Press Freedom

‘Hacks’ Square Off With ‘Flacks’ Over Federal Public Affairs Practices

August 14, 2013

Reporters and public affairs officers debated their roles Monday evening in the Club’s ballroom as part of a panel discussion entitled, “Are federal public affairs officers a help or hindrance to journalists?” The Aug. 12 event, sponsored by the Club’s Press Freedom Committee and the Young Members…

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Live webcast: Are federal public affairs offices a help or hindrance to journalists?

August 8, 2013

Full video: The National Press Club plans to webcast live a debate Monday evening over whether federal public affairs offices are crimping the flow of information about the U.S. government. The event, co-sponsored by the Club’s Press Freedom Committee and the Young Members Committee, can be viewed…

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Expert panel to weigh effect of federal public affairs practices on open government

August 7, 2013

The National Press Club will host a panel next week to debate whether federal public-affairs offices hinder more than help the cause of open government. The panel includes a number of experts from the fields of journalism, public relations and academia who can give voice to multiple perspectives.…

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Government Public Affairs Offices: More Hindrance Than Help for Open Government?

July 22, 2013

A National Press Club panel will convene from 6:30 until 8:00 p.m. Aug. 12 in the Lisagor Room to debate federal public-affairs practices that some say can cut the public off from its government officials. Although executive branch communications offices can be useful, at times indispensable, in…

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National Press Club urges Obama administration to press Jordan on censorship

June 7, 2013

The National Press Club joins other national and international news organizations in calling on the government of Jordan to reverse its decision to block more than 200 news websites and to revoke the law upon which it was based, which requires the licensing of journalists in the country. In…

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NPC joins other groups in pushing for more openness in Wikileaks Trial

June 5, 2013

The National Press Club this week signed on to a friend-of-the-court brief urging that the press be given prompt access to documents filed in the court-martial of Pfc. Bradley Manning, who provided a large number of U.S. government documents to WikiLeaks in 2010. The amicus brief was filed by the…

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In the wake of seizure of reporters’ communications records, First Amendment expert to visit Club June 11

June 3, 2013

The Justice Department has been monitoring reporters’ communications as it seeks to prosecute leaks of classified information. Journalists have cried foul, and they worry about a chilling effect on potential sources. Questions about the balance between national security and press freedom have…

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National Press Club to Host First Amendment Attorney Floyd Abrams

May 28, 2013

As U.S. prosecutors increasingly monitor reporters to get to the bottom of leaks, the National Press Club's Press Freedom Committee will host leading First Amendment attorney and press-freedom advocate Floyd Abrams, who will discuss these issues and his new book. Abrams, a senior partner in Cahill…

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NPC Welcomes Review of Leak Probes but Still Worries About Judicial Overreach

May 24, 2013

The National Press Club on Friday welcomed President Obama's directive that the Justice Department reexamine its policies for investigating leaks to the press. But the Club's president, Angela Greiling Keane, said journalists are worried about what appears to be a pattern of judicial overreach by…

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Club Stands With Dozens of News Groups Protesting Associated Press Investigation

May 15, 2013

The National Press Club joined more than four dozen media organizations to call for the Justice Department to return phone records of Associated Press reporters obtained in what was described as "an overreaching dragnet for news gathering materials." The Club joined the Reporters Committee for…

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