Your Rights When Covering a Protest — With Annotations
My notes on SPLC's advice.
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The Student Press Law Center has put out a 20-point guide for journalists on how they can maintain their rights when protesting. I’ve gone through each point and added a few ideas, and applied what I’ve learned in terms of journalist safety both here and abroad.
The SPLC guide has excellent advice for student protesters around the country right now, but much of it applies to “labeled” or established journalists, which is a difficult category for new journalism students. I speak as someone who did J-school at Columbia in my late 20s and recorded 9/11 with no outlet in mind in which to publish. So I’ve tried to supplement this list with that in-between feeling in mind, but I’ve also added how these tactics work on dangerous assignments, with which I’ve had a lot — possibly too much — of experience with.
Contact me with questions. Otherwise, here’s my annotated list on the one from SPLC:
1. Make sure people know where you are going and what you are covering before you go. Ensure that someone is standing by in the event that you need help. [Absolutely. One step further: Create a spreadsheet of who to contact. In international reporting, include an embassy and fixer/driver contact and let them know where you are — aka keep your contacts up to date with your reporting.] Develop an emergency backup plan and share it with them in the event that you are arrested or injured (e.g., decide who you will call for legal assistance, identify the nearest hospital). Also, inventory what you bring with you in advance and leave a list with a friend (e.g., cellphone, camera, audio recorder). You’ll need as much detail as possible if you are trying to reclaim an item at the jail that’s been taken from you. [If possible, record your detainment/arrest and narrate what’s happening, what’s being taken. Also, remember that authorities can trace your phones. Which means that not only you but your sources are vulnerable.]
2. Identify an Emergency Contact in advance and call them if needed. Memorize or write their number in Sharpie on your arm. The Emergency Contact might be an editor, adviser, parent or spouse. Work out a plan in advance of what they will do in the event you are arrested or injured. Call and text them the moment that it appears things are escalating, because it may be hours before you can get access to a phone if you’re jailed (and this provides a written record — with time stamp — of what is happening). Carry quarters in case the jail provides only a payphone. Use social media and other publicly accessible channels to get the word out widely so people will know where to look for you. [Also, identify and contact who at the Committee to Protect Journalists will be there to help you.]
3. Make sure you bring key safety equipment. This may include a mask (if you’re concerned about the coronavirus or other airborne diseases), a helmet, goggles and a bottle of water or milk. You may also want to bring high-protein snacks, a portable phone charger and a small first aid kit. [Consider also if you might need a helmet and/or armored vest — and whether you should advertise whether you are press on them. In the U.S., that would usually be prudent. Abroad, however, it depends on the circumstance. Sometimes, unfortunately, combatants target the press specifically and displaying it on your Velcro patches is an invitation to a targeted death.]
4. If you have specific health conditions that require medication or special care, be sure it is listed and on your person. If you are injured, EMTs need to know. Bring backup medication with you. [Likely advice for a war situation, but write your blood type on a plastic-insulated card and hang it around your neck.]
5. Turn off your phone’s fingerprint scanner and facial recognition. You have the legal right not to give your password, but police can more easily compel you to open the phone with a fingerprint or facial scanner. [Totally right. But remember you’re not always hiding who you contacted for your own sake. Oftentimes, you’re protecting your sources who are at much more risk than you are. Make sure you’re deleting any sensitive material from your phone.]
6. Always work with a “buddy.” Although working alone might draw less attention to yourself as press, it is dangerous to attend a protest solo. Go with a fellow journalist so that you can watch out for each other. [Agreed. Abroad, use a fixer.]
7. Wear conspicuous press credentials. Create a credential for your publication (such as a laminated tag that has your picture, the name of the publication and “PRESS” in big, clear, visible letters). Carry a photocopy of your press credentials and personal ID with you as well. [Yes, this works for U.S. protests, but abroad it depends on the circumstances as to whether you should advertise that you are a journalist.]
8. Remember that you are a neutral observer. Do not participate in the protest activities (including chanting). Wear clothes that will not confuse you with a protester (e.g., be sure your shirt doesn’t have a slogan or signals membership in any group). Make sure that law enforcement can identify you as a journalist and not confuse you or claim that you were a participating protester. [This is why journalists do not carry arms, no matter the situation. We are not combatants. We do not arm ourselves, even on dangerous assignments.]
