship_status": null,
"denial_of_entry": false,
"stopped_previously": false,
"did_authorities_ask_for_device_access": null,
"did_authorities_ask_about_work": null,
"assailant": null,
"was_journalist_targeted": null,
"charged_under_espionage_act": false,
"subpoena_type": null,
"name_of_business": null,
"third_party_business": null,
"legal_order_venue": null,
"status_of_prior_restraint": null,
"mistakenly_released_materials": false,
"links": [],
"equipment_seized": [],
"equipment_broken": [],
"state": {
"name": "California",
"abbreviation": "CA"
},
"updates": [],
"case_statuses": [],
"workers_whose_communications_were_obtained": [],
"target_nationality": [],
"targeted_institutions": [],
"tags": [
"Department of Homeland Security",
"immigration"
],
"politicians_or_public_figures_involved": [
"Federal government: Agency"
],
"authors": [],
"categories": [
"Denial of Access"
],
"targeted_journalists": [
"Jonathan Chang (Independent)"
],
"subpoena_statuses": null,
"type_of_denial": [
"Change in policy or practice"
]
},
{
"title": "University of Alabama shutters 2 student magazines, citing federal DEI guidance",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/university-of-alabama-shutters-2-student-magazines-citing-federal-dei-guidance/",
"first_published_at": "2025-12-17T18:51:15.154074Z",
"last_published_at": "2025-12-17T18:51:15.154074Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2025-12-17T18:51:15.066835Z",
"date": "2025-12-01",
"exact_date_unknown": false,
"city": "Tuscaloosa",
"longitude": -87.56917,
"latitude": 33.20984,
"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"j24y8\">Two student magazines were shut down on Dec. 1, 2025, by the state-run University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, which said they violated guidance from the Justice Department about funding for diversity, equity and inclusion programs.</p><p data-block-key=\"e160g\"><a href=\"https://1956magazine.ua.edu/about/\">Nineteen Fifty-Six</a> covers Black student life and culture, while <a href=\"https://alice.ua.edu/about/\">Alice</a> focuses primarily on women’s fashion and wellness. Both publish print editions in the spring and fall semesters, as well as online content.</p><p data-block-key=\"bo16b\">The closures came in the wake of a July 29 <a href=\"https://www.justice.gov/ag/media/1409486/dl\">memo</a> issued by Attorney General Pam Bondi to recipients of federal funding, with guidance on how to comply with antidiscrimination laws, part of the Trump administration’s <a href=\"https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/trump-doj-memo-dei-ban-federal-fund-recipients-rcna222105\">larger effort</a> to reverse policies promoting DEI.</p><p data-block-key=\"3ghn8\">One section of the memo cautioned against “unlawful proxy discrimination,” explaining, “Unlawful proxies occur when a federally funded entity intentionally uses ostensibly neutral criteria that function as substitutes for explicit consideration of race, sex, or other protected characteristics.”</p><p data-block-key=\"5ci3n\">According to <a href=\"https://thecrimsonwhite.com/125358/news/university-suspends-alice-nineteen-fifty-six-student-magazines/\">The Crimson White</a>, the university’s student newspaper that first reported the suspensions, Vice President for Student Life Steven Hood told the staff of the two magazines that because their audiences are specific groups, they are considered “unlawful proxies.”</p><p data-block-key=\"3spjb\">University spokesperson Alex House said in a statement the closures allow the school to “ensure all members of our community feel welcome to participate in programs that receive university funding from the Office of Student Media,” the Alabama Reflector <a href=\"https://alabamareflector.com/2025/12/02/university-of-alabama-suspends-student-magazines-citing-federal-memo/\">reported</a>.</p><p data-block-key=\"6i1lo\">Neither magazine limited participation based on racial or gender identity.</p><p data-block-key=\"8sqot\">“I was under the impression that we were protected from being affected by any anti-DEI legislation and rulings because of our First Amendment right to freedom of press, but it appears I was wrong,” Alice Magazine Editor-in-Chief Gabrielle Gunter told the Reflector.</p><p data-block-key=\"ei6rh\">In a statement <a href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DRx5WP1ATe7/\">posted</a> on social media, Kendal Wright, Nineteen Fifty-Six editor-in-chief, said she was “devastated but, regrettably, not surprised” by the decision. She added, “Regardless of our suspension, there will continue to be a need on campus for the stories of the university’s Black community to be told.”</p><p data-block-key=\"4anvj\">The move drew national attention and sparked anger among students and alumni. One group started a <a href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DSGOyyrEufY/\">fundraiser</a> for the magazines, raising more than $25,000 in just three days. Those funds will <a href=\"https://www.alabamamasthead.org/faq\">cover</a> the costs for the two spring editions of the magazine, the Media Alumni Seeking to Highlight Equity and Diversity group said.</p><p data-block-key=\"et6c3\">U.S. Reps. Terri Sewell and Shomari Figures, both Alabama representatives, wrote a Dec. 16 <a href=\"https://sewell.house.gov/press-releases?ID=71506183-2707-42FD-85B0-0FE2680C87B3\">letter</a> to University of Alabama President Peter Mohler to call on the school to reinstate the magazines, saying the decision has “profound implications for free speech, academic freedom, and the University’s stated commitment to fostering an inclusive campus environment.”</p></div>",
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"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"hmi3e\">The Tuscaloosa campus of the University of Alabama, above. The state institution closed two student magazines on Dec. 1, 2025, citing Trump administration guidance on unlawful discrimination by recipients of federal funding. Licensed under <a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Malone_Hood_Plaza_University_of_Alabama_northeast_view.jpg\">public domain</a>.</p>",
