Chief Justice of the United States John Roberts swears in senators during the procedural start of the Senate impeachment trial of U.S. President Donald Trump in this frame grab from video shot in the Senate Chamber at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on January 16, 2020. CPJ and 57 news organizations asked the Senate to rethink press restrictions during the impeachment trial. (Reuters/U.S. Senate TV/Handout via Reuters)
Chief Justice of the United States John Roberts swears in senators during the procedural start of the Senate impeachment trial of U.S. President Donald Trump in this frame grab from video shot in the Senate Chamber at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on January 16, 2020. CPJ and 57 news organizations asked the Senate to rethink press restrictions during the impeachment trial. (Reuters/U.S. Senate TV/Handout via Reuters)

CPJ, 57 news organizations ask Senate to rethink press restrictions during impeachment

The Committee to Protect Journalists and at 57 other news organizations yesterday sent a letter to Senate authorities asking them to reconsider press restrictions during the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump.

The letter asked the Senate to refrain from adding additional screening devices at the entrance to the gallery and allow reporters to move freely to and from the gallery. According to the Senate Standing Committee of Correspondents–the group of Senate reporters who issue credentials and uphold the rules of the Senate press gallery–the proposed regulations are more restrictive than those during the State of the Union, Inauguration Day, and the Clinton impeachment trial. CPJ has stated that these restrictions would hamper the media’s ability to quickly report developments in the trial.

Read the full letter here.