Arlington, VA – Yesterday, following World Press Freedom Day, Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Representative Eric Swalwell (D-CA-14) reintroduced the Journalist Protection Act in the U.S. House and Senate. Full text of the bill is available here.
First introduced in 2023, the Journalist Protection Act (JPA) would strengthen protections for journalists by making intentionally harming or intimidating a working journalist a federal crime. Unfortunately, this bill is more necessary now than ever with attacks on journalists while gathering and reporting the news continuing to rise. In 2024, 80 journalists were reportedly assaulted in the United States, according to the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, and at least 124 have been killed worldwide, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.
News/Media Alliance President and CEO Danielle Coffey stated, “We thank Senator Blumenthal and Congressman Swalwell for introducing the Journalist Protection Act, and for their commitment to protecting journalists from threat or harm while in the line of work. Journalists play an important role in providing critical news and information for communities across the country, and they all deserve to perform their work in safety and security.”
