Journalists should prepare to defend their right to report the news

The arrests of journalists Don Lemon and Georgia Fort on Friday signal an  increasing willingness for the federal government to criminalize newsgathering activities.

While the legal merits of those arrests have yet to be tested, they are a red flag for journalists and newsroom leaders everywhere. Given the speed and unpredictability of recent federal actions — including the seizure of a Washington Post reporter’s equipment earlier this month —  every newsroom must prepare now to defend its right to report the news.

Poynter is building a series of resources for newsrooms, editors and reporters to help newsrooms respond to legal threats and protect their ability to report independently. Those tools will be released over the coming weeks. In light of recent events, we are publishing the first of these early. (You can follow Poynter’s Press Freedom Watch for the latest updates.)