Press Freedom Under Siege: Research Briefing
The press freedom landscape in early 2026 presents a crisis of historic proportions, with simultaneous assaults on journalism unfolding at the domestic, institutional, and international levels. In the United States, the arrest and federal prosecution of journalists Don Lemon and Georgia Fort for covering an anti-ICE protest at a Minnesota church represents what press freedom organizations describe as an unprecedented escalation — the first known use of federal civil rights statutes to criminalize journalistic activity. Simultaneously, the FBI’s raid on the home of Washington Post reporter Hannah Natanson and seizure of her devices — containing over 1,100 confidential sources — has sent a chilling signal through newsrooms nationwide. The Pentagon’s move to strip editorial independence from Stars and Stripes, the military’s 165-year-old newspaper, and Hong Kong’s sentencing of publisher Jimmy Lai to 20 years in prison complete a picture in which press freedom is under coordinated pressure from democratic and authoritarian governments alike.
The Criminalization of Journalism — Lemon & Fort Prosecutions
Don Lemon Pleads Not Guilty in Federal Case Stemming from Church Protest Coverage
Former CNN anchor Don Lemon entered a not guilty plea in St. Paul, Minnesota, on federal charges of conspiracy and interfering with worshippers’ First Amendment rights. The charges stem from his livestreamed coverage of a January 18 anti-ICE protest at Cities Church, where demonstrators disrupted services to protest a pastor who also served as an ICE field director. Lemon stated he would not back down from journalism.
Georgia Fort Arrested at Home After Livestreaming Church Protest — Pleads February 17
Independent Minnesota journalist Georgia Fort was arrested at her home by federal agents after a grand jury indictment. Fort livestreamed the moments before her arrest, telling viewers that agents were at her door. She stated she did not feel her First Amendment rights as press were being respected. Fort’s plea hearing is scheduled for February 17.
Press Freedom Groups Denounce Arrests as ‘Unprecedented Escalation’
The Freedom of the Press Foundation, Amnesty International, the National Press Club, and the Committee to Protect Journalists issued statements condemning the arrests. The Freedom of the Press Foundation noted this is the first known use of federal civil rights laws to target journalistic activity. Amnesty called the arrests an ‘authoritarian practice’ and noted that Black and Brown journalists have been disproportionately targeted.
Newsroom Raids & Source Protection Under Attack
FBI Raids Washington Post Reporter’s Home, Seizes Devices Containing 1,100+ Confidential Sources
FBI agents executed a pre-dawn search warrant at the Virginia home of Washington Post reporter Hannah Natanson, seizing her phone, work and personal laptops, a recorder, and a smartwatch. The warrant authorized agents to use her biometric data to unlock devices. Natanson’s devices contained over 30,000 emails and information on 1,169 confidential sources from over 120 federal agencies. A federal judge subsequently barred the government from reviewing the seized material.
DHS Secretary Noem Celebrates Catching ‘Another Prolific Leaker’ — Press Groups Call It ‘Terrifying’
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem publicly declared that a journalist was ‘down another source’ after DHS identified a government employee leaking to reporters. CPJ’s Katherine Jacobsen called the administration’s posture ‘terrifying,’ noting the pattern suggests these actions target scrutiny rather than national security. The crackdown began after AG Bondi rescinded Biden-era protections against subpoenaing journalists in April 2025.
Biometric Unlock Warrant Raises Alarm for Digital Press Freedom
Court documents revealed the FBI warrant for Natanson’s home included a ‘Biometric Unlock’ section authorizing agents to use her face or fingerprints to bypass device security. The Electronic Frontier Foundation warned this sets a dangerous precedent, as the Freedom of the Press Foundation advised all journalists to disable biometrics in anticipation of potential seizures.
Institutional Capture — Stars and Stripes & Media Access
Pentagon Seizes Editorial Control of Stars and Stripes to Eliminate ‘Woke Distractions’
The Defense Department announced it would take editorial control of Stars and Stripes, the military’s editorially independent newspaper since the 1990s, to refocus coverage on ‘warfighting’ and remove what it called ‘woke distractions.’ The Pentagon simultaneously eliminated the federal regulation governing the paper’s independence. Plans call for 50% of content to be Pentagon-generated material. Editor-in-Chief Erik Slavin said service members have ‘earned the right to the press freedoms of the First Amendment.’
Pentagon Requires Journalists to Waive Newsgathering Rights for Credentials
The Pentagon implemented press credential rules requiring journalists to accept limits on unapproved newsgathering. Several major news organizations relinquished their Pentagon credentials rather than accept the restrictions. The Associated Press was separately barred from White House coverage, and media access to the Pentagon was restricted unless journalists agreed to conditions.
Global Press Freedom Crisis — Lai Sentencing & International Crackdowns
Jimmy Lai Sentenced to 20 Years in Hong Kong’s Longest National Security Prosecution
Hong Kong’s High Court sentenced Apple Daily founder Jimmy Lai, 78, to 20 years in prison — the harshest sentence under the 2020 National Security Law. Six former Apple Daily staff received sentences of six to ten years. The UN Human Rights Commissioner called for Lai’s immediate release, stating the verdict criminalizes the exercise of fundamental freedoms. CPJ CEO Jodie Ginsberg called it ‘the final nail in the coffin for freedom of the press in Hong Kong.’ Lai will not be eligible for release until age 96.
