2004 AEJMC Resolution
Free Press Resolution
Whereas it is the belief of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication that a free press is essential to a democratic society, and
Whereas this body is dedicated to promoting the highest levels of journalism in classrooms and in media organizations around the globe, and
Whereas in 2002 this body spoke out against unnecessary and possibly unconstitutional restrictions on the civil liberties of the academy and media in the name of homeland security, vowing to monitor restrictive actions and legislation and to support measures designed to protect free expression, and
Whereas the U.S. Immigration and Nationality Act currently places greater restrictions on journalists visiting the United States on business from government-designated friendly nations than are placed on non-journalists coming to the United States on business from those nations, and
Whereas it has been documented that more than a dozen working journalists from countries such as Canada and Great Britain, nations deemed by the U.S. government as friendly to the United States, have been detained, body searched, fingerprinted, handcuffed, forced to spend a night in a cell in a detention facility and deported under this law, and
Whereas such measures not only present other nations an unacceptable image of the United States' regard for press freedom but also invite retaliatory measures on U.S. journalists,
Therefore, be it resolved that:
1) The Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication rejects and condemns
as indicative of a police-state mentality the discrimination that so far has been imposed under
the Immigration and Nationality Act on more than a dozen journalists seeking entry to the
United States from nations deemed allies of or countries friendly to the United States.
2) The president of this association be directed to write to President George W. Bush, Secretary
of State Colin L. Powell, Homeland Security Director Thomas Ridge, Attorney General John
Ashcroft, the as-yet-unnamed National Intelligence Director, Senators Orrin G. Hatch and
Patrick J. Leahy, Reps. F. James Sensenbrenner Jr. and John Conyers Jr., and other appropriate
members of Congress, demanding:
a. An end to discrimination toward the media of friendly countries.
b. Support for HR 4823 IH amending Section 221(G) of the Immigration and Nationality Act
to remove discriminatory restrictions on media of friendly nations.
3) The AEJMC leadership continue to monitor this and similar legislation as well as other developments regarding Homeland Security and the work of the media, both domestic and international, in order to promote and defend the highest ideals of journalism.
Approved by the AEJMC Membership
August 6, 2004 * Toronto, Canada
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