WASHINGTON – Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer tells the Post that he may send the country’s first federal press shield law to President Biden’s desk after it quietly passed the House by voice vote in January. He said there is.
“Yes, I’m looking forward to it. [that it will pass this year]” the Brooklyn Democrat said in an exclusive interview.
“Most of what I accomplished, record-setting results over the past two years, were bipartisan and nonpartisan. [foreign aid] supplement [bill]. However, I am hopeful that this bill will pass with bipartisan support. ”
The so-called Press Act builds on the 233-year-old First Amendment by limiting the government’s ability to spy on journalists and extending legal protections to non-disclosure agreements for sources.
of 9 page billIts name is an acronym for “Protect Reporters from Exploitative State Spying,” and it has support from a variety of ideological camps, including Rep. Kevin Kiley (R-Calif.) and Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.). sponsored by the state.
“I have to talk to some members about Raskin’s bill, but I’ve always supported the Shield Act. I was one of the authors of the original Shield Act,” Schumer said.
Contents of this bill
The Press Act prohibits federal authorities from forcing journalists or their service providers to submit evidence in cases such as leak investigations, but it does not allow federal authorities to compel journalists or their service providers to provide evidence in cases such as leak investigations, but does not allow federal authorities to compel journalists or their service providers to submit evidence if they are suspected of a crime or if they are working as a foreign agent or terrorist organization. An exception will be made if there is a suspicion that
Under the bill, “protected information,” which would be off-limits in most cases, includes “any information that identifies the source of the information as part of a journalistic activity, and any records or communications covered by a journalist; It is clearly stated that “documents or information” are included. Obtained or created as part of an engagement in journalism; ”
Importantly, the term “journalist” does not cover paid, full-time media employees. This means freelancers, self-proclaimed “citizen journalists” and publishers of primary sources such as WikiLeaks may be protected.
A “news journalist” is a person who “regularly collects, prepares, gathers, photographs, records, writes, edits, reports, and researches news and information related to local, national, or international events, or other public matters. , or a person who publishes.” I am interested in disseminating it to the general public. ”
The bill states: “Federal agencies may not provide for a targeted journalist unless a court in the judicial district for which a subpoena or other coercive process is or will be issued determines a preponderance of the evidence.” “No person shall be forced to disclose protected information.” Provide notice to targeted journalists that disclosure of protected information is necessary to prevent or identify perpetrators of acts of terrorism against the United States and an opportunity to be heard. or…Disclosure of the protected information is necessary to prevent a threat of imminent violence, serious bodily harm, or death, including certain crimes against minors. ”
Similar protections apply to service providers, and in some cases journalists may object to obtaining records.
The lack of a federal reporting shield law has resulted in a number of high-profile cases in recent years.
On February 29th, former CBS News and Fox News veteran journalist Katherine Herridge, be charged with civil contempt Judge Christopher Cooper of the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., gave information in a deposition as part of a lawsuit against the Department of Justice for refusing to identify who told her about the FBI’s investigation of Chinese-American scientists. I’m looking for it.
Cooper fined Herridge $800 per day for not disclosing the source of the information.
In other instances, reporters have risked jail time over confrontations over such information.
in 7 years of struggle Although the program ended in 2015, former New York Times reporter James Risen wrote about the CIA’s failed plan to undermine Iran’s nuclear program by sending it a flawed warhead design. The mistake was then detailed to Iran by a CIA intermediary, although he declined to say who told him. .
Judith Miller, then a Times reporter, was sentenced to 85 days in jail in 2005 for contempt of court for failing to reveal to whom she had given the identity of CIA operative Valerie Plame. Plame’s husband, diplomat Joseph Wilson, investigated and internally challenged President George W. Bush’s claims that Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein sought weapons of mass destruction. .
There have been cases of journalists having their communications records confiscated without their knowledge, but the law attempts to prevent this except in exceptional cases.
In 2010, then-FOX News reporter James Rosen Email records and phone records The FBI seized a search warrant affidavit that listed him as a possible “co-conspirator” with a source who reported on North Korea’s planned nuclear test.
The bill says the new protections would not apply if journalists are “suspected of having committed a crime.” That means WikiLeaks publisher Julian Assange is fighting the US extradition from Britain for allegedly aiding and abetting military intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning. He probably wouldn’t profit from leaking classified documents in 2010, even though news organizations claimed he was doing journalism.
The proposed law would not apply to state-level defamation lawsuits and would not provide absolute protection. For example, journalists may be allowed to object to forced disclosure of records by a service provider in some cases, but not if they are not notified when there is a “clear and serious threat to the integrity of a criminal investigation.”
Republican: Thank you, Chuck.
Republican supporters of the bill and press freedom advocates welcomed Schumer’s optimistic assessment.
“Congressman Raskin and I drafted the Press Act to Protect Freedom of the Press and Freedom of the Press for All Americans, and the House unanimously approved it. It was quickly approved by the Senate. If ever there was a bill that deserves it, this is it. I appreciate Senator Schumer’s words of encouragement,” Kiley said.
“Signing this landmark legislation protects important First Amendment freedoms while ensuring that we still have the ability to work cross-party in Washington to advance the public interest. It shows something.”
Rep. Russell Frey (R-S.C.), a co-sponsor and a prominent member of the House Judiciary and Oversight Committees, said, It has the power to protect the ability of the press.”
“Freedom of the press is a fundamental principle of democracy and is clearly enshrined in our Constitution,” Fry said. “Government overreach and surveillance of journalists threaten this right and, in turn, limit Americans’ access to information.”
Although the bill passed the House without a recorded vote, there is no guarantee that similar action will be taken in the Senate, and if changes are made by the Senate Judiciary Committee, the bill will have to return to the House for another vote. Must be. Discussion may generate further opposition.
“Advancing this bill would send a strong message about the important role journalists play in our democracies,” said Kathryn Jacobsen, U.S., Canada and Caribbean Program Coordinator at the Committee to Protect Journalists. Ta.
“The current patchwork of national shield protections creates vulnerabilities for journalists, their sources, and the free flow of information,” Jacobsen added.
“We urge the Senate to prioritize passing the Press Act, which creates uniform federal protections for journalists and the public’s right to know.”
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Post about Biden’s position on the bill.
