Subpoena/Legal Order

Pending subpoenas

7

See incidents →
Subpoenas upheld by judges

10

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Journalists subpoenaed to identify a confidential source

42

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Warrants issued targeting journalists

35

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Telecom companies subpoenaed for journalists’ records

18

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Tech companies subpoenaed for journalists’ records

16

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Data Tracked For This Category

Subpoenas or legal orders requiring journalists to testify in court or produce journalistic records or work product. This category also includes orders targeted at third parties who have access to journalistic records or work product. Because many subpoenas are not publicly reported and legal orders for journalist records are conducted with high levels of secrecy, the numbers in this category are likely to underestimate actual cases.

Recent Incidents

YouTube accounts of 6 news outlets and journalists subpoenaed by DHS
1. Subpoena/Legal Order
Date of incident

April 3, 2026

Location

St. Paul, Minnesota

Targets

Brendan Gutenschwager (Independent), Don Lemon (Independent), Georgia Fort (Independent), Megyn Kelly (Independent), Democracy Now!, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
- #DHS
Kansas journalist hit with search warrant after photographing police range
1. Subpoena/Legal Order
Date of incident

November 14, 2025

Location

Emporia, Kansas

Targets

Jarom Smith (Lyon County Observer)
Blake Lively subpoenas Google for journalists’ account information
1. Subpoena/Legal Order
Date of incident

July 3, 2025

Location

New York, New York

Targets

Andy Signore (Popcorned Planet), Katie Paulson (Without A Crystal Ball), Kjersti Flaa (FlaawsomeTalk)
Justice Department secretly obtained emails from Project Veritas founder
1. Subpoena/Legal Order
Date of incident

April 9, 2021

Location

New York, New York

Targets

James O'Keefe (Project Veritas)
- #Department of Justice
Twitter subpoenaed for information of journalists, media outlets
1. Subpoena/Legal Order
Updated on

March 29, 2021

Date of incident

June 6, 2018

Location

Washington, District of Columbia

Targets

Cassandra Fairbanks (The Gateway Pundit), Julian Assange (WikiLeaks), Matt Couch (America First Media), America First Media, The Gateway Pundit, The Washington Times, WikiLeaks
Justice Department secretly obtained Project Veritas journalist’s email information
1. Subpoena/Legal Order
Date of incident

March 9, 2021

Location

New York, New York

Targets

Unidentified journalist 16 (Project Veritas)
- #Department of Justice
Justice Department secretly obtained emails from three Project Veritas journalists
1. Subpoena/Legal Order
Date of incident

March 5, 2021

Location

New York, New York

Targets

Unidentified journalist 13 (Project Veritas), Unidentified journalist 14 (Project Veritas), Unidentified journalist 15 (Project Veritas)
- #Department of Justice
Justice Department secretly obtained emails from Project Veritas journalist
1. Subpoena/Legal Order
Date of incident

January 26, 2021

Location

New York, New York

Targets

Unidentified journalist 12 (Project Veritas)
- #Department of Justice