Report: Israel-Gaza war protests drive 50% uptick in assaults on U.S. journalists
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The number of assaults on U.S. journalists has soared more than 50% so far in 2024 compared to all of 2023, according to a new report from the Committee to Protect Journalists.
Why it matters: The vast majority of the 68 assaults documented this year have occurred at the local level during Israel-Gaza war protests.
- Several assaults targeted student journalists covering war protests on their own college campuses.
Zoom out: The report cites a hostile media climate fostered during the Trump era for continued attacks on press freedoms, especially at the local level.
- The Black Lives Matter protests in 2020 and the Jan. 6 Capital siege in 2021 drove unprecedented levels of assaults on journalists with little accountability or charges.
- The "increased militarization of police" and "the prevalence of less lethal weapons and other types of crowd control techniques that are a bit less discriminatory" have also resulted in an uptick in assaults against journalists covering protests, the report's author Katherine Jacobsen told Axios.
- Local journalists often lack safety training and legal protection resources, making them more vulnerable to attacks.
The big picture: The United States' record on press freedoms hit a new low in 2024, thanks mostly to escalating tensions between reporters and local law enforcement officials and politicians.
- In addition to assaults, journalists also face a growing number of lawsuits designed to intimidate them and deplete their resources.
- The U.S. House of Representatives unanimously passed in January the PRESS Act, a bill that codifies legal protections for journalists, but the measure has languished in the Senate.
Yes, but: While there has been little accountability for smaller assaults (shoving, pepper sprays, tackling), law enforcement has taken more action against serious crimes.
- Former Las Vegas county politician Robert Telles faces up to life in prison after being found guilty of murdering a Las Vegas Review-Journal reporter who had written critically about him.
- A New Hampshire man was sentenced to 27 months in prison for his role in a conspiracy to stalk journalists employed by New Hampshire Public Radio.
What to watch: CPJ said it wrote to both Donald Trump and Kamala Harris in September requesting that they "publicly affirm the rights guaranteed by the First Amendment and abide by basic principles to respect and promote media freedom at home and abroad."
- Neither candidate had signed the pledge as of Tuesday morning, Jacobsen said. The Harris campaign confirmed receipt of the pledge, Jacobsen said.
