Freedom of the Press

Defending and supporting public-interest journalism in the 21st century.

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freedomofpress@social-freedom-press.mostr.pub

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Last Notes

2026-05-12 17:56:43 UTC

NY’s attorney discipline office told us to keep secret that it found a federal prosecutor engaged in misconduct after he retaliated against a newspaper.
Pro tip: Don’t direct a prior restraint at an organization with freedom of the press in its name.
https://theintercept.com/2026/05/11/trump-new-york-us-attorney-john-sarcone-misconduct/

2026-05-01 20:53:40 UTC

Over half of the world’s countries now fall into the “difficult” or “very serious” categories for press freedom, according to RSF Index.
“The average score for all countries and territories worldwide has never been so low” in 25 years.
The U.S. ranks 64th out of 180 countries; the worst ever recorded.
https://rsf.org/en/2026-rsf-index-press-freedom-25-year-low?data_type=general&year=2026
https://cdn.masto.host/socialfreedompress/media_attachments/files/116/501/302/948/524/570/original/0ca922f85cc2dd6c.png

2026-05-01 20:07:01 UTC

📩 Read in our weekly newsletter (and subscribe):
- Bootlicking Brendan Carr is back at it
- It’s almost World Press Freedom Day. Someone forgot to tell the world
- FPF sues for White House texts
- Hear from experts on the SEC gag rule
- Plus, what we're reading...
https://freedom.press/issues/bootlicking-brendans-back-at-it/

2026-05-01 17:39:31 UTC

It’s World Press Freedom Day this Sunday.
Traditionally, that’s when we call out foreign regimes for targeting journalists. But this year, the call is coming from inside our own (White) house instead.
https://freedom.press/issues/this-world-press-freedom-day-american-journalists-are-under-attack/

2026-05-01 16:48:20 UTC

🔔 The SEC "gag rule" is blatantly unconstitutional.
Join us for an conversation with Will Creeley, Floyd Abrams, Peggy Little, and Rachel Frank Quinton to learn about why SCOTUS must act to strike it down.
🗓️ Tuesday, May 5, 2 p.m. ET/1 p.m. CT
RSVP: freedom.press/gag-rule
https://cdn.masto.host/socialfreedompress/media_attachments/files/116/500/326/106/902/645/original/2d549271b6cb9f68.png

2026-05-01 15:45:57 UTC

Since January 2025, the Trump admin has consistently targeted journalists for their reporting.
Ahead of World Press Freedom Day, we're urging the DOJ to drop charges against Georgia Fort and other journalists.
Read the letter we signed with Amnesty International:
https://www.amnestyusa.org/blog/civil-society-organizations-urge-doj-to-drop-charges-against-georgia-fort-and-other-members-of-the-press/
https://cdn.masto.host/socialfreedompress/media_attachments/files/116/500/090/422/694/250/original/de0cdb6d90154199.png
https://cdn.masto.host/socialfreedompress/media_attachments/files/116/500/090/406/560/418/original/742902c258a046b4.png
https://cdn.masto.host/socialfreedompress/media_attachments/files/116/500/090/430/151/788/original/14f60bef51de5b13.png

2026-04-30 20:05:24 UTC

The SEC "gag rule" is blatantly unconstitutional.
As financial regulators confront new tech — crypto, prediction markets, etc. — they’re sure to make mistakes. You deserve to be informed.
Hear from experts on why SCOTUS must act.
🗓️ May 5, 2 pm ET
https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_uKXPL10cT2qeJcaYqfSo0A#/registration

2026-04-30 19:49:44 UTC

ABC can beat Trump FCC's license threat if owner Disney is willing to fight
Read more in @nprofile…sxam:
https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2026/04/abc-can-beat-trump-fccs-license-threat-if-owner-disney-is-willing-to-fight/

2026-04-29 17:14:24 UTC

Journalists using agentic AI should probably know the risks of giving these tools far-reaching access to their systems.
Just ask a developer who used an agent … which then nuked his code and backups.
Read more in our newsletter, and subscribe.
https://freedom.press/digisec/blog/wipe-your-own-code-now-with-agentic-ai/

2026-04-28 21:56:11 UTC

“The FCC is neither the journalism police nor the humor police,” FPF's Seth Stern said. “This is nothing but illegal jawboning intended to intimidate ABC into kissing the ring.”
Read more from The Guardian:
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/apr/28/fcc-abc-jimmy-kimmel

