Tracking press freedom violations in the U.S. A project of @FreedomofPress. š„ tips@pressfreedomtracker.us š¦ bsky.app/profile/pressfreedoā¦
United States
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Journalists covering the 2026 FIFA Menās World Cup could face searches, questioning or even deportation.
Watch our video to learn how you can defend your devices and avoid the foul.
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We already have multiple reports of journalists being arrested tonight. Here are the cases we have so far:
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"I'm press, I'm press, I'm press! I'm with the Des Moines Register," she keeps clearly repeating as she tries to move out of the area.
Police surround her, then pepper spray her in the eyes anyways.
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UPDATE:
*211 total press freedom violations*
ā¢ 33+ arrests
ā¢ 143 assaults (118 by police, 25 by others)
ā¢ 35 equipment/newsroom damage
Assault category breakdown:
ā¢ 49 physical attacks (31 by cops)
ā¢ 35 tear gassings
ā¢ 21 pepper sprayings
ā¢ 50 rubber bullet/projectiles
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A private security guard for White House correspondent @AprilDRyan assaults journalist while attempting to prevent him from recording Ryanās speech during NJ education summit : pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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In New Jersey:
The end of this video appears to show our reporter @newsguz being arrested. We will update with more info as it becomes available. app.com/story/news/local/howā¦
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To put some perspective on the unprecedented nature of the weekend's attacks on journalists:
At @USPressTracker, we've documented 100-150 press freedom violations in the US per year, for the last 3 years.
We are currently investigating *over 100* FROM JUST THE LAST 3 DAYS.
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Two other journalists in Philadelphia arrested while working:
If it wasnāt obvious by this thread suddenly stopping, @jennamargaretta and I were detained in absurd fashion by police. We were leaving City Hall to go home and were stopped. We showed press badges. āI donāt believe you.ā Then they put us in buses. Hi from the 22nd district.
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OUR LATEST DATA AS OF 9:30PM ET JUNE 4
*300+ total press freedom incidents*
49+ arrests
192 assaults (160 by police)
42 equipment/newsroom damage
Assault category breakdown:
69 physical attacks (43 by cops)
43 tear gassings
24 pepper sprayings
77 rubber bullets/projectiles
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Another journalist reportedly arrested in Atlanta. That's at least six so far -- just tonight.
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OUR LATEST DATA:
*233+ total press freedom incidents*
41+ arrests/detainments
153 assaults (125 by police, 27 by others)
39 equipment/newsroom damage
Assault category breakdown:
53 physical attacks (33 by police)
35 tear gassings
21 pepper sprayings
55 rubber bullet/projectiles
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ICYMI: Last night, unidentified NYPD officers assaulted reporter @ArminRosen with a baton, stole his bike, and refused to identify themselves. He was wearing a helmet that said "PRESS."
āItās not your bike anymore,ā they reportedly told him when he asked how to get it back.
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OUR LATEST DATA:
*192 total press freedom violations*
ā31+ arrests
ā131 assaults (108 by police, 23 by others)
ā30 equipment or newsroom damage.
Assault category breakdown:
45 physical attacks (30 by police)
30 tear gassings
17 pepper sprayings
46 rubber bullet/projectiles
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Two journalists with @OccupyDemocrats were forcibly removed from a press conference with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Lt. Gov Jeanette NuƱes in Miami on April 12: pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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At @uspresstracker, weāre working to verify and document at least 68 instances of journalists assaulted, arrested and equipment damaged from protests the last two nights. Follow the incidents we're documenting from protests related to #GeorgeFloyd here : pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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On Aug. 5, White House correspondent @BrianKarem was told via email from @PressSec that his press pass would be suspended for 30 days. A federal judge ruled to restore it, citing āirreparable harm on his First Amendment rights,ā for the @Playboy writer : pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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BREAKING: Journalist @jennimonet is found NOT GUILTY of criminal trespassing.
Jenni Monet was arrested last year while covering demonstrations at Standing Rock. pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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Freelance multimedia reporter @brooklynmarie was stopped at least four times while re-entering the U.S. via the San Ysidro port of entry. Each time, both she and her car were searched, and she was questioned about her reporting : pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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We have at least 36 reports of a journalist being shot at with projectiles (rubber bullets, tear gas canisters, pepper balls, etc) by police.
