The Wisconsin Newspaper Association is among the 107 groups – including almost every state press association – that signed two letters sent via email in support of the Protect Reporters from Exploitative State Spying, or PRESS, Act on Oct. 8, 2024.
The PRESS Act was adopted Jan. 18 in the House of Representatives and is currently awaiting US Senate action.
According to the letters sent by the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, journalists’ protections in federal courts against the compelled disclosure by federal officials of confidential source information or sensitive newsgathering materials vary considerably by jurisdiction, which makes the PRESS Act critical for press freedom and the public’s right to know.
Another complication, according to the committee: In recent years, under administrations of both parties, the Justice Department and other federal agencies have sought sensitive records from or of journalists on multiple occasions.
“While the Department of Justice adopted new internal guidance in 2021 sharply limiting that practice at DOJ, the policy remains subject to change at the department’s discretion and other federal agencies are not bound by it,” the letter reads. Only Congress can provide the press the certainty of a federal statute.