2026-04-28 21:34:07 UTC

“The First Amendment and the FCC’s mandate do not permit the agency to use broadcast licenses as weapons to punish broadcasters for constitutionally protected content they air,” FPF's Seth Stern said.
Read more from Scott Nover:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2026/04/28/fcc-orders-review-disneys-licenses-after-trumps-kimmel-criticism/

2026-04-28 20:15:30 UTC

The FCC's use of DEI as a pretext to go after ABC's licenses "shows that it's known all along that its threats to revoke broadcast licenses for content-based reasons were a nonstarter under the constitution," FPF's Seth Stern told Business Insider.
https://www.businessinsider.com/fcc-reviews-disney-abc-licenses-dei-policy-2026-4

2026-04-28 18:29:02 UTC

The First Amendment and the FCC’s mandate do not permit the agency to use broadcast licenses as weapons to punish broadcasters for constitutionally protected content they air.
Read our statement:
https://freedom.press/issues/fcc-plan-to-challenge-disney-broadcast-licenses-amounts-to-illegal-jawboning/

2026-04-28 16:20:43 UTC

The Espionage Act has been used for decades to target journalists and whistleblowers who expose wrongdoing.
Use our action center tool to tell lawmakers to pass the Daniel Ellsberg Press Freedom and Whistleblower Protection Act and reform the archaic law.
https://freedom.press/action/pass-the-ellsberg-act/

2026-04-27 17:25:23 UTC

Journalists sometimes ask us, is my employer watching what I do on my laptop or tracking my whereabouts at work? The answer is a resounding … maybe!
Learn more about how such tracking happens in the wild:
https://freedom.press/digisec/blog/ask-a-security-trainer-is-my-computer-being-monitored-at-work/

2026-04-27 17:04:10 UTC

It's impossible to look at the firing of FOIA officials after the release of a declassified memo in response to FPF's records request "as anything other than inappropriate retaliation for a lawful FOIA release," FPF's Lauren Harper told NOTUS.
https://www.notus.org/trump-white-house/trump-administration-dismantling-foia

2026-04-24 17:43:20 UTC

White House records guidance is “fundamentally wrong” and furthers the blatantly false argument the president can “decide what becomes part of the American story,” FPF’s Lauren Harper told the New York Times.
More on our lawsuit with CREW:
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/24/us/politics/white-house-texts-records-lawsuit.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share

2026-04-24 17:24:52 UTC

📩 Read in our weekly newsletter (and subscribe):
- Lessons from a Texas prison about the Paramount-Warner merger
- WHCA … WTF?
- Kash Patel’s probe of journalist is "off the rails"
- To live and lie in LA
- Plus, what we're reading...
https://freedom.press/issues/lessons-from-prison-on-media-consolidation-and-censorship/

2026-04-24 17:10:35 UTC

A leading spy agency scrubbed its entire FOIA website after a bombshell FOIA release to FPF — so @nprofile…fldq FOIA'd to find out what happened.
What he uncovered reeks of unlawful, partisan interference in the agency’s FOIA office — at public expense.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2026-04-24/foia-documents-scrubbed-from-intelligence-agency-website

2026-04-24 15:48:06 UTC

"If Kash Patel was looking to disprove Williamson's reporting about him using government resources for personal matters, siccing his agency on a reporter for retribution is a very strange way of doing it," FPF's Seth Stern said.
Read more in Reason:
https://reason.com/2026/04/23/the-fbis-alleged-probe-of-a-reporter-for-stalking-breaks-new-ground-in-criminalizing-journalism/

2026-04-23 17:52:56 UTC

“If Kash Patel was looking to disprove Williamson’s reporting about him using government resources for personal matters, siccing his agency on a reporter for retribution is a very strange way of doing it."
Read our statement:
https://freedom.press/issues/fbis-retaliatory-probe-of-times-reporter-is-off-the-rails/

2026-04-23 16:47:32 UTC

David Ellison "may not turn CNN into Fox News overnight...But it’s a virtual certainty that when his business interests are at stake, Trump will be given a seat at the editor’s desk," FPF's Seth Stern told Al Jazeera.
Read more:
https://www.aljazeera.com/amp/economy/2026/4/22/warner-bros-and-paramount-merger-could-reshape-us-media-landscape

