USA / Americas

For data on press freedom violations in the U.S., visit the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, a partnership between CPJ and Freedom of the Press Foundation.

Read CPJ’s report On Edge: What the US election could mean for journalists and global press freedom.

  
Features & Analysis
Freelance journalist Bryan Carmody, left, is seen with his attorney, Thomas Burke, at a panel event held by the Society of Professional Journalists in San Francisco on August 13, 2019. Police raided Carmody's home and office in May while investigating the leak of a report on the death of a San Francisco public defender. (AP/Juliet Williams)

FAC, CPJ ask San Francisco mayor to protect journalist freedoms

The Committee to Protect Journalists and the free speech non-profit First Amendment Coalition today sent a letter to San Francisco Mayor London Breed requesting a meeting about steps the city can take to ensure press freedom.

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Features & Analysis
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.

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Features & Analysis
The wreck of the World Trade Center after the 9/11 terror attack in New York. Journalists who developed health issues after reporting from Ground Zero can seek support from several programs. (Reuters/Peter Morgan)

For journalists with health issues from covering 9/11, support is available

Like the first responders who rushed to the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, thoughts of personal safety were far from the minds of the journalists who covered the largest terror attack on U.S. soil.

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Features & Analysis
A U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer waits for pedestrians entering the United States on April 9, 2018 at the San Ysidro port of entry in California. Warrantless searches of devices belonging to journalists and other travelers at the border violate the U.S. constitution, a Massachusetts district court judge ruled in November. (Getty Images/AFP/Mario Tama)

Q&A: Isma’il Kushkush and Sophia Cope on U.S. court ruling against warrantless border search

Journalists crossing U.S. borders face a particular set of challenges, as CPJ has reported extensively. The U.S. government claims sweeping authority to interrogate travelers and search electronic devices without a warrant under what is known as the “border search exception.” CPJ has called this a chilling prospect for reporters in transit—especially those working with confidential…

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Features & Analysis
A demonstrator dressed as a whistle protests outside of a London court holding a hearing on the U.S. extradition case of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange in October 2019. (Reuters/Henry Nicholls)

For the sake of press freedom, Julian Assange must be defended

Nine years ago this month, the Committee to Protect Journalists took a stand on one of the most polarizing figures in journalism. We wrote President Barack Obama and his attorney general, Eric Holder, urging them not to prosecute Julian Assange.

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Features & Analysis
Freelance journalist Bryan Carmody, left, is seen with his attorney, Thomas Burke, at a panel event held by the Society of Professional Journalists in San Francisco on August 13, 2019. Police raided Carmody's home and office in May while investigating the leak of a report on the death of a San Francisco public defender. (AP/Juliet Williams)

Carmody case shows grave police overreach, say lawyers

Bryan Carmody, a breaking news stringer who frequently worked the police beat in San Francisco, woke on May 10 to the sound of a sledgehammer at the metal gate securing his front door. Law enforcement agents investigating the leak of internal police documents were attempting to discover his source, CPJ reported at the time.

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Features & Analysis
The Thurgood Marshall United States Courthouse, which hears cases from the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York and U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, stands in lower Manhattan, New York City. Journalists in the U.S. and Canada say threats of lawsuits can affect every level of the reporting process. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images/AFP)

Legal threats prompt journalists to take creative approaches to investigative stories

When BuzzFeed News reporters Jane Bradley and Katie J.M. Baker began investigating claims of sexual misconduct by self-help guru Tony Robbins in early 2018, they did what any journalist would do, and reached out to people who might know about the allegations.

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Features & Analysis
The Central Intelligence Agency building is seen in Langley, Virginia, on January 21, 2017. CPJ recently filed a brief requesting the U.S. intelligence community release documents relating to the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi. (AP/Andrew Harnik)

CPJ asks DC District Court to force release of intelligence community Khashoggi files

The Committee to Protect Journalists filed a brief in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia yesterday asking the court to release documents regarding Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi’s murder, which the U.S. government claimed in court documents are exempt from Freedom of Information Act requests.

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Features & Analysis
Reporters work during a panel for a television series in Beverly Hills, California, in August 2016. Female and gender non-conforming journalists in the U.S. and Canada say there is a need for greater training on dealing with harassment and threats. (Reuters/Mario Anzuoni)

‘The threats follow us home’: Survey details risks for female journalists in U.S., Canada

Ask any female journalist about harassment or safety while on assignment and they’ll likely have a story to tell.

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Features & Analysis
A protester uses her phone to film during protests in Charlotte, North Carolina, in September 2016. CPJ's safety survey found 85 percent of respondents believe journalism is becoming a less safe job. (Reuters/Mike Blake)

Why going solo is a risk for female reporters in the US and Canada

In June 2016, an attacker was terrorizing women on a jogging path in Edmonton, Canada. A video journalist at a large Canadian broadcaster was assigned to cover the story on the night shift. Multiple sexual assaults had been reported and the man was still at-large.

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