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{
"title": "Photojournalist slammed against wall, arrested amid NYC protest",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/photojournalist-slammed-against-wall-arrested-amid-nyc-protest/",
"first_published_at": "2025-12-04T22:06:50.829041Z",
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"date": "2025-11-29",
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"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"nkjdt\">Independent photojournalist and documentarian Avery Craig was assaulted and arrested by police while documenting immigration protests in New York, New York, on Nov. 29, 2025.</p><p data-block-key=\"b7fer\">Demonstrators had gathered near a General Services Administration parking lot in lower Manhattan in an attempt to physically block federal authorities who began staging there at around 11 a.m., The City <a href=\"https://www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/29/nypd-ice-homeland-security-canal/\">reported</a>.</p><p data-block-key=\"49q4h\">New York City Police Department officers were called in to support the agents, helping to push protesters back and erect metal barricades around the parking garage. Shortly after 1 p.m., agents abruptly exited in their vehicles, and protesters chased them down the street.</p><p data-block-key=\"1bcn\">Amid this chaotic scene, NYPD officers continued to clash with demonstrators. Craig told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that he somehow became caught up in it.</p><p data-block-key=\"q0k0\">“As I was getting to the sidewalk, a cop was running up the block to arrest a protester. At the same moment, I was running up the block to document what was happening,” he said. “As I’m running up, a cop slams me to the wall and then yells, ‘You’re next! You’re next!’”</p><p data-block-key=\"4vr1f\">Craig said he asked why he was being detained and identified himself as press multiple times.</p><p data-block-key=\"1u70c\">“He says, ‘We don’t give a shit.’ And then I’m pointing to the journal and the book that I had in my hand, and he slams them on the concrete, and the journal actually broke from the spine,” he recounted.</p><p data-block-key=\"8ap6l\">In <a href=\"https://www.instagram.com/reel/DRs3JFIjHyi/\">footage of the incident</a> captured by independent journalist Wali Khan for Status Coup, a baffled Craig is seen wearing city-issued press credentials around his neck as two officers turn and push him face-first into a wall. Multiple voices can be heard shouting out, “He’s press!”</p><p data-block-key=\"f5s51\">Craig told the Tracker that, luckily, a protester retrieved his book and journal, the latter of which contains notes and reporting materials for a documentary project he’s working on in the Bronx.</p><p data-block-key=\"1r4c\">He was then loaded into a police van and transported to a precinct, where he waited for approximately three hours before officers notified him that they had voided the charge against him.</p><p data-block-key=\"5bg28\">“The charge that they were going to place upon me was obstruction, and which the supervisor to the arresting officer clearly stated, as I was in the van, that they had it all on body camera,” Craig said. “While I was in the cell, and they were telling me that I was good to go, I asked them if they checked the body camera, and they obviously said that nothing happened. And that was how it was settled.”</p><p data-block-key=\"467er\">In a statement to The City, an NYPD spokesperson said the officers were responding to a call for a “disorderly group.”</p><p data-block-key=\"ek0b4\">“Upon arrival, officers observed multiple individuals who were blocking the street and exits at different locations. The individuals were also observed throwing debris,” the statement said. “They were instructed multiple times to disperse, and they did not comply. As a result, multiple individuals were taken into custody.”</p><p data-block-key=\"6nj6n\">The department did not respond to an additional request for comment on Craig’s arrest.</p></div>",
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"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"740vb\">Police officers make an arrest after protesters tried to prevent federal agents from leaving for an immigration raid in New York, New York, on Nov. 29, 2025. Independent photojournalist Avery Craig was also detained that day.</p>",
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{
"title": "Photojournalist struck in stomach with pepper ball at Minnesota protest",
"url": "https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/photojournalist-struck-in-stomach-with-pepper-ball-at-minnesota-protest/",
"first_published_at": "2025-12-01T18:30:40.664651Z",
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"date": "2025-11-25",
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"body": "<div class=\"block-rich_text\"><p data-block-key=\"6s1aw\">Freelance photojournalist Tim Evans 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=\"5j1dm\">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=\"50phf\">Evans, who was not immediately available for comment, <a href=\"https://www.mprnews.org/story/2025/11/26/st-paul-police-use-of-force-during-ice-protests-raises-press-freedom-concerns\">told the Minnesota Public Radio</a> that he was on assignment that day for Reuters and was wearing a vest marked with “Press.” He was also working near two fellow photojournalists — <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/photojournalist-shot-with-crowd-control-munitions-amid-minnesota-protest\">Kerem Yücel</a> of MPR and <a href=\"https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/photojournalist-struck-in-head-with-pepper-ball-amid-minnesota-protest\">Aaron Nesheim</a> of Sahan Journal — most of the day.