WHEREAS hostility, harassment, and stigmatizing rhetoric toward journalists and media outlets have increased since the inauguration of President Donald Trump's administration
WHEREAS hostility, harassment, and stigmatizing rhetoric toward journalists and media outlets have increased since the inauguration of President Donald Trump's administration
WHEREAS state and local officials have attempted to censor content through threats of criminal or civil action and have limited press access to public information
WHEREAS the administration has changed the composition of the accredited press pool at the White House to provide greater access to less critical outlets covering the presidential agenda
WHEREAS The Associated Press (AP) was expelled from the accredited press pool at the White House for refusing to change the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America, as decreed by the President, and despite a federal judge ordering the agency's access to be restored, it continues to be excluded or granted sporadic access to press conferences and other presidential activities
WHEREAS, while there has been a decrease in the number of assaults and physical attacks against journalists, these have come during this period from security agents during public demonstrations
WHEREAS there is concern about the suspension of government funding for public media outlets such as the Voice of America, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Radio Free Asia, Middle East Broadcasting Networks, and Radio y Televisión Martí, traditional sources of information aimed at countries with limited press freedom and independent media
WHEREAS Congress summoned public media outlets NPR and PBS to a hearing, accusing them of "blatantly ideological and partisan coverage," and threatened to withdraw government funding
WHEREAS the Senate blocked the vote on the PRESS Act initiative to protect the confidentiality of journalistic sources
WHEREAS the Declaration of Chapultepec establishes that freedom of expression and the press "is not something authorities grant; it is an inalienable right of the people" and that "the media and journalists should neither be discriminated against nor favored because of what they write or say," and that "no news media nor journalist may be punished for publishing the truth, criticizing, or denouncing the government."
THE IAPA MIDYEAR MEETING RESOLVES
To condemn the stigmatizing expressions and limitations imposed by the national government on independent journalism in violation of the Constitution's First Amendment
To condemn the criminalization of independent journalistic work related to government coverage and its activities
To urge the authorities to review restrictions on the press that undermine transparency and the right to information.
