The Committee to Protect Journalists, along with over 70 civil society organizations, signed a letter urging Senate leaders to oppose the Reforming Intelligence and Securing America Act (RISAA), H.R.7888, which would dramatically expand the government’s warrantless surveillance powers without providing adequate protections for journalists.
Under an amendment adopted as part of RISAA, the government could, in effect, require American businesses, including individuals such as journalists, with no role in providing communications services, to assist with National Security Agency (NSA) surveillance.
The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court has itself noted the “persistent and widespread” abuses of Section 702, including backdoor searches of journalists.
Read the full letter here: