Media giants unite against Trump DOJ’s political prosecution of journalists Don Lemon and Georgia Fort

A reporter follows protesters into a church, keeps the camera rolling, and asks questions. Is that journalism, or participation in a crime?That distinction is at the center of the federal prosecution of independent journalists Don Lemon and Georgia Fort. The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press and 45 news and media organizations are urging a Minnesota judge to dismiss the charges, warning that the Justice Department’s case could make reporters criminally responsible for the people they cover.The coalition includes The Associated Press, The Atlantic, The New York Times, The Washington Post, ProPublica, Dow Jones, Vox Media, MS NOW, the National Press Club, and the NewsGuild-CWA.Related: Don Lemon was written off. Then everything changed“This is a case of clear government overreach, with the Justice Department attempting to deploy two highly potent civil rights laws to target journalists,” Reporters Committee President Bruce D. Brown said in a statement to The Advocate. “On-the-ground news coverage is essential to the public’s ability to stay informed about important issues, and federal prosecutors cannot be allowed to misuse the law to punish such vital reporting.”Lemon, who is gay, and Fort were covering a January 18 protest at Cities Church in St. Paul. Days after ICE officer Jonathan Ross shot and killed queer mother Renee Nicole Good in her car, demonstrators interrupted a worship service after learning that one of the church’s pastors was serving as an acting director of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement field office.Lemon livestreamed the protest and interviewed demonstrators, congregants, and a pastor. Fort separately documented the event. Prosecutors allege that they were not simply covering the protest but knowingly joined an effort to interfere with worshippers’ religious rights. Both journalists have pleaded not guilty.Related: Don Lemon hires ex-federal prosecutor who quit after Trump admin tried to investigate Renee Good's w