Trump Admin Wants to Make It Illegal for Reporters to Do Their Jobs

Key Points:

• A judge recently struck down the Pentagon’s restrictions on journalists seeking “unauthorized” information, siding with the New York Times, but the Pentagon reissued similar restrictions and plans to appeal the decision.
• The Department of Justice (DOJ) has advanced a controversial legal theory that merely asking government officials for nonpublic information can constitute criminal solicitation, echoing a discredited 2017 case where a citizen journalist was arrested for asking police questions.
• Legal experts and judges emphasize that the First Amendment protects journalists' right to ask questions, with federal Judge Paul Friedman stating that soliciting information is a fundamental journalistic role and not a crime.
• The Pentagon’s policy, which threatens to revoke press credentials for publishing “unauthorized” information, has led mainstream outlets to forgo Pentagon press passes, raising concerns about government censorship and control over news coverage.
• Critics warn that if the government’s position prevails, it could criminalize basic journalistic practices, chilling free press and investigative reporting, with the Supreme Court recently declining to review a related case that might have curtailed such expansive government immunity.