New England First Amendment Coalition
October 2020
Hosted by the New England First Amendment Coalition each year, the Institute provided tuition-free training in freedom of information laws and investigative reporting techniques for a select group of working New England journalists. Faculty included many of the country’s elite reporters, editors and media attorneys. The week-long online program began Sept. 26 and concluded Oct. 3.

Viewers will learn how to prepare themselves for coverage of protests and interactions with law enforcement. This in-depth conversation features Molly Hennessy-Fiske of the Los Angeles Times, Daniel McFadden of the ACLU-Massachusetts, Tara O’Neill of Hearst Connecticut and Stephanie Sugars of the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker.
Steven Brown, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island, and NEFAC’s Justin Silverman discuss recent protests in and around Providence, and how police are treating members of the press and peaceful demonstrators.
“We’re living in a time where all aspects of reality are being questioned. Everyone seems to have a different perspective, not just politically, but what’s going on in their communities,” Silverman told The Public’s Radio. “And we need journalists out there on the ground documenting things that happen so we have actual evidence and documentation of what’s happening in our streets and how the police are acting or not acting in the public’s interest.”
Learn more about how NEFAC is helping to increase law enforcement transparency and protect the right to protest.
Justin Silverman, executive director of the New England First Amendment Coalition, led a discussion on the challenges facing open government during the current pandemic. The presentation was part of the 2020 NFOIC FOI Summit and featured speakers from the COVID Tracking Project, the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press and The New York Times.
Learn more about how NEFAC is helping to during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The New England First Amendment Coalition recently trained the Burlington (Vt.) City Council on the state’s Open Meeting Law, emphasizing the need for transparency within municipal government.

“What we always encourage — whether it’s a question under the Open Meeting Law or the Public Records Act — is in case of doubt, always err on the side of more openness, more accountability, more transparency,” said NEFAC’s Lia Ernst, who also represented the ALCU of Vermont. “These two laws are absolutely critical to the functioning of our democracy.” [...]
The November 6-7 online conference will bring together educators, researchers, librarians, activists and local journalists, among others, to share strategies on improving media literacy and to provide a better understanding of journalism.

NEFAC presentations feature Emily Sweeney and Jennifer Peter of The Boston Globe, and Dan Kennedy, media expert and journalism professor at Northeastern University.

Conference registration is $40 but a limited number of complimentary tickets are available to all NEFAC members. [...]
Emily Sweeney, a reporter at The Boston Globe and a member of the New England First Amendment Coalition Board of Directors, recently discussed media literacy and the upcoming elections during a free online presentation hosted by Framingham State University.

Sweeney spoke as part of NEFAC’s Featured Speaker Program. Launched in 2018, the program brings journalists and First Amendment experts to campuses and classrooms throughout the region. [...]

NEFAC COMMENTARY
“Police officers in these situations have the right to clear areas and use force in some situations when there is a threat to public safety,” commented Justin Silverman, executive director of the New England First Amendment Coalition. “But their response, whether it’s clearing the area, whether it’s using force, really has to be proportionate to the threat and directed specifically at those that are creating that threat.”

When that response is not proportional and targeted, Silverman said, it risks interfering with protesters’ right to peaceably assemble, and with the rights of a free press. Silverman also noted, reports of journalists being threatened, assaulted, and arