A federal judge on April 3 dismissed a negligence suit filed by the family of Dylan Lyons, a Florida reporter shot to death in 2023, against Spectrum News 13.
The family’s separate suit against the sheriff’s office -- for insufficient warning that the shooter was still at large -- is ongoing.
This is the third time I’ve been added to this database since I started reporting on protests and organizing in 2020, twice in the last 7 months.
The year-over-year uptick in incidents and violations against press continues to boggle the mind
Journalist @melbuer.bsky.social was among members of the press kettled by police and prevented from leaving for at least a half hour while covering "No Kings" demonstration in LA on March 28.
Independent journalist @dexdigi.bsky.social was one of several reporters barred from leaving a police kettle for about 30 minutes while reporting on an immigration protest in LA on March 28.
Update: Federal appeals court ruled April 1 that while preliminary injunction won by LA journalists against DHS was needed to protect their First Amendment rights, it is “overbroad” and must go back to lower court for narrowing.
Reporter @shoton35mm.bsky.social, on assignment for @lataco.bsky.social, was shoved by police, and later kettled and threatened with arrest while documenting a protest outside a federal immigrant detention facility in LA on March 28.
Jose Ossa and Giovanni Cruz, film students at Cal State Dominguez Hills, were documenting a protest at LA’s Metropolitan Detention Center on March 28 when they were detained in a LAPD kettle and put in zip ties.
LAPD obstructed, threatened, and arrested journalists covering the No Kings 3 protests — violating a federal injunction.
Watch @adamrose.bsky.social — who was on the ground in LA that day — explain, and if you're a journalist facing a press freedom violation, contact @pressfreedomtracker.us
Pulliam had also sued over being barred from sheriff’s news conference, but judge ruled department had adequately made amends for removal, including by adding Pulliam to its media list.
Update: Independent Texas journalist Justin Pulliam awarded $75K last week for unlawful arrest and equipment seizure in 2021 while filming mental health check by sheriff’s deputies.
Photojournalist Henry Cherry was struck in the helmet and feet with crowd-control munitions, and affected by chemical irritants, at a protest outside an immigration detention center in LA on March 28.
“There was an arrest operation going on for literally hours, and we could only see what they were allowing us to see” — Reporter Connor Sheets, who was forcibly removed to a distant press area by an LAPD officer during a protest in LA on March 28.
Reporter @ryannemena.bsky.social was shoved by an LAPD officer while documenting a protest outside an immigration detention facility in LA on March 28.
Shortly after, another officer lunged at her with a baton.
Tracking aggressions against journalists covering Saturday’s “No Kings” protests; plus, the courts curb government restrictions on the press.
Read this and more in our monthly newsletter from Tracker Managing Editor @kamccudden.bsky.social (and subscribe):
David Clark, a WPXI photographer, was also there as the crew questioned a former teacher accused of sexual assault.
As the car, driven by the suspect’s father, accelerated toward them, Clark said, “Are you going to run me over?”
While asking questions after a Pittsburgh-area court hearing Feb. 18, WPXI reporter Gabriella DeLuca was nearly run over by a car.
The driver now faces charges of simple assault, harassment and disorderly conduct; a hearing is set for April.
Update: Student journalists alleged in a March 23 lawsuit that the University of Alabama violated their First Amendment rights when it shuttered two student magazines in late 2025.
The school cited concerns that the outlets violated the Trump administration’s guidance on DEI.
The Department of the Interior directed the National Park Service to stop responding to @sfgate.com inquiries in apparent retaliation for a Feb. 10 story it didn’t like, the California outlet reported last week.
Update: In response to a court order calling parts of its press policy unlawful, the Defense Department issued new rules Monday moving journalists to an annex outside the main Pentagon building and ending press access to the Pentagon without an escort.
BREAKING: The Supreme Court refused today to reverse the dismissal of independent journalist Priscilla Villarreal’s lawsuit against Texas officials for violating her rights when they arrested and subpoenaed her multiple times over her reporting:
BREAKING: @nytimes.com wins reinstatement of Defense Department press credentials for its reporters; federal judge says new credentialing policy’s purpose is “to weed out disfavored journalists”:
BREAKING: Estefany Rodríguez of Nashville Noticias was released from an ICE facility in Louisiana today, two weeks after her arrest in a news vehicle in Nashville, TN.
Rodríguez argued in federal court the arrest was in retaliation for her reporting on ICE operations.
The Pentagon tightened control over @starsandstripes.bsky.social on March 9, restricting wire stories and ordering content be consistent with military’s “good order and discipline.”
Ombudsman and press freedom advocates say the moves threaten editorial independence.
On March 14, FCC Chair Brendan Carr threatened to revoke the licenses of broadcasters that he asserts are “running hoaxes and news distortions,” and quoted a post from Donald Trump in which the president complained about news outlets’ Iran war coverage.
A Memphis, TN, radio station is still only operating during daytime hours, after major equipment damage from a copper theft in May 2025 shut down the Spanish-language AM broadcaster for six months.
Pentagon excluded photojournalists from news briefings at its Washington, D.C.-area headquarters March 4 and March 10.
@washingtonpost.com reported the decision came after staff complained about “unflattering” photos of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
If you are a journalist — or know one — who has been attacked, seriously threatened, denied access by a public official or targeted with a legal order in the course of reporting, let us know. You can now submit tips in English or Spanish. Email: tips@pressfreedomtracker.us
If you are a journalist — or know one — who has been attacked, seriously threatened, denied access by a public official or targeted with a legal order in the course of reporting, let us know. You can now submit tips in English or Spanish.
Email: tips@pressfreedomtracker.us
Estefany Rodríguez of Nashville Noticias was arrested March 4 by ICE in Nashville, Tennessee.
The Spanish-language reporter is still being held and has filed a federal suit alleging the arrest violated her constitutional rights and was in retaliation for her reporting.
Update: Oregon journalists won preliminary injunction against the Department of Homeland Security on March 9, limiting agents’s use of chemical and projectile munitions, and pepper spray, at the Portland ICE building.
