Styling himself a First Amendment hero in stark contrast to a nasty president who "has launched an attack on the press," New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo wants to make it a felony to assault journalists while they're doing their jobs.
Thanks but no thanks. In a free society, there is no consistent and principled definition of what a journalist is.
Ramsey Orta's bystander video captured the police takedown of Eric Garner. Was Orta a journalist?
Assault, obviously, is already a crime in New York--either a misdemeanor or felony, depending on the severity of the injury. But there is no special training or advanced degree needed to find and spread the truth. Reporters are not, thank the Constitution, licensed or regulated by the state.
Editorial on 01/18/2019