SEJ in Press Freedom Case, Chem Secrecy Bill Fails and More

Wild horses in North Dakota’s Theodore Roosevelt National Park. A similar herd was at the center of a recent conflict over press freedom, when a National Park Service official blocked access to media coverage of a roundup at Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado. Photo: National Park Service. Click to enlarge.

WatchDog: SEJ in Press Freedom Case, Chem Secrecy Bill Fails and More

 

1. SEJ Joins Journalism Groups in Press Freedom Brief
2. Louisiana Chemical Secrecy Bill Falters Short of Passage
3. California Bill Limiting Access to Public University Records Is Yanked
4. Colorado Paper Prohibited from Covering Wild Horse Roundup
5. Iowa’s Second Try at Ag-Gag Law Is Challenged in Court (Again)

 

1. SEJ Joins Journalism Groups in Press Freedom Brief

The Society of Environmental Journalists has joined with the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press and 37 other journalism groups to support the First Amendment right to film police activity in a public place.

The groups filed an amicus (friend of the court) brief supporting plaintiff Levi Frasier in Frasier v. Evans, a case before the Denver-based 10th Circuit.

Frasier brought the suit alleging First and Fourth Amendment claims against five Denver police officers after the officers detained, questioned and threatened him with arrest after he filmed them on his tablet arresting and beating someone on a public street.

Frasier initially denied filming the arrest to the officers, but eventually admitted he had. Based on the statements of the officer who questioned him, Frasier believed he would be arrested if he did not admit to recording and produce his tablet.

The officers let Frasier go after they looked through the tablet (without Frasier's permission) and were not able to find a recording of the arrest. Frasier later shared the recording with a local TV station, who reported on the arrest and the video.

The amicus brief filed by the journalism groups supports Frasier's argument that the First Amendment right to record police in public was clearly established during the time of the incident at issue, in August 2014, in addition to the right being clearly established now.

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2. Louisiana Chemical Secrecy Bill Falters Short of Passage

A controversial bill to let Louisiana polluters keep their violations secret failed by a narrow vote in the state’s House May 16, but there’s a chance it could come back this session.

The bill, backed by oil and chemical companies, allows facilities to “self-audit” their emissions. Any violations they find would have to be reported to the state Department of Environmental Quality. In return, they would get limited immunity from prosecution and could withhold the information from public disclosure.

The House voted 46-40 in favor of the measure, short of the number required to pass. It could be brought up again in this session. Eighteen members were absent for the vote.

Such a bill was proposed in Louisiana as long ago as 1997. Some 20 other states have similar laws, following a model promoted by the American Legislative Exchange Council. While the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency during prior administrations had frowned on such laws, the Trump administration seems more amenable.

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3. California Bill Limiting Access to Public University Records Is Yanked

A controversial California bill exempting university researchers from some public records requests was pulled by its sponsor for this session.

The bill, AB 700, was intended by its sponsor, Assemblymember Laura Friedman (D), to prevent the use of public records requests by lobby groups to harass researchers. But a number of media and journalism groups opposed it, saying it was so broad that it would prevent legitimate reporting.

The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, or RCFP, the American Society of News Editors and the Associated Press Media Editors expressed misgivings about the bill. Advocacy groups including  U.S. Right To Know and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals also opposed it.

Some opponents, such as RCFP, said they hoped to work with the bill’s sponsor to narrow it.

Public records requests for emails and other records of public university researchers have been contentious (and a journalistic tool) on the environmental beat for years. This has been especially true in fossil-fuel industry battles to discredit climate research.

One notorious example was the campaign begun by Virginia’s then-Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli (R) to get records of climate scientist Michael Mann, who was then at the University of Virginia.

Many scientists have complained that public-records laws are used against them as a way of stifling academic freedom. But records have also been used by journalists and advocacy groups (for example U.S. Right To Know) to expose science corrupted by industry ties and money.

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4. Colorado Paper Prohibited from Covering Wild Horse Roundup

Something spooked the National Park Service. Was it media scrutiny?

Mesa Verde National Park denied a request from a reporter from the Cortez Journal in Colorado to cover a wild horse roundup — something of interest to readers that has previously been open to the media.

But in an April 24 email, Superintendent Cliff Spencer said no. Might spook the horses.

We learned of the incident via the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, which catalogs incidents where press freedom is violated.

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5. Iowa’s Second Try at Ag-Gag Law Is Challenged in Court (Again)

Iowa’s second attempt to enact a bill outlawing undercover investigations of factory farms and slaughterhouses is facing a court challenge — just like the first one did.

So-called “ag-gag” laws make it illegal to use deception (including omission) to gain access to a private agricultural facility with intent to cause any vaguely defined harm, which can include harm to business.

Iowa’s first try at ag-gag legislation went to court and was thrown out by a judge as being unconstitutional. That ruling is still under appeal. This second try was crafted more narrowly — but nonetheless promptly challenged in court last month by the American Civil Liberties Union of Iowa.    

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* From the weekly news magazine SEJournal Online, Vol. 4, No. 21. Content from each new issue of SEJournal Online is available to the public via the SEJournal Online main page. Subscribe to the e-newsletter here. And see past issues of the SEJournal archived here.