Almost all reporters have posted proof in the form of after-the-fact photos. But many have been caught on video. Here are some of them:
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LATEST DATA, MAY 26-JUNE 3:
*279+ total press freedom incidents*
ā45+ arrests
ā180 assaults (149 by police)
ā40 equipment/newsroom damage
Assault category breakdown:
ā67 physical attacks (42 by police)
ā40 tear gassings
ā23 pepper sprayings
ā69 rubber bullets/projectiles
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This video is from 3 nights ago, but remains one of the most disturbing we've seen.
Gas station invaded by police. Reporter complies w/ orders to get on ground. While his hands are up & he is defenseless, police pepper spray him in the eyes.
Press badge visible the whole time.
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The Australian government had lodged an official complaint with the US State Department. They were not happy.
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[Re-posted the last two tweets in this thread due to a counting error. Sorry, long day/week/month/year.]
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For those who haven't, please go back and read this entire thread.
This WHYY reporter wasn't assaulted by a protester. It was a bizarre group of bat-weilding vigilantes, who witnesses say had the tacit support of the Philly police. nitter.app/jwehrens/status/126762ā¦
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Two journalists with @OccupyDemocrats were forcibly removed from a press conference with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Lt. Gov Jeanette NuƱes in Miami on April 12: pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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Each month we send out a newsletter summarizing the latest press freedom incidents and any updates to previously documented cases. If you haven't yet, you can sign up to receive it here: pressfreedomtracker.us/newslā¦
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Journalists: If youāre covering a protest following the release of the Dobbs decision, weāre sharing our resources and best practices for covering demonstrations in this threadš§µ
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The @uspresstracker is documenting press freedom violations from protests across the nation. If you are a journalist ā or know of one ā who has been assaulted, arrested or had equipment seized or damaged in the course of covering a protest, DM or email tips@pressfreedomtracker.us
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So far in 2019, the @uspresstracker has documented 8 journalists stopped at the U.S. border and subjected to invasive questioning about their work, some had their electronic devices or reporting materials searched. Today, weāre sharing those cases. #JournosAtTheBorder
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āIt would just happen out of nowhere, it seemed like almost every time.ā ā WPTA journalist Karli VanCleave on getting tear gassed by police in Indiana; a canister hit her while she was covering protests in Fort Wayne on May 29 :
pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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Student journalists in Ohio calmly explain they are exempt from curfew. A few seconds later, a cop comes up and pepper sprays them in the face.
Our reporters were sprayed by police after identifying themselves as "news media" repeatedly. News media are exempt from the curfew. #columbusprotest
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A Florida judge ruled in favor of the @HeraldTribune, striking down a June 10 prior restraint prohibiting the newspaper from publishing the names of deputies involved in a fatal shooting in April: pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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LATEST DATA as of 12pm EDT June 10
*405+ total press freedom incidents*
58+ arrests
86 physical attacks (54 by cops)
52 tear gassings
31 pepper sprayings
87 rubber bullet / projectiles
53 equipment/newsroom damage
38 Other/TBD
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The Department of Homeland Security is trying to force the editor of an immigration law journal to reveal who leaked him a copy of an internal ICE memo about the government's new asylum policy. But he's protecting the identity of his source. pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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The @uspresstracker is investigating reports of at least nine journalists assaulted or who had equipment damaged while documenting brawls between pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli protesters outside a synagogue in west LA on June 23.
pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
Gonna do a thread of video I shot today at the violent conflict outside of Adas Torah.
I got my camera smacked by a masked person that demanded I delete footage of an assault on a pro Palestine protester.
