USA / Americas

For data on press freedom violations in the U.S., visit the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, a partnership between CPJ and Freedom of the Press Foundation.

Read CPJ’s report On Edge: What the US election could mean for journalists and global press freedom.

  
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is seen in The Villages, Florida, on March 23, 2020. Authorities at the Florida State Capitol recently barred journalist Mary Ellen Klas from attending a news briefing by DeSantis. (AP/John Raoux)

Reporter denied access to Florida governor’s briefing on COVID-19

Washington, D.C., March 30, 2020 — Florida Governor Ron DeSantis should allow reporters to safely cover his news briefings, and not penalize journalists who seek to follow public health guidance on social distancing, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

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Government Technology Agency staff demonstrate Singapore's new contact-tracing smartphone app called TraceTogether, as a preventive measure against the COVID-19 coronavirus on March 20, 2020. Bill Marczak, an expert in cellphone surveillance technology, told CPJ about the implications for journalists as governments ramp up their capacity to monitor citizens in a time of crisis. (AFP/Catherine Lai)

Expert Bill Marczak: What journalists should know about coronavirus cellphone tracking

Governments all over the world have been considering cellphone surveillance to help track and contain the spread of the coronavirus.

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Ultra-Orthodox Jewish girls wear face masks during celebrations of the Purim festival in Bnei Brak, Israel, on March 10, 2020. CPJ recently spoke with Laura Adkins, an Orthodox Jewish editor at the Jewish Telegraph Agency. (AP/Oded Balilty)

Q&A: Covering the coronavirus outbreak in the Orthodox Jewish community

Before the coronavirus outbreak, Laura E. Adkins edited opinion pieces for the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, a syndicated nonprofit wire service that runs articles in Jewish publications. But as the virus has taken root in a number of Jewish communities in the United States and around the world, Adkins, who is based in New York and…

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The U.S. State Department Building is seen in Washington, D.C., on January 26, 2017. The department announced today that it was capping the number of visas given to Chinese state media employees. (Reuters/Joshua Roberts)

US to limit visas at Chinese state media outlets, forcing dozens to leave

Washington, D.C., March 2, 2020 — The U.S. government should immediately suspend efforts to effectively expel dozens of Chinese journalists and put a halt to mutual retaliation over media operations, which threatens to undermine the free flow of information as the COVID-19 epidemic spreads throughout the world, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

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Secretary of State Mike Pompeo speaks at the State Department on February 25, 2020, in Washington, D.C. The department recently labeled five Chinese state media outlets as "foreign missions." (AP/Andrew Harnik)

U.S. reclassifies 5 Chinese state media organizations as ‘foreign missions’

On February 18, 2020, the U.S. State Department said in an official press briefing that five Chinese state-funded news agencies–Xinhua News Agency, China Global Television Network, China Radio International, China Daily Distribution Corporation, and Hai Tian Development USA–are controlled by the Chinese government and will be treated as “foreign missions,” a designation typically used for…

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New York City police vehicles are seen on February 9, 2020. The NYPD recently cited anti-terrorism legislation in a subpoena seeking a journalist's data from Twitter. (AP/John Minchillo)

NYPD subpoenaed journalist’s Twitter data, citing anti-terrorism law

Washington, D.C., February 14, 2020 — The New York Police Department should not use anti-terror laws in an attempt to access journalists’ data, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

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Journalist Amr Alfiky is arrested in New York on February 11, 2020. (Screenshot of video taken by Mostafa Bassim)

Journalist Amr Alfiky arrested, charged with disorderly conduct in New York

Washington, D.C., February 12, 2020 — The New York City Police Department should drop all charges against photojournalist Amr Alfiky and provide a public explanation for his arrest, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

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Demonstrators march on Las Americas highway demanding the resignation of Governor Ricardo Rossello, in San Juan, Puerto Rico, on July 22, 2019. Rossello resigned in early August, but first signed two laws that obstruct the work of investigative journalists in Puerto Rico. (AP Photo/Carlos Giusti)

New laws obstruct work of investigative journalists in Puerto Rico

In July 2019, anti-government protesters gathered on the streets of Puerto Rico, motivated in part by the work of investigative journalists who had obtained and published over 900 messages exchanged by then Governor Ricardo Rosselló and his allies that disparaged political opponents and the island’s citizens. Before Rosselló gave in to public pressure to resign…

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Artwork: Jack Forbes

U.S. elections 2020: Journalist safety kit

The United States is scheduled to hold presidential and congressional elections on November 3, 2020. Journalists covering elections and political rallies in the U.S. in recent years have been subjected to online and verbal harassment and even physical assault, CPJ has found.

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CPJ calls on US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to support press freedom

CPJ writes to US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to express our concern regarding his treatment of two National Public Radio reporters, and his characterization of the media as “unhinged.”

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