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Record Breaking Number of Journalists Arrested in the U.S. This Year

freedom.press

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Re: Record Breaking Number of Journalists Arrested in the U.S. This Year

#231

One line from the report jumped out at me as I was skimming it: > About half the journalists here are freelancers, who may lack the institutional support of a newsroom and the financial resources for a potentially expensive legal defense. I hadn't really thought of the value of legal defense from journalism institutions (as opposed to non-institutional platforms like Substack) before.

What do you mean by "non-institutional platforms"

Re: Record Breaking Number of Journalists Arrested in the U.S. This Year

#232

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The police were attempting to intimidate and silence them is the honest answer. > likely none of them committed any actual crimes What makes you say that?

> What makes you say that? Watch the Lafayette Square clearing. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2L1gZApugd0 Now notice a few things: 1. The first cop who throws a punch at them is clearly abusing his power. 2. A 2nd cop realizes what's going on, pulls the 1st cop off the news crew, and provides a place for the news reporters to run away. (This isn't clear from the Australian news camera. But some people filmed this i…

She herself says that they were "indiscriminate" and that they didn't care whether she was media or not. You are trying to make a big narrative that your video doesn't support.

Re: Record Breaking Number of Journalists Arrested in the U.S. This Year

#233

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>What the YoY stonks increase on Americans shot by rubber bullets? What is a YoY stonk

I assume YoY is the year over year increase. Stonk mystifies me too, maybe some typo? Update: stonk=slang for bombardment, according to a quick google.

stonks = stocks in internet slang. Mostly via r/wallstreetbets

Re: Record Breaking Number of Journalists Arrested in the U.S. This Year

#234
post #120

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Where "journalistic work" means "has published an article or video that at least purports to be reporting facts, or something equivalent to that". If you claim to be a journalist, but can't point to something you've published, then you're not included. If you claim to be a journalist, and can go "here's three articles I published in a local newspaper (for example)", then you're included.

So how can you be a journalist in order to write your first articles if you're not allowed to be a journalist until you've written your first articles?

The point is that this particular site, which reports on police violence against journalists, is being somewhat conservative in how they define journalist.

That seems fine.

Re: Record Breaking Number of Journalists Arrested in the U.S. This Year

#235

Reading the comments in this thread and I am amazed at the sudden pro-authoritarian shift seen on HN lately, what's going on?

Being anti-"journalist" isn't the same as being pro-authoritarian. 99% of institutional journalists are sockpuppets for prog neoliberal authoritarianism. I can think of a single-digit number of well-known journalists who I actually respect and generally expect to provide useful/unbiased information. This isn't a left/right authoritarian/libertarian thing - anti-corpo-journalist sentiment is pretty widely shared acros…

Being in favour of, or okay with, journalists being arrested for doing journalism is _intensely_ authoritarian, whether you agree with them or not. Especially if you disagree with them, really.

Re: Record Breaking Number of Journalists Arrested in the U.S. This Year

#236

Reading the comments in this thread and I am amazed at the sudden pro-authoritarian shift seen on HN lately, what's going on?

I don't see a pro-authoritarian bent in the comments in this thread. What I see a lot of is people pointing out that the definition of "journalist" is very very loose in 2020, and that has an effect on the arrest stats. Many many many people have watched with their own eyes, live on video, what's been going on through the course of this year. We've seen CNN and ABC reporters shot with rubber bullets and accosted on l…

You hit the nail on the head.

If it's someone who has a shred of journalistic integrity, simply observing, recording and/or interviews regardless of their political stance, then I'm absolutely against their arrest. While I'm also against cherry picking journalism, oh well, they cant be targeted either.

If you're in one hand with a camera and the other hand a rock or molotov cocktail, you're not a journalist. Too many folks are claiming to be journalists when they're not and for me, that ain't right. This leads to governments being allowed to be authoritarian with, sadly, very good reason that will convince mass populations to vote against the freedom of the press.

How these two types of individuals are being confused, that's beyond me. Again, I think we should all just go back to being hunter gatherers and fight bears for blueberries at this rate.

Re: Record Breaking Number of Journalists Arrested in the U.S. This Year

#238
post #25

I'll dare to ask this, but what defines a "journalist" in the data points here? The Clark Kent types are the only ones I really understand that can live under that title - but with the advent of syndication and micro-journalism (to use a term I just made up) for regional markets that have no real local presence of classic journalism, interested to know what it means now. Here in Buffalo, could go many directions.

In general, US law makes little distinction, and with good reason---the easiest way to curtail freedom of the press would be to give government the authority to declare some citizen's aren't really press.

Most of them aren’t though. Portland has a ton of antifa kids running around with “press” signage who are also help organizing things, passing intel, or blatantly assaulting cops. Do that a couple times and “PRESS” means nothing. You should be upset with the rioters, not their victims.
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