2026-04-22 20:56:05 UTC

A few years ago, Arizona state senator Wendy Rogers sought a restraining order against a journalist, characterizing routine reporting as stalking.
It was seen as just a nutty story about a fringe local politician.
Now the FBI is exploring similar theories.
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/22/us/politics/fbi-times-reporter.html

2026-04-22 18:47:52 UTC

This is the worst possible time for presidential records to be hidden from the public.
Use our action center to tell Congress: Presidential records are vital parts of the American story, and the Justice Department’s efforts to say otherwise are wrong.
https://freedom.press/action/keep-presidential-records-public/

2026-04-22 17:54:38 UTC

Incarcerated people stopped believing they deserved soap and toilet paper when the government controlled the news they could watch, writes Jeremy Busby.
People on the outside may stop believing they deserve democracy.
https://freedom.press/issues/a-lesson-on-media-consolidation-and-censorship-from-a-texas-prison/

2026-04-22 16:53:56 UTC

A ProPublica reporter shares a real-life horror story: Someone was masquerading as them on Signal and WhatsApp, and reaching out to would-be sources.
Read our newsletter for more about what you can do to get ahead of impersonation — and subscribe.
https://freedom.press/digisec/blog/reporter-impersonated-on-signal-whatsapp/

2026-04-22 15:20:11 UTC

🔔 Tomorrow in Brooklyn: Join a conversation with @nprofile…eexk Executive Director Cindy Cohn and @nprofile…4hqr to learn about Cohn's new book, "Privacy's Defender."
📍 Brooklyn Central Library
10 Grand Army Plaza
Brooklyn, NY 11238
🗓️ April 23, 6 p.m. ET
https://www.bklynlibrary.org/calendar/privacys-defender-central-library-info-20260423-0600pm#main-content

2026-04-22 14:46:29 UTC

The same warrantless surveillance tactics being used in immigration sweeps could be turned against journalists and their sources.
Congress should pass the Government Surveillance Reform Act and close the data broker loophole.
https://freedom.press/issues/sources-arent-safe-when-surveillance-is-for-sale/

2026-04-21 19:29:38 UTC

Paramount is big enough to retaliate not only against its own journalists but also smaller outlets where it advertises. And it hasn’t even acquired Warner yet.
A company owned by allies of a censorship-obsessed president can’t have that kind of power.
https://www.avclub.com/hollywood-blacklist-paramount-ankler-retaliation-ahead-of-warner-bros-merger?utm_source=firefox-newtab-en-us

2026-04-14 20:04:41 UTC

Is Paramount trying to make the case against its own merger? If the Ellisons are already punishing news outlets, imagine if they own CNN and their buddy Trump calls in a favor.
This doesn't sound like a company that deserves even more power over the press.
https://www.thewrap.com/media-platforms/journalism/paramount-pulls-ads-the-ankler-richard-rushfield-block-the-merger/

2026-04-14 15:06:00 UTC

Congress may pass a set of dangerous "kids online safety" bills that would censor online speech and harm press freedom, while doing little to actually protect children.
Use our action center to tell Congress: No online censorship in the guise of child safety!
https://freedom.press/action/stop-kids-safety-censorship-bills/

2026-04-13 18:33:14 UTC

For journalists working on sensitive stories, location data can expose sources or tip off the agencies they’re investigating.
Watch this video to understand the risks and how to reduce them, and read our full guide below: https://freedom.press/limit-location-tracking
https://cdn.masto.host/socialfreedompress/media_attachments/files/116/398/827/289/705/982/original/29e8e827f02a92be.mp4

2026-04-13 18:32:20 UTC

Using a VPN may subject Americans to warrantless government surveillance.
We need much more transparency — and stricter limitations on how the government can use this data to bypass Americans’ privacy rights.
https://freedom.press/digisec/blog/vpn-surveillance-time-for-transparency-and-limits-on-spy-powers/

2026-04-13 14:41:41 UTC

FPF statement on film and television professionals speaking out against Paramount-Warner merger
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/13/business/media/hollywood-letter-opposing-paramount-warner-bros-deal.html
https://cdn.masto.host/socialfreedompress/media_attachments/files/116/397/907/072/742/839/original/e8c1979936d217a8.png

2026-04-08 17:42:11 UTC

Important thread and update from our Dangerzone app ⬇️

2026-04-07 19:34:08 UTC

Thanks to @nprofile…eync for featuring our app Dangerzone in.
This free app makes even the sketchiest PDF or Word Doc safe to open.
https://www.wired.com/story/dangerzone-app-for-safe-pdfs-word-docs/

