For generations, journalists around the world have looked to the United States as a benchmark for Press freedom. The First Amendment was a constitutional guarantee and a promise that the government was committed to understanding and supporting, given the critical role the media play.
The arrest of well-known African-American journalist Don Lemon should concern not only that country’s citizens, but media workers everywhere who once assumed the US was a model that was unflappable.
According to the accounts of multiple media houses, Lemon was detained by federal agents in connection with his reporting on a protest at a church in Minnesota where controversial immigration raids are being carried out.
Though the details of the case are yet to be released, the arrest of Lemon, who has over one million YouTube subscribers and thousands more viewers, is already damaging the country’s image abroad. When such a high-profile journalist is arrested by federal agents, it has a ripple effect on journalists operating independently as well as those working for large companies. It tells reporters everywhere that they could easily become targets. The Committee to Protect Journalists has already sounded the alarm.
Katherine Jacobsen said in a statement that this behaviour by the state “has no place in the United States”. The concern is not simply about the arrest of Lemon, even though two other journalists have been arrested in connection with coverage of the same issue in Minnesota.
When the government appears more willing to use law enforcement power to target critics, including journalists, the chilling effect is real. Reporters are likely to begin to weigh the professional, legal and personal risks, as well as the cost of defending themselves against criminal charges.
What often results is a greater level of self-censorship, which is quiet and dangerous. For decades, American government officials and representatives lectured other governments about the importance of press freedom. American diplomats condemned the jailing of reporters in authoritarian countries and backed programmes to shore up independent media abroad.
Taking such stands carries the weight of the mighty US, and so they supported that country’s credibility to claim moral authority on press freedom and press standards. We fear, though, that if journalists in places like Washington, New York, or Minneapolis now require international watchdogs to defend their rights, the US has fallen dramatically.
The posture of the administration in Washington toward the Press has been confrontational, with constant verbal attacks on professional journalists and even search warrants executed on the homes of reporters.
Legacy media outlets are repeatedly accused of spreading false narratives and acting as political opponents rather than independent observers. Criticism of the Press is not, in itself, a violation of the First Amendment; however, politicians frequently respond negatively to unfavourable coverage.
The charges cited against Lemon include conspiracy to deprive rights and violations related to interfering with First Amendment rights. Ironically, these were the laws used to protect Black Americans as they fought for civil rights.
What does this all mean for journalists in Barbados? We have generally been recognised as a free media environment. However, our history of journalism has not been free of efforts to influence and censor journalists.
The great journalist Clennell Wickham and his Herald faced libel and constant threats for seeking to champion and tell of the struggle of Black working-class Barbadians against the white planter class in the 1920s and 30s.
His paper eventually folded under the weight of a heavy court judgement. More recently, the late Albert Brandford was banned from Parliament as a result of his coverage of House debates. Our journalists often complain of not being supported by media management while pursuing sensitive or controversial stories.
We know that Press freedom is not static. When major democracies like the US clash with journalists, it threatens democracies beyond their shores. Smaller democracies often highlight that if the “gold standard” for press freedoms is perceived to be eroding abroad, it becomes easier for critics both inside and outside government to downplay threats to free expression at home.
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