As municipalities across the United States enter states of emergency and issue shelter-in-place orders, news publishers are working to ensure they are viewed as “essential” workers, allowing journalists and other news publishing employees the ability to continue reporting and delivering the news.
During this unprecedented health crisis, the Alliance is working to provide accurate and real-time information; advocacy and representation with lawmakers; legal guidance and resources to navigate funding and regulations; and a portal to connect and exchange information among newspapers across the country.
Challenging authority to ensure an informed and engaged citizenry is the bedrock of the journalistic profession. For Sidney Herald editor Amy Efta, that task came all too soon after taking her position at the local Montana newspaper.
I had a writing class that turned into a heated discussion about how we categorized “fake news.” No matter how many articles we read — How to Identify Fake News, or What Makes an Article Credible? — when we could not come up with one straight answer, I realized the problem was much bigger.
June 28 will always be a hard day for any journalist – that was the day, exactly one year ago, that five newsroom staffers were lost to the hands of a gunman who shot his way into The Capital Gazette newsroom in Annapolis, Maryland, barring a grudge against the local paper. While the gunman was later arrested and will soon stand trial, The Capital Gazette is only one of many newsrooms that have faced losses in the past year.
The News Media Alliance applauds Senators Rob Portman (R-OH) and Ben Cardin (D-MD), and Reps. Grace Napolitano (D-CA) and Tom Cole (R-OK) for introducing the “Fallen Journalists Memorial Act of 2019.”
Regardless of whether or not Julian Assange is a “journalist,” the May 23 indictment of Assange crosses a clear constitutional line. In the 102-year history of the Espionage Act, the United States has never deployed that Act to punish the publication of information. An interpretation of the Espionage Act to criminally punish publication of information plainly violates the First Amendment.
With the release of our newest ad last week, we — along with our Support Real News partners — are responding to recent attacks on the media, highlighting the importance of press access for the preservation of our democracy. In the ad, we called on the public to support press access, noting that the ability of reporters to accurately inform the public depends on their ability to ask questions of those in power.
At a time when the First Amendment is being tested and questioned – perhaps more than ever before – it is important that we reflect on where we are and where we are going in the face of the vast technological changes that are impacting our press and our democratic systems, especially the rise of the big tech platforms and their role in making editorial decisions previously delegated to newspaper publishers.
While a federal shield law would not supersede state laws, protection on the federal level would send a clear message about the importance of preserving the relationships journalists have with their sources.