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Arrests of journalists increased a staggering 1,400% in 2020, with at least 139 arrests or charges of reporters, according to @uspresstracker. Read @rcfpās analysis of these & other threats to #pressfreedom: rcfp.org/pressfreedoms2020
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Update: The Los Angeles City Council approved a $300K settlement payout to journalist @bencamach0 and an activist group Aug. 14, after suing them to claw back photos of police officers Camacho had received through a public records request.Ā pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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āOK. Now youāre being detained.ā ā Independent journalist @AlissaAzar was detained for around an hour, her car searched after documenting the arrests of more than 30 members of a white nationalist group at a Pride event in Coeur dāAlene, Idaho, on June 11: pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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White House correspondent @BrianKarem was told via email from @PressSec that his press pass would be suspended for 30 days. Karem, @Playboy and their lawyers are appealing the decision :
pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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Members of the press charged with committing āacts of journalismā in 2023: Charges criminalized routine newsgathering, from seeking comment to protecting sources pressfreedomtracker.us/blog/ā¦
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A federal judge in California ordered the @latimes to remove an article that it published about a corrupt cop accepting a plea deal. The order is clearly unconstitutional, and the Times is contesting it. pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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Last October, @Kirkman was accused of "hacking" by Missouri Gov. Mike Parson after the @stltoday journalist reported a flaw that exposed educatorsā Social Security numbers. Now, the National Press Club has given Renaud a press freedom award. stltoday.com/news/local/govtā¦
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LATEST DATA: MAY 26th - JUNE 8 1PM ET
*383+ total press freedom incidents being investigated*
ā56+ arrests
ā78 physical attacks (50 by police)
ā49 tear gassings
ā27 pepper sprayings
ā89 rubber bullet / projectiles
ā48 equipment/newsroom damage
ā36 other/TBD
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Here's video of the arrest of reporter Pat Brennan in Cincinnati that we tweeted about earlier.
Notice the clear press badge around his neck as he's thrown to the ground by like a half a dozen officers.
This is Enquirer reporter Patrick Brennan being arrested doing his job. Thank you to our friend Nick at CityBeat for documenting this.
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Help us track press freedom violations across the US during ongoing #GeorgeFloyd protests!
We are publicly sharing our tracking document so you can help us log attacks on reporters in real time. Comment in the doc to alert us to more cases as they happen. docs.google.com/spreadsheetsā¦
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Binkowski was stopped twice in July 2018, and told the @uspresstracker that she was alarmed by the āsecurity theaterā taking place. During the second of these stops, a supervisory officer told her that her passport had been flagged : pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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We've received reports of multiple incidents from Portland over the weekend. These and any additional tweets will be added to this thread:
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On Aug. 5, White House correspondent @BrianKarem was told via email from @PressSec that his press pass would be suspended for 30 days. Karem, @Playboy and their lawyers appealed the decision and filed a federal lawsuit : pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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Freelance multimedia reporter @brooklynmarie was stopped at least four times while re-entering the U.S. via the San Ysidro port of entry. Each time, both she and her car were searched, and she was questioned about her reporting : pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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We had multiple reports from journalists in Minneapolis last weekend that their tires were slashed by police . Now video evidence has emerged:
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At least one reporter was arrested last night. Itās the 34th arrest of a journalist in less than a week.
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Freelance photojournalist Timothy Wolfer hit with a rubber bullet while covering Baltimore protests on May 30 : pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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In Portland on Sunday:
Federal agents shot me in the face last night. Federal agents shot me in the face last night while I was covering the Black Lives Matter protests in Portland. It should be clear to everyone by now that BIPOC face a higher risk of violence by police than I do. Story in comments.
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From our partners @FreedomofPress, FPF co-founder @DanielEllsberg calls Chelsea Manning's arrest for sticking up for press freedom and refusing to testify at a grand jury investigating WikiLeaks a travesty of justice: freedom.press/news/daniel-elā¦
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It appears that Canadian reporter Anna Slatz is still in police custody after being arrested last night in NYC: rebelnews.com/save_anna_slatā¦
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LATEST DATA, MAY 26 - JUNE 6 12pm ET
*328+ total press freedom incidents*
54+ arrests
208 assaults (173 by police)
45 equipment/newsroom damage
Assault category breakdown:
73 physical attacks (47 by police)
49 tear gassings
25 pepper sprayings
83 rubber bullets/projectiles
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The 300 press freedom violations during the #GeorgeFloyd protests, broken down by location:
Total states with reported violations: 33
Total cities: 59
Top cities:
Minneapolis (61)
Washington, D.C. (24)
Los Angeles (17)
New York City (16)
Denver (11)
Louisville (10)
Detroit (10)
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This is the 32nd arrest of a reporter in the US this year. We'll have a post up documenting it shortly.
