Whatever Happened to the First Amendment? |
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| Posted by The Exploited Intern on Jul 20 2010 |
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 Have you noticed that we are not seeing any new images of wildlife being affected by the oil spill? Although media coverage is still surrounding the spill, the observant viewer will see that there are fewer images of the spill sites. Don’t be alarmed this just seems to be an infringement upon our First Amendment rights.
The Rule
Journalist, bloggers, reporters, photographers or anyone else involved in the media has to stay at least 65 feet away from booming operations or any activity related to oil spill cleanup. Any and all journalists will need permission from the coast guard before doing any reporting within the 65 foot limit. Failure to comply can result in a $40,000 fine and one to five years in prison. Their reasoning for this rule: the safety of the media is in danger when close to the spill.
The Problem
Through First Amendment rights of the US Constitution, the press/media has protection from government abridgement (freedom of the press). This ban/restriction of coverage seems to disregard the first amendment. I am aware that this is a very messy and tragic situation for America, the environment, the government, and the Obama administration in general. It is now a question of accountability. We are all aware of the soft spot Americans have wildlife and nature, and I’d venture to say that many found the images of birds covered in oil more disturbing the homeless people after another natural disaster, Hurricane Katrina. With all of the negative feedback, bad press, and horrifying images of the oil spill, it seems as though this media ban could not have come at a better time. I believe that the president is receiving undue criticism for the spill and that he has been handling the clean up efforts well considering the circumstances, however I do not think that a ban on media was necessary.
I cannot help but be worried. One of our rights as citizens, freedom of the press, was limited for the purposes of the government. It also surprises me that this ban on media coverage has not received much attention on the news in general. These restrictions contradict what the Coast Guard Admiral (the one who enacted this ban) Thad Allen stated earlier in June: “Media will have uninhibited access anywhere we’re doing operations except for two things—if it’s security or a safety problem.”
See what Anderson Cooper has to say about the recent ban.
The National Press Photographers Association asked President Obama to rescind the media ban, or at least alter the restrictions so the media has more access
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