Gov. Newsom signs SB 98, boosting California press freedoms
California journalists will now have stronger protections against arrest while covering protests and civil disturbances after Gov. Gavin Newsom signed SB 98 on Saturday.
Newsom’s signature follows an unprecedented advocacy effort by a coalition of dozens of press associations, First Amendment advocacy groups and unions including Media Guild of the West, which collectively represent thousands of working journalists.
The bill adds a new section to the state penal code, 409.7, that says duly authorized representatives of any news service, online news service, newspaper, or radio or television station or network may enter closed areas around demonstrations, marches, protests and rallies.
The law now states clearly that law enforcement shall not intentionally assault, interfere with, or obstruct journalists covering such events, and bars police from citing journalists for failure to disperse, violating or interfering with law enforcement if they journalist is solely gathering, receiving, or processing information.
The bill was sponsored by Sen. Mike McGuire (D-Healdsburg), who introduced a similar version last year that was vetoed by Newsom.
Media Guild of the West — whose members voted 94% to 6% to endorse SB 98 after LAPD detained several journalists in Echo Park in March 2021 — thanks McGuire for his support of press freedoms and Gov. Newsom for signing SB 98 into law, in addition to the many legislators who voted in support of passage.
The Guild, which worked directly with McGuire’s office in support of SB 98, would additionally like to give special thanks and recognition to Ashanti Blaize-Hopkins of SPJ/LA, Yvette Cabrera of NAHJ, Jarrett Hill of NABJLA, Derek Moore of Pacific Media Workers Guild, Julie Patel Liss of AAJA-LA and Adam Rose of LA Press Club for their and their organizations’ special efforts to support press freedoms in California.
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Media Guild of the West, NewsGuild-CWA Local 39213, was founded in 2019 and represents unionized journalists and media workers at the Los Angeles Times, Arizona Republic, Pop-Up Magazine, Phoenix New Times, Desert Sun, Austin American-Statesman, Dallas Morning News, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, and Southern California News Group.