VA cops violently arrested a @Shareblue reporter who covers Ed Gillespie. the video is ASTOUNDING. shareblue.com/shareblue-mediā¦
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During @brooklynmarieās third trip to secondary screening in Aug. 2018, she was held, questioned and searched for at least an hour, despite having been pre-approved for expedited clearance through CBPās Global Entry, NEXUS and SENTRI programs : pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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After video emerges of police in Minneapolis slashing the tires of journalists, State Patrol and Anoka County deputies admit it was them.
Minneapolis cops admit slashing tires on cars belonging to a local reporter and a TV producer covering protests ā ie, doing their jobs startribune.com/officers-slaā¦
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"If Assange can be declared guilty of espionage for working with sources to obtain and publish information deemed 'classified' by the US government, then thereās nothing to stop the criminalization of every other media outlet that routinely does the same." washingtonpost.com/outlook/2ā¦
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āYeah, yeah. Press, press. You are going to jail!ā āDallas police to photojournalist @chrisrusanowsky before arresting him while covering protests on May 30 : pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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Latest reported aggressions against the press as of Thursday, Sept. 24
*836+ total press freedom incidents*
115+ arrests
207 physical attacks (141 by law enforcement)
194 rubber bullet / projectiles
99 tear gassings
61 pepper sprayings
87 equipment/newsroom damage
74 other/TBD
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Binkowski was stopped most recently in Nov. 2018, when she was returning from a reporting trip on the #migrantcaravan. It was their āmindless exercise of power,ā she said, that pushed her to stop crossing the border. She hasnāt been back since : pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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Tonight in Seattle:
Was just aggressively grabbed as escorted by SPD despite me repeatedly telling them Iām with the press at the #seattleprotests
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We're now investigating over **100** press freedom violations at the many #GeorgeFloyd protests around the country from the last few days. These include reporters arrested, pepper sprayed, tear gassed, hit with rubber bullets, and assaulted. Many of the attacks have been targeted
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Latest reported aggressions against the press as of 11am EDT July 22
*546+ total press freedom incidents*
77+ arrests
125 physical attacks (77 by law enforcement)
74 tear gassings
34 pepper sprayings
124 rubber bullet / projectiles
71 equipment/newsroom damage
41 other/TBD
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So far in 2020, the @uspresstracker has confirmed reports of 77 journalists arrested, detained or charged with a crime while covering Black Lives Matter protests across the country. Today weāre highlighting some of those verified cases.
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We are already working to verify and document reports starting to come in from today. If you are a journalist ā or know of one ā who has been assaulted, arrested or had equipment seized or damaged in the course of covering a protest, DM or email tips@pressfreedomtracker.us.
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āI think they were firing at anything that moved. And we happened to be moving.ā ā Two members of WIVB news crew stuck by pepper balls during protests in Buffalo, NY, on June 1 : pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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Late last night in NYC:
CNN reporter: "we were away from protesters and clearly press (camera, microphone, etc)"
Still pepper sprayed by police live on national television.
In the late night drama at Lafayette Park, our team (@Joshrepp on camera) was sprayed with pepper spray though we were away from protesters and clearly press (camera, microphone, etc). 3 hours later my arm was still burning. Others got it far worse.
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This is how St. Louis police allegedly treated an @stltoday reporter & his editor. pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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Multiple journalists were detained in a police kettle for violating a curfew order in D.C. on Jan. 6 in the wake of riots at the Capitol. Journalists and other essential workers were explicitly exempted from the curfew order. pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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Last night in Portland:
Portland police officer āyour asked to disperse, wearing the press does not give you the right to be hereā
Reporter @_jlevinson: āweāre movingā
Police: āyouāve been given warnings, so if you donāt move faster your gonna go to jailā
āSo you want us to run?ā
āyes I doā
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Weāre investigating reports of at least 8 journalists detained or arrested during a protest last night in L.A.ās Echo Park:
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We are actively watching Twitter during protests tonight, and will be posting some of the reports of aggressions against the press that we receive in this thread. Please DM us to report any incidents that you see.
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You have frequently asked questions, we have answers! Find out more about the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker here: pressfreedomtracker.us/frequā¦
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Last night, journalist Jacob Kornbluh was assaulted at an anti-lockdown protest in New York. Kornbluh tweeted that the incident occurred after an organizer "recognized (him) and ordered the crowd to chase (him) down the street."
