The Progressive

NewsWire

A project of Common Dreams

For Immediate Release
Contact:

Gabriela Melendez
Email: gmelendez@aclu.org

ACLU Statement on Restrictions of Press Interviews in Capitol

Senate staff has started barring reporters from recording video or audio interviews in the halls of the Capitol without permission, reversing decades of common practice.

American Civil Liberties Union Political Director Faiz Shakir had this statement:

"Preventing the press from informing the public about the workings of their own government goes against the core values of our democracy. For decades, the Capitol building has been open for recorded interviews, which provide a critical window into the legislative process.

WASHINGTON

Senate staff has started barring reporters from recording video or audio interviews in the halls of the Capitol without permission, reversing decades of common practice.

American Civil Liberties Union Political Director Faiz Shakir had this statement:

"Preventing the press from informing the public about the workings of their own government goes against the core values of our democracy. For decades, the Capitol building has been open for recorded interviews, which provide a critical window into the legislative process.

"Closing the shutters now, while Congress is secretly considering a bill that would cause over 20 million people to lose health insurance, is utterly unreasonable and flies in the face of the First Amendment."

This statement is online here:
https://www.aclu.org/news/aclu-statement-restrictions-press-interviews-capitol

The American Civil Liberties Union was founded in 1920 and is our nation's guardian of liberty. The ACLU works in the courts, legislatures and communities to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to all people in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States.

(212) 549-2666