"Some of these attacks will be familiar: We've seen how litigation warfare can take down entire newsrooms, and how regulatory threats ("nice merger you got there") can cause CEOs to cower. But there are plenty of other tools in the toolbox. We should not be surprised if the first (and perhaps the second or third) prosecution of a U.S. journalist under the Espionage Act begins in 2026, or if the administration includes a few journalists among the "extremists" holding "anti-American views""
"The president has conditioned his followers to believe - genuinely believe - that journalists are traitorous enemies of the people. We can expect to see him to dial up the violent fantasies in 2026, and no one needs help imagining what that kind of language can lead to. One way or the other, there is now a clear and present danger to the work of journalists"
Journalists face an escalating campaign combining litigation, regulatory pressure, smear campaigns, and potential criminal prosecutions. Regulatory threats and merger oversight can intimidate media owners and corporate executives. The Espionage Act and extremist-labeling of journalists are plausible tools that could be deployed, with prosecutions possible as early as 2026. Rhetoric that brands journalists as traitors conditions supporters toward greater hostility and potential violence. Nonprofit newsrooms risk challenges to tax-exempt status. The cumulative effect poses a clear and present danger to reporting, requiring robust defenses and recognition that journalists may not always be protected.
Read at Nieman Lab
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