</p><p data-block-key=\"3kq9h\">As federal officers prepared to leave, police tried to clear the area, but the scene devolved into chaos.</p><p data-block-key=\"12jq9\">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=\"5h85a\">“One of the guys looks at me and shoots me in the stomach as I’m photographing,” Evans told MPR. The pepper ball left a black-and-blue welt, he added.</p><p data-block-key=\"ip1l\">Nesheim said he saw Yücel struck in the shoulder with a crowd-control munition. Shortly after, a pepper ball grazed Nesheim’s head.</p><p data-block-key=\"4spfe\">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=\"71sip\">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=\"39eq6\">“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=\"21d9h\">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=\"cuhtg\">“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": "",
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"image_caption": "<p data-block-key=\"j8f2c\">Federal authorities stand guard at a federal immigration enforcement action in St. Paul, Minnesota, on Nov. 25, 2025. Freelance photojournalist Tim Evans was shot with pepper balls while covering protests in opposition to the raid.</p>",
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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",
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"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": "",
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"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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{
"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/",
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"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,
"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": "law enforcement",
"was_journalist_targeted": "yes",
"charged_under_espionage_act": false,
"subpoena_type": null,
"name_of_business": null,
"third_party_business": null,
"legal_order_venue": null,
"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": [
"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,
"type_of_denial": []
},
{
"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,
"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": [
{
"quantity": 3,
"equipment": "camera"
},
{
"quantity": 1,
"equipment": "equipment bag"
},
{
"quantity": 1,
"equipment": "vehicle"
}
],
"equipment_broken": [],
"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": [],
"targeted_institutions": [],
"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>",
"introduction": "",
"teaser": "",
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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": "",
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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>",
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"charged_under_espionage_act": false,
"subpoena_type": null,
"name_of_business": "Meta Platforms",
"third_party_business": "tech company",
"legal_order_venue": "State",
"status_of_prior_restraint": null,
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"state": {
"name": "Kansas",
"abbreviation": "KS"
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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",
"primary_video": null,
"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,
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"assailant": "law enforcement",
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"state": {
"name": "Illinois",
"abbreviation": "IL"
},
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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)"
],
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},
{
"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",
"primary_video": null,
"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,
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"assailant": "law enforcement",
"was_journalist_targeted": "unknown",
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"state": {
"name": "California",
"abbreviation": "CA"
},
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"tags": [
"shot / shot at"
],
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"categories": [
"Assault"
],
"targeted_journalists": [
"Myraneli Fabian (Freelance)"
],
"subpoena_statuses": null,
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},
{
"title": "Photojournalist 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": "2025-11-19T14:59:35.150730Z",
"latest_revision_created_at": "2025-11-19T14:59:34.983776Z",
"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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"actor": null,
"border_point": null,
"target_us_citizenship_status": null,
"denial_of_entry": false,
"stopped_previously": false,
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"assailant": "law enforcement",
"was_journalist_targeted": "unknown",
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"state": {
"name": "Illinois",
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},
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"tags": [
"chemical irritant",
"immigration",
"protest",
"shot / shot at"
],
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"categories": [
"Assault"
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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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"state": {
"name": "Illinois",
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},
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"chemical irritant",
"immigration",
"protest",
"shot / shot at"
],
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"categories": [
"Assault"
],
"targeted_journalists": [
"Jon Farina (Status Coup)"
],
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}
]
