New Bill to Protect Journalist and Press Freedom Announced

In support of press freedom and protecting journalists. the Senate Foreign Relations Committee announced on February 4 the Global Press Freedom Act.

The act aims to establish an Ambassador-at-Large for press freedom and a train Foreign Service Officers on how they can promote media independence and protect foreign journalists.

Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) recently joined the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and expresses the bill’s “commitment to a free press at home and abroad.”

“Our democracy depends on the ability of journalists to ask tough questions, dig for the truth, and report what they find — without fear of violence or persecution,” said Schatz.

“Freedom of the press is a priority in our founding documents, so it must be a cornerstone of our foreign policy.”

With the Global Press Freedom Act, the Ambassador-at-Large will engage with foreign governments and organizations to draw attention to violations of press freedom and journalist safety and ensure the creation of a “Free Expression” section in each country’s Country Report on Human Rights Practices.

Moreover, the trained Foreign Service Officers will be assisting in the protection of journalists and press freedom while stationed overseas.


Related Stories:
Female Journalists Die for Freedom of Press
ABS-CBN Deserves a Franchise

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.