2026-04-07 15:42:28 UTC

"Journalists don’t work for the government and their right to publish government leaks is protected by the First Amendment which, despite Trump’s efforts, remains the law of the land," FPF's Seth Stern said.
Read more in Poynter:
https://www.poynter.org/commentary/2026/savannah-guthrie-return-today-show-mom/

2026-04-06 21:45:10 UTC

Journalists don’t work for the governmentt and their right to publish government leaks is protected by the First Amendment which, despite President Trump’s efforts, remains the law of the land.
Read our full statement on Trump’s threat Monday to jail reporters:
https://freedom.press/issues/trumps-threat-to-jail-reporters-deserves-bipartisan-condemnation/
https://cdn.masto.host/socialfreedompress/media_attachments/files/116/359/948/006/514/727/original/696327af2179211a.jpg

2026-04-06 21:18:27 UTC

"Journalists don’t work for the government and their right to publish government leaks is protected by the first amendment which, despite Trump’s efforts, remains the law of the land," FPF's Seth Stern told The Guardian.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/apr/06/trump-threats-journalist-missing-airman-iran

2026-04-06 20:24:54 UTC

Journalists don’t work for the government and their right to publish government leaks is protected by the First Amendment which, despite President Trump’s efforts, remains the law of the land.
Read our statement:
https://freedom.press/issues/trumps-threat-to-jail-reporters-deserves-bipartisan-condemnation/
https://cdn.masto.host/socialfreedompress/media_attachments/files/116/359/630/007/453/632/original/02d446245c207930.jpg

2026-04-06 17:05:27 UTC

“When you’re dealing with censorship and the First Amendment, time is valuable. Every day that journalists are not allowed to do their job is an additional constitutional violation. There’s no time for second chances,” FPF's Seth Stern told CJR.
https://www.cjr.org/analysis/voas-legal-fight-for-independence.php

2026-04-02 20:51:40 UTC

President Trump’s unconstitutional executive order aiming to punish U.S. law firms over their pro bono clients threatens an independent press.
Read about the amicus brief we signed with over 40 other media organizations and press freedom advocates.
https://theintercept.com/2026/04/02/press-freedom-defense-fund-law-firms-amicus-brief/

2026-04-01 20:33:26 UTC

We hope the U.S. government is taking the kidnapping in Baghdad of U.S. journalist Shelly Kittleson extremely seriously — and that statements blaming her for allegedly not heeding warnings are not an attempt to evade responsibility.
https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2026/03/american-journalist-shelly-kittleson-abducted-iraq

2026-04-01 18:02:13 UTC

The State Department should do everything in its power to secure the release of U.S. journalist Shelly Kittleson — who was kidnapped in Baghdad Tuesday — without escalating the illegal war that may have endangered her in the first place.
https://cpj.org/2026/04/race-on-to-find-us-journalist-shelly-kittleson-kidnapped-in-iraq/amp/

2026-04-01 17:51:51 UTC

Does using a VPN subject you to warrantless government spying? Lawmakers are asking Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard to disclose more information.
Learn about risk assessments and choosing the right VPN in our digital security newsletter (and subscribe):
https://freedom.press/digisec/blog/vpn-use-may-cue-government-surveillance/

2026-03-31 21:47:58 UTC

The government can't condition benefits on censorship it can't achieve directly.
That goes for PBS, but it also goes for FCC Chair Brendan Carr shaking down broadcast licensees, Hegseth denying access to reporters that don't follow his unconstitutional rules, and more.
https://freedom.press/issues/government-cant-circumvent-the-constitution-to-censor-critics-indirectly/

2026-03-31 21:24:51 UTC

Even as Congress seems poised to renew FISA Section 702, there are steps you can take to keep your communications private.
Our latest “Ask a security trainer” advice column offers technology measures you can implement now:
https://freedom.press/digisec/blog/ask-a-security-trainer-what-about-nsa-surveillance/

2026-03-31 19:45:39 UTC

The Trump administration is working to create a database of intimate details about every U.S. resident, which is "a giant honeypot for bad actors," FPF's Lauren Harper said on NPR's 1A.
If breached, it could cause an "identity theft nightmare."
Listen: https://the1a.org/segments/if-you-can-keep-it-privacy-protections-under-the-trump-administration/

