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Three weeks into the new Trump administration, many newsrooms are concerned about maintaining their editorial independence. Bay Area radio station KCBS found-itself the target of an FCC investigation for its January 26 reporting of ICE raids in San Jose.
The station is in danger of losing its license. In related news, the Associated Press says that its reporter was barred from the White House because it refuses to follow President Donald Trump’s executive order to rename the Gulf of Mexico the ʻGulf of America.’ And major media houses faced lawsuits from Trump even before he took office.
Speakers at this week’s Ethnic Media Services panel discussed the challenges these actions pose to freedom of the press. They also discussed whether media and their sources are already self-censoring; and legal recourse and rights for reporters and their newsrooms.
In an era of increasing pressure on journalists and news organizations, legal and regulatory threats are becoming key concerns for press freedom in the United States. Joel Simon, founding director of the Journalism Protection Initiative at the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism in New York City, recently highlighted these concerns at a safety summit convened at the school.
“We identified eight separate threats,” Simon said. “I don’t have time to go through them all, but let me talk a little bit about what I call the regulatory threat and what I call the legal threat.”
Simon pointed to recent actions by FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr, including an investigation into KCBS and inquiries into NPR and PBS over their underwriting announcements. Additionally, Carr has signaled scrutiny of Comcast’s DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) practices, raising alarms about a potential broad-based regulatory campaign against news organizations.
“These are the opening salvos in what I anticipate will be a broad regulatory threat that could involve other agencies,” Simon warned.
The concern stems from the possibility that federal regulatory bodies could use their authority to target media organizations perceived as critical of the government. Historically, the FCC’s power to regulate broadcast media was rooted in the scarcity of public airwaves, but some fear it could now be wielded as a tool to suppress unfavorable reporting.
Legal challenges also pose a growing danger. Simon noted that while many assume press-related legal threats would center on defamation or content disputes, governments worldwide have used alternative legal tactics to harass journalists and media outlets.
“Tax issues, allegations of fraud, workplace practices—those are all risk areas,” Simon said. “The Trump administration has already demonstrated some considerable sophistication and employed some surprising tactics. So, expect the unexpected.”
Speaking on the issue, Zach Press, senior staff attorney at Lawyers for Reporters at the Cyrus R. Vance Center for International Justice, emphasized the essential role of community-based newsrooms while warning of increasing risks.
“A lot of what Lawyers for Reporters focuses on is local, independent, mission-driven journalism,” Press said. “That’s why we exist.”
During the recent discussion, the Press underscored the importance of equipping newsrooms with legal and digital safeguards. He noted that while these precautions should always be in place, heightened risks could make them even more crucial in the coming years.
“There are specific things that newsrooms can do—concrete resources they can avail themselves of—to best protect themselves,” Press advised. “You’re going to want to implement policies and practices that are uniform. They may relate to your digital security, obtaining affordable media liability insurance, or dealing with subpoenas that request information such as reporter’s notes that would ordinarily be protected from disclosure.”
With growing concerns about journalist safety, the Press also highlighted the increasing prevalence of doxxing—where personal information is maliciously shared online—as a significant threat. “These are things that all newsrooms want to be thinking about now,” he warned, encouraging journalists to assess their preparedness like a “health checkup.”
Legal risks are not limited to digital harassment. Press acknowledged concerns about government actions, particularly regarding the rights of non-citizen journalists. While immigration issues fall outside his organization’s scope, he stressed the importance of reporters knowing their legal rights.
“Reporters need to be very careful about how they interact with whoever they’re reporting on,” he said. “It’s important to know your rights—whether it’s about complying with law enforcement or recognizing the difference between an administrative and a judicial warrant.”
Simon noted that restrictions on independent media are not confined to the United States.
“What we’re living through in the U.S.—the erosion of norms and the weakening of legal safeguards—is part of a global trend,” Simon said. “And once press freedom declines, it’s very difficult to reclaim it.”
Simon cited his experiences traveling in India, where government pressure on the press has significantly increased under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s administration. “It was obvious to an outside observer the constraints and limitations in which the media operates,” he said. “But many journalists were reluctant to acknowledge it, which speaks to how pervasive the fear has become.”
Despite the challenges, the Press remains committed to supporting local journalism. “The 24-hour news entertainment cycle will not cover every local story,” he said. “That’s why local news is going to be so essential over these next four years.”
As threats to press freedom continue to rise, concerns about self-censorship among journalists and their sources are growing. David Loy, legal director of the First Amendment Coalition, warns that fear and intimidation could lead to a dangerous decline in investigative reporting.
“Yes, I am concerned about self-censorship,” Loy said. “I think that is the most pernicious danger of what is happening right now.”
While federal actions often dominate headlines, Loy stressed that local officials have also posed significant threats to press freedom. He cited several troubling cases, including the San Francisco Police Department obtaining a search warrant to break down a reporter’s door and seize their work, and a former Los Angeles County sheriff insinuating that a journalist should be investigated for reporting on leaked footage of deputies using force.
“This is not just a Trump administration problem,” Loy emphasized. “Local officials have been threatening reporters for years.”
He urged journalists to stand firm in their role as watchdogs, warning that backing down could have lasting consequences.
“Now is the time for the press, most of all, to stand up for its right to report the news,” Loy said. “Ignore your rights, and they will go away. Do not let the bullies win through intimidation. The best way to fight a bully is to stand up to a bully.”
Loy reminded reporters of the constitutional protections enshrined in the First Amendment, emphasizing the press’s critical role in democracy.
“The press is the only private institution expressly named in the Constitution,” he said. “And that’s for a reason. I would hate to see the press step back from its historic role of speaking truth to power.”