9. Upload photos regularly and back up (or wipe) your data. There are a number of stories of officials demanding or even physically confiscating reporters’ notes, camera equipment or other work products. This is an extremely serious act and, as discussed below, there are important legal protections that may be available to you. In fact, you should rarely, if ever, voluntarily provide your work product to law enforcement or other officials. That’s what things like subpoenas are for, and there are means for legally contesting such demands. That said, if you are ordered to do so, be sure that you very clearly state your objections, letting the official know that you believe their order is unlawful and that your compliance is involuntary. That said, your cameras will be seized if you are arrested, and even if the memory cards are returned, images may have been (unlawfully) deleted. For all of these reasons, it is a good practice to send photos back to your newsroom (or to cloud storage) as often as you can when covering a volatile news event. Back up your device before you go. [Keep a blank SD card ready to be handed over to authorities in lieu of your full card. Upload what you’ve captured to the cloud and your email/others’ emails as often as possible.]
10.Practice situational awareness. Scan your surroundings constantly to monitor what’s happening around you. Pay attention to not only the protesters and law enforcement officers in your immediate vicinity but also how crowds are moving. Keep an eye out for potential threats and always consider your escape route. Violence can break out easily in a protest. If a situation becomes dangerous, remember that your safety comes first and the story comes second. [For women journalists in particular, crowds are particularly dangerous. See this report.]
11.Never escalate a confrontation by touching a police officer or directly disobeying a lawful order. Stay as calm and polite as possible. [Good advice.]
12.Immediately identify yourself as “press” in any interaction with law enforcement. Identify yourself verbally and show your press credential. Attempt to deescalate any possible confrontation. [This makes sense in the U.S., which (mostly) recognizes freedom of the press. Never misrepresent yourself abroad but be more cautious than you would think in the U.S. when identifying yourself as press.]
13.Record any police encounter and go “live” if your camera is wireless-enabled. Police often provide contradictory narratives of their encounters with reporters and having video evidence of any confrontation with police can make all the difference in holding law enforcement (as well as you) accountable. Use your available tech to record and broadcast encounters with police and ask others nearby to do the same. [Sure. And back it up.]
14.If you are stopped by law enforcement, ask immediately if you are under arrest. If they do not say yes, then you are free to walk away. Do not provoke an unnecessary confrontation. [Aka get the eff out of there and don’t look back.]
15.Gather all the information you can about your arrest, assault or encounter (harassment). Record the arrest if you can, make sure you know which police agency made the arrest and, if possible, get the names and badge numbers of all officers involved and of any witnesses. Write down the exact location and time of any encounter. [You may not have a case to file against the authorities later, but at least you can fight any charges brough against you.]
16.If you are a minor (under 18) who has been taken to an adult jail, inform officials of your age immediately. Juveniles may not legally be detained in adult facilities. [Of course.]
17.Immediately ask for legal representation once you are arrested. Do not respond to any questions (even if they seem benign) without an attorney present. [You don’t usually get this luxury on dangerous assignments, but that’s when you contact places like CPJ.]
18.Read the fine print of anything you are asked to sign — and think very carefully before you sign a “post and forfeit” bond, because that means you are agreeing to admit what you’re charged with and waive a court appearance. Review anything with your attorney. [Yup, never sign anything without an attorney or advocate present. If you’ve found yourself in detention abroad, do your darndest to sign nothing.]
19.Demand a court appearance if you have been held for more than 24 hours without being taken before a judge or magistrate. [It’s U.S. law, but internationally, not so much. Make sure you’ve previously and again made contact with your embassy/consulate and a press freedom organization if possible.]
20.When you are safe, contact the Student Press Law Center to inform us of the incident and to strategize about potential next steps. You can connect directly with our attorneys at splc.org/legalhelp. [Good idea, but as a former senior editor at CPJ, contact them too. They’ve got a powerhouse board that gives them sway.]
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Good advice for anybody going anywhere.