Mali Jails Editor Youssouf Sissoko Over Article Questioning Niger’s Military Ruler
Malian authorities arrested Youssouf Sissoko, editor-in-chief of L’Alternance, at his home in Bamako on February 5, charging him with spreading false information and insulting a foreign head of state. The charges followed publication of an article questioning public statements by Niger’s military ruler. Sissoko is in pretrial custody with trial scheduled for March 9.
Journalists Face ‘War-Zone Conditions’ Covering U.S. Immigration Enforcement
The U.S. Press Freedom Tracker documented at least nine assaults on journalists in the Minneapolis area alone during January, primarily from crowd-control munitions. Photographer John Abernathy was held to the ground by federal agents and still faces obstruction charges. CNN reporter Sara Sidner described being tear-gassed while reporting. Nieman Reports published a first-person account from a Minneapolis reporter describing ‘dystopian’ conditions where journalists are routinely targeted by federal agents.
The state of Article 19 rights in early 2026 presents what may be the most serious press freedom crisis in modern U.S. history, compounded by parallel deterioration globally. The convergence of criminal prosecution of journalists (Lemon, Fort), physical seizure of reportorial materials (Natanson), institutional capture of independent media (Stars and Stripes), physical violence against reporters covering public events (Minneapolis, Los Angeles), and the systematic targeting of journalistic sources (Noem’s public celebrations of catching leakers) constitutes a multi-vector assault on the conditions necessary for free expression. What distinguishes this moment from previous press freedom challenges is the coordination and escalation: the Justice Department’s use of civil rights statutes against journalists represents a novel legal theory for criminalizing reporting; the biometric unlock warrant introduces new technical dimensions to source compromise; and the Pentagon’s seizure of Stars and Stripes’ editorial independence eliminates institutional firewalls that have stood for decades. Internationally, the sentencing of Jimmy Lai to 20 years — effectively a death sentence for the 78-year-old publisher — signals that the global authoritarian playbook for eliminating press freedom has entered its terminal phase in Hong Kong. The jailing of Malian editor Sissoko for questioning a foreign leader extends this pattern across continents. The throughline connecting Minneapolis street-level violence against reporters, Washington’s prosecution of journalists, and Hong Kong’s imprisonment of a publisher is the redefinition of journalism itself as a threat rather than a right. When covering a protest, protecting sources, maintaining editorial independence, and publishing critical commentary all become punishable acts, Article 19’s guarantee of freedom of expression is under existential threat. The critical question is whether the legal, institutional, and civic defenses of press freedom — from federal judges blocking device searches to bipartisan senators defending Stars and Stripes — can hold against the coordinated pressure now being applied.
- Reuters
https://www.reuters.com/legal/don-lemon-pleads-not-guilty-church-protest-cove… - Spokesman-Review
https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2026/feb/13/don-lemon-charged-federal-court/ - Euronews
https://www.euronews.com/2026/01/30/georgia-fort-arrested-livestreaming-churc… - Al Jazeera
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/1/30/us-journalist-georgia-fort-arrested-… - Poynter
https://www.poynter.org/ethics-trust/2026/press-freedom-groups-denounce-journ… - Amnesty International
https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2026/01/usa-journalist-arrests-unprece… - NBC News
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/fbi-raids-washington-post… - CNN
https://www.cnn.com/2026/01/14/media/washington-post-reporter-fbi-raid/ - Washington Post
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2026/01/14/fbi-raid-reporter… - Axios
https://www.axios.com/2026/02/05/dhs-noem-leak-investigation-press-freedom - The Intercept
https://theintercept.com/2026/01/30/biometric-unlock-warrant-press-freedom/ - Washington Post
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2026/01/15/pentagon-stars-st… - Stars and Stripes
https://www.stripes.com/theaters/us/2026-01-15/pentagon-editorial-independenc… - NPR
https://www.npr.org/2026/01/15/pentagon-stars-stripes-editorial-control - CPJ
https://cpj.org/2026/02/pentagon-journalists-waive-newsgathering-rights-crede… - Al Jazeera
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/2/9/hong-kong-media-tycoon-jimmy-lai-sent… - CPJ
https://cpj.org/2026/02/jimmy-lai-sentenced-20-years-hong-kong/ - CNN
https://www.cnn.com/2026/02/09/asia/jimmy-lai-sentencing-hong-kong/ - NPR
https://www.npr.org/2026/02/09/jimmy-lai-hong-kong-national-security-sentence - Human Rights Watch
https://www.hrw.org/news/2026/02/09/mali-journalist-jailed-questioning-niger-… - U.S. Press Freedom Tracker
https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/ - Nieman Reports
https://niemanreports.org/articles/journalists-immigration-enforcement-covera…