2026-03-31 19:02:48 UTC

The dangerous law known as FISA Section 702 is up for renewal in Congress. It allows government to spy on Americans’ communications without a warrant.
Use our action center to tell Congress to reform Section 702 and end mass warrantless surveillance!
https://freedom.press/action/reform-section-702-end-mass-warrantless-surveillance/

2026-03-31 17:34:17 UTC

FCC Chair Brendan Carr claims he protects local news, but the fights he picks with broadcasters over the “public interest” requirement aren’t local stories.
They’re national stories that upset President Trump.
FPF's Seth Stern writes in The Intercept:
https://theintercept.com/2026/03/31/brendan-carr-fcc-censorship-localism-cpac/

2026-03-31 16:40:49 UTC

The fights FCC Chair Brendan Carr picks with broadcasters over the “public interest” requirement aren’t local stories at all.
They’re national and global stories that upset President Trump, the man whose gilded face Carr wears as a lapel pin.
FPF's Seth Stern writes in The Intercept:
https://theintercept.com/2026/03/31/brendan-carr-fcc-censorship-localism-cpac/

2026-03-30 22:00:45 UTC

“We have seen a disturbing pattern in this war and in the decades prior of Israel accusing journalists of being active combatants and terrorists without providing credible evidence. Journalists are not legitimate targets, regardless of the outlet they work for.”
https://cpj.org/2026/03/israeli-strike-on-media-car-targets-kills-3-journalists-in-south-lebanon/

2026-03-30 20:02:01 UTC

“From the most powerful to, you could argue, the most vulnerable, the [Trump] administration is coming up with tactics to suppress news gathering and chill reporting,” FPF's Stern told The Fulcrum. “The media hasn't rolled over and died.”
https://thefulcrum.us/media-technology/trump-attacks-media-press-freedom-concerns

2026-03-30 18:27:02 UTC

If you missed our expert panel about escalating attacks on the First Amendment, don’t worry — we’ve got you covered.
Read a summary of the event and watch the discussion here.
https://freedom.press/the-classifieds/expert-panel-tracks-escalating-war-on-the-first-amendment/

2026-03-30 17:52:56 UTC

The press can’t be free if it’s constantly under watch.
Check out our recent event to learn why Congress shouldn’t renew the spy law known as Section 702 of FISA without making reforms to protect journalists and all Americans from warrantless surveillance.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GMP8hnBI3iA

2026-03-27 21:06:34 UTC

Lawmakers from across the political spectrum have opposed journalist surveillance in the past.
We hope the Privacy Protection Updates Act "receives the enthusiastic bipartisan support it deserves," FPF's Seth Stern said.
Read more:
https://www.wyden.senate.gov/news/press-releases/wyden-and-balint-introduce-bill-to-strengthen-protections-for-journalists-against-unreasonable-government-searches

2026-03-27 19:39:17 UTC

Pro tip: You know a government agency’s media policy is a sham when it tells journalists to just file a Freedom of Information Act request.
https://www.ms.now/opinion/pete-hegseth-pentagon-press-policy-problem

2026-03-27 18:49:03 UTC

📩 Read in our weekly newsletter (and subscribe):
- Tell Congress to stop newsroom raids
- Meet the new Pentagon press policy, same as the old Pentagon press policy
- FOIA sets a floor for transparency, not a ceiling
- Plus, what we're reading...
https://freedom.press/issues/tell-congress-to-stop-newsroom-raids/

2026-03-27 15:19:19 UTC

A new bill from Sen. Wyden and Rep. Balint would give real teeth to an important federal law meant to protect journalists from searches and raids.
We’re proud to endorse this update to the Privacy Protection Act.
https://freedom.press/issues/new-bill-would-fix-law-thats-failing-journalists/

2026-03-26 15:38:46 UTC

If the Trump administration succeeds in chipping away at constitutional protections for basic journalistic practices, "reporters who wish to do anything more than regime stenography may risk imprisonment."
Read more from FPF's Seth Stern in @nprofile…9xdl:
https://theintercept.com/2026/03/26/pentagon-reporters-first-amendment/

2026-03-25 21:44:53 UTC

"They have no interest in journalism," Kara Swisher said, "I'm not working for you hacks."
Paramount will tank CNN to appease Trump just like it did CBS. Its shareholders should be objecting loudly to further public humiliation and devaluation.
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/kara-swisher-cnn-ellisons-took-control-1236545723/