At Heschyās urging, the crowd just surrounded and attacked journalist @jacobkornbluh. They pinned him against a wall and shouted āmoyserā (āsnitchā) as NYPD lost control of the situation. Really scary scene. Jacob is a pro
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LAPD officers jabbed independent photojournalist @AeonPhotoCo in the ribs with a baton while he was filming reproductive rights protests in LA on June 24: pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
ALT Assault | "I was so focused on setting up my shot that I really wasn't paying attention when the officers approached me. I told them I was just trying to do my job but I immediately got out of there." āJake Lee Green, independent photojournalist | U.S. Press Freedom Tracker | pressfreedomtracker.us
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A Pennsylvania man has pleaded guilty in the attack of an AP photographer during Jan. 6, 2021 riots at the Capitol. At least eight people have been charged with crimes against the media from that day: pressfreedomtracker.us/blog/ā¦
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After independent journalist Sarah Belle Lin was shot with a less-lethal round in Oakland, California, on May 30, she demanded to know the identity of the officer who had shot her and the decision behind it. The officers did not respond, she said. pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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Update: Photojournalist Linda Tirado, injured while covering protests in Minneapolis on May 29, sues City of Minneapolis, police for excessive force: pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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Since May 26, more than 50 aggressions against journalists in Portland have been reported to us, 20 from the last week alone.
This includes:
5 arrests
9 physical attacks (8 by law enforcement)
20 rubber bullet / projectiles
8 tear gassings
3 pepper sprayings
7 other/TBD
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Journalist @R3volutionDaddy says she was hit with crowd control munitions, while @Claudio_Report says she was hit in the head with a tear gas canister while covering a protest in Portland on Aug. 20. pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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Reporter in NYC, wearing a helmet that said āPRESSā on it. Read the whole thread šš¾
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Irving, TX: @IndiaToday reporter @DCWalaDesi was physically prevented from leaving an interview Sept. 7 by attendees who halted his questioning of the overseas head of one of Indiaās main opposition parties, then stole his phone and deleted the interview recording.
pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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White House bans CNN reporter @kaitlancollins from press conference to punish her for asking Trump "inappropriate" questions about Michael Cohen and Putin pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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Police pepper spray members of the press who are recording protests Sunday in Columbus, Ohio:
NOW: Things have taken a turn here. Police came to intersection and tried to push crowd out with bikes. This happened. @nbc4i
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We are aware of reports of several journalists arrested in Chicago last night and we are currently investigating them.
#DNC2024CHICAGO #DNC2024
Chicago Police arrested photojournalist @strangevictory_, Olga Fedorova and at least one more you can see in this video during the pro-Palestinian protest, I was lucky enough to get away from an arrest attempt after they kettled everyone with literally no place to go.
#DNC2024
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More numbers from our tracking. From May 28-31:
āAt least 19 reporters arrested.
āAt least 36 journalists have reported being shot at by police with projectiles such as rubber bullets. 50% just in Minnesota.
āAt least 76 reported assaults (physical and shot at). 80% by police.
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We'll be collecting and documenting press freedom violations at the protests tonight, as we have been every night.
If you see evidence on social media of a journalist arrested, assaulted or shot at while doing their job, please send it our way.
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Lawsuit filed against @realDonaldTrump and @PressSec for revoking White House hard-pass of @playboy correspondent @BrianKarem : pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
Here is a thread and link to my statement about the federal lawsuit we just filed against @realDonaldTrump and @PressSec on behalf @Playboy White House Correspondent @BrianKarem seeking immediate restoration of his hard pass. gibsondunn.com/wp-content/upā¦ 1/3
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It's already started again. A @7NewsAustralia reporter and cameraman assaulted by the police in DC.
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Folks have been asking for data on press freedom incidents by location, here's a preliminary count:
Minneapolis - 47
Los Angeles - 13
Washington, D.C. - 11
Louisville - 10
New York - 10
Unique incident locations: 53
States: 33
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As CBS Channel 11 prepared to go live in Dallas, an officer tossed an activated tear gas canister toward the news crew: pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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A journalist for @stltoday found a flaw on a state website that exposed Missouri educatorsā Social Security numbers. When he alerted the state to the vulnerability, Gov. Parson accused him of hacking and threatened him and the newspaper with prosecution: pressfreedomtracker.us/all-iā¦
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