Media outlets shouldn’t have to parrot the government’s worldview in order to continue doing their jobs – yet that’s exactly what we’re seeing as the Department of Defense cracks down on reporting inside the Pentagon, the FCC coerces tv stations to pull entertainers from the air, and the White House tries to kick the AP out of the press pool for refusing to say “Gulf of America.”
These censorial actions and more are why all of us must take action to protect our free press now.
These are absurd attempts to control and censor independent news organizations. And that is why the ACLU has filed a brief in support of the AP’s lawsuit, arguing that their ban violates the First Amendment. The president cannot punish press outlets for their choice of words.
The President and the FCC are leading the charge to intimidate and censor our free press – opening baseless investigations into media outlets, threatening affiliate broadcast licenses, and more. But right now, a bill has been introduced in Congress that would put an end to the FCC’s unconstitutional retaliation against the media – and we must make sure it passes.
The Broadcast Freedom and Independence Act would rein in the FCC’s ability to retaliate against media the president doesn’t like – blocking them from revoking broadcast licenses or imposing unjust conditions on transaction approvals for broadcasters based on the viewpoints they broadcast.
This legislation would prevent another situation like what happened to Jimmy Kimmel – where the FCC Chair threatened ABC affiliate licenses to coerce ABC into pulling Kimmel from air.
Thanks for being with us,
The ACLU Team
This legislation would prevent another situation like what happened to Jimmy Kimmel – where the FCC Chair threatened ABC affiliate licenses to coerce ABC into pulling Kimmel from air.
Thanks for being with us,
The ACLU Team
American Civil Liberties Union
125 Broad Street, 18th Floor
New York, NY 10004, USA