2026-03-25 18:35:58 UTC

FOIA offices are being decimated across federal agencies, leaving the government unable to fulfill public records requests.
Don’t let this blatant attack on transparency fly under the radar.
Tell your representatives to safeguard FOIA.
https://freedom.press/action/protect-foia/

2026-03-25 16:18:49 UTC

Use our action center to tell Congress to drop the deportation case against Nashville journalist Estefany Rodríguez.
https://freedom.press/action/free-estefany-rodriguez-from-ice/

2026-03-24 21:38:53 UTC

The Pentagon's revised policy adds "mostly meaningless window dressing while retaining the core constitutional violation – subjecting journalists to punishment for doing their jobs," FPF's Seth Stern said.
Read more in The Guardian:
https://www.theguardian.com/media/2026/mar/24/pentagon-correspondents-press-restrictions

2026-03-24 18:31:26 UTC

The government says journalists and sources who are living in the United States illegally don’t have First Amendment rights.
But the First Amendment was written to limit government power, not let officials decide whose voices are worth hearing.
https://freedom.press/issues/no-first-amendment-for-some-immigrant-journalists-or-sources-govt-says/

2026-03-24 17:29:22 UTC

The Pentagon's revised policy adds mostly meaningless window dressing while retaining the core constitutional violation — subjecting journalists to punishment for doing their jobs.
It is not a good faith effort to comply with the judge's order.
Read our statement:
https://freedom.press/issues/meet-the-new-pentagon-press-policy-same-as-the-old-pentagon-press-policy/

2026-03-24 16:13:09 UTC

🔔 Section 702 of FISA, which enables spying on Americans while harming press freedom and source protection, is up for renewal in Congress.
Join our conversation with Sean Vitka, Dell Cameron, Trevor Timm, and John Dickas for more.
🗓️ March 26, 1:30 p.m. ET
RSVP: freedom.press/section-702
https://cdn.masto.host/socialfreedompress/media_attachments/files/116/285/031/286/115/332/original/44d478d6d41f4ab5.jpg

2026-03-24 15:25:52 UTC

2026-03-23 20:49:35 UTC

🔔 Section 702 of FISA, which enables spying on Americans while harming press freedom and source protection, is up for renewal in Congress.
Join us for a conversation with Sean Vitka, John Dickas, and Trevor Timm for more.
🗓️ March 26, 1:30 p.m. ET
RSVP: freedom.press/section-702
https://cdn.masto.host/socialfreedompress/media_attachments/files/116/280/451/515/959/845/original/2fac5440a9c40e6a.png

2026-03-23 19:31:18 UTC

"Thanks to opposition from inside his own party, House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., was forced to delay a vote on President Donald Trump’s request to extend a major domestic spying law — but Democrats could ride to the rescue."
https://theintercept.com/2026/03/23/trump-domestic-spying-fisa-702-democrats/

2026-03-23 15:13:59 UTC

The Supreme Court's refusal to intervene here is an absolute travesty for press freedom rights.
https://cdn.masto.host/socialfreedompress/media_attachments/files/116/279/117/935/597/111/original/3ac3e57bb5373293.png

2026-03-20 18:55:42 UTC

FCC Chair Brendan Carr's unprecedented policing of the public interest is an excuse to attack war reporting that displeases the government.
FPF's Caitlin Vogus writes:
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/mar/17/trump-iran-fcc-brendan-carr

2026-03-20 18:19:54 UTC

📩 Read in our weekly newsletter (and subscribe):
- FCC Chair Brendan Carr seeks Iran-style media obedience
- Tell Congress: Reform Section 702
- Trump’s massive, secret government database
- Attorney discipline boards must step up
- Plus, what we're reading...
https://freedom.press/issues/fcc-chair-seeks-iran-style-media-obedience/

2026-03-20 16:22:32 UTC

The controversial law known as FISA Section 702 is up for renewal in Congress. It allows government to spy on Americans’ communications without a warrant.
Use our action center to tell Congress to reform Section 702 and end mass warrantless surveillance!
https://freedom.press/action/reform-section-702-end-mass-warrantless-surveillance/

2026-03-20 16:01:11 UTC

Check out EFF Executive Director (and longtime FPF legal counsel) Cindy Cohn's new book, "Privacy's Defender," to learn about her 30-year fight against digital surveillance.
Buy it here: https://www.eff.org/Privacys-Defender

2026-03-20 15:13:17 UTC

Use our action center to tell Congress to drop the deportation case against Nashville journalist Estefany Rodríguez.
https://freedom.press/action/free-estefany-rodriguez-from-ice/

2026-03-19 19:32:59 UTC

📚 "Transaction Denied," a newly published book by our board president Rainey Reitman, includes her first-hand account of co-founding FPF.
Pick up a copy to learn how we got started ⬇️
https://www.amazon.com/Transaction-Denied-Finances-Punish-Speech/dp/0807019119/

2026-03-19 13:13:15 UTC

This is a great way for journalists without the budget to sue to deal with FOIA stonewalling.
Report the news you’re able to report and explain why the gov’s bad faith stopped you from reporting more. Don’t let them off the hook without public shaming.
https://moniqueomadan.substack.com/p/i-asked-why-immigration-officers?r=7lfp1&utm_medium=ios&triedRedirect=true

2026-03-17 15:06:59 UTC

@nprofile…eexk and @Muckrock’s “The Foilies” highlight the biggest losers in government transparency.
Our favorite selections? The multiple winners of the “Flock you” award.
Read all the nominees here: https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2026/03/foilies-2026

2026-03-13 14:54:03 UTC

Four journalists with long track records of reporting on the government spoke to us about how officials are using bad faith accusations of ‘doxxing’ to silence the press, and what reporters and the public can do about it.
Watch here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8EBBionVHg

2026-03-12 13:46:38 UTC

If prosecutors believe they can sidestep the Privacy Protection Act without consequence, then its protections become largely meaningless.
https://freedom.press/issues/judges-rebuke-of-doj-in-raid-on-journalists-home-exposes-bigger-problem/

2026-03-10 17:49:43 UTC

The Trump administration used a federal law prohibiting protests around houses of worship to criminally charge journalists Don Lemon and Georgia Fort.
Now, New York State wants to create its own similar buffer law.
FPF's Caitlin Vogus explains:
https://www.timesunion.com/opinion/article/house-worship-buffer-zones-criminalize-21957918.php

2026-03-10 17:32:07 UTC

Update: Appeals court vacates preliminary injunction won by Chicago journalists and press groups that restricted federal agents’ violent tactics at immigration protests there; the March 5 ruling called the injunction “constitutionally suspect.”
https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/journalist-shot-with-pepper-balls-at-illinois-ice-facility-protest/

2026-03-10 15:20:19 UTC

"Buffer zone proposals under consideration in New York risk criminalizing journalism about protests that occur at or near houses of worship," FPF's Caitlin Vogus writes.
"When journalists are prevented from covering protests, the public is less informed."
https://www.timesunion.com/opinion/article/house-worship-buffer-zones-criminalize-21957918.php

2026-03-10 15:05:35 UTC

The Oscars in solitary confinement: "The Alabama Solution" might win an Academy Award this weekend.
Meanwhile, its incarcerated filmmakers are in lockdown because there’s no legal protections for imprisoned whistleblowers.
FPF’s Seth Stern, Corinne Shanahan and Jeremy Busby explain:
https://inquest.org/the-oscars-in-solitary-confinement/

2026-03-09 19:27:56 UTC

🔔 Join FPF's Harlo Holmes and Davis Erin Anderson for an Ask Us Anything session at a DOC NYC workshop to learn about digital security protection for documentarians and filmmakers.
And make sure to sign up for our digital security newsletter to get weekly tips on how to secure your devices and do your work online safely at freedom.press/newsletters.
🗓️ Thursday, March 26, 12 p.m. ET/9 a.m. PT
RSVP:
https://www.docnyc.net/event/ask-us-anything-digital-security-for-doc-filmmakers/
https://cdn.masto.host/socialfreedompress/media_attachments/files/116/200/860/061/797/340/original/959c1d05a46b9278.jpg

2026-03-09 17:24:44 UTC

The notion “that prosecutors should be the arbiters of journalistic practice and that anyone accused of bias is not entitled to the same level of First Amendment protections is deeply chilling,” Joel Simon writes in CJR.
https://www.cjr.org/analysis/inside-the-legal-defense-of-georgia-fort-and-don-lemon-abbe-lowell-leita-walker.php?mc_cid=2842290bff&mc_eid=b64f4be302

2026-03-09 15:57:00 UTC

ICE has detained yet another journalist, Estefany Rodríguez.
If you're a journalist reporting on ICE and want more information about how to protect against potential retaliation against you or your sources, listen back to our event from last year with leading journalists on the immigration beat.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OPPo0YzKfnA

2026-03-06 19:49:55 UTC

📩 Read in our weekly newsletter (and subscribe):
- The public deserves to know when Iran war reporting is stifled
- Florida should not get its own mini-CIA
- A judge finally called a newsroom raid what it is
- Assange case coming back to bite ‘conventional’ journalists
- Plus, what we're reading...
https://freedom.press/issues/press-must-be-transparent-about-wartime-censorship/

2026-03-06 18:43:56 UTC

The Espionage Act has been used to criminalize whistleblowing and newsgathering for years.
Join us for a webinar to learn about Rep. Rashida Tlaib's bill to reform the archaic law.
🗓️ March 12, 3 p.m. ET/12 p.m. PT
RSVP: freedom.press/reform-espionage-act
https://cdn.masto.host/socialfreedompress/media_attachments/files/116/183/702/598/235/487/original/d152dca3fd169781.png

2026-03-06 18:05:25 UTC

Daniel Schuman is right, “We should be able to clearly see and understand who is donating” to presidential libraries and foundations.
But we can't, and the secrecy is a breeding ground for "graft and propaganda."
https://www.notus.org/money/presidential-libraries-fundraising-donors

2026-03-05 18:09:49 UTC

If the feds, with their institutional expertise and legal constraints, cannot consistently avoid abusing surveillance powers, why should we assume newly created state intelligence offices will do better?
Read more from FPF's Seth Stern and Lauren Harper:
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/mar/01/florida-cia-intelligence-unit-surveillance-views

2026-03-03 19:19:28 UTC

AI surveillance in Windows and macOS has pushed people toward alternatives like Linux. But which version of Linux is best for privacy and security?
https://freedom.press/digisec/blog/ask-a-security-trainer-whats-the-best-version-of-linux-for-privacy/

2026-03-02 19:11:35 UTC

A Florida bill that aims to create a state intelligence operation “allows scrutiny based on ‘views’ and ‘opinions’, a standard that echoes some of the darkest chapters of American surveillance history.”
FPF's Seth Stern and Lauren Harper explain:
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/mar/01/florida-cia-intelligence-unit-surveillance-views

2026-03-02 15:36:56 UTC

Florida wants its own CIA. That could lead to unchecked domestic surveillance
A bill to create a state intelligence operation would allow scrutiny based on "opinions" — and could prompt other states to follow
FPF's Seth Stern and Lauren Harper explain:
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/mar/01/florida-cia-intelligence-unit-surveillance-views

2026-02-27 20:24:06 UTC

"It does not take a scholar of legal ethics to conclude that government lawyers should not be allowed to make up a violent and organized terrorist invasion of a major American city."
Read about our bar complaint:
https://freedom.press/issues/doj-lawyer-falsely-cited-terrorism-to-justify-press-freedom-violations/

2026-02-27 20:11:41 UTC

David Ellison "will readily throw the First Amendment, CNN's reporters and HBO's filmmakers under the bus if they stand in the way of expanding his corporate empire and fattening his pockets," FPF Seth Stern said.
Read more in NPR:
https://www.npr.org/2026/02/27/nx-s1-5728865/warner-bros-paramount-ellison-family

2026-02-27 19:48:20 UTC

📩 Read in our weekly newsletter (and subscribe):
- When profit is paramount — and press freedom isn’t
- Order restricting Natanson search didn’t go far enough
- Government lawyers: Don’t make up terrorist attacks
- Learn how to FOIA from the pros
- Plus, get to know what we’re reading...
https://freedom.press/issues/censorship-is-bad-for-business/

2026-02-27 17:02:02 UTC

Did you miss our webinar about tips and tricks for prying loose government documents?
Watch it here:
https://freedom.press/the-classifieds/fpf-event-discusses-best-foia-practices/

2026-02-27 16:49:27 UTC

Censorship is bad for business.
Warner executives and shareholders should recognize that selling companies that depend on the First Amendment to a censorial White House puppet is not only morally wrong but harmful to their bottom line.
Read our statement:
https://freedom.press/issues/more-news-holdings-for-paramount-harms-press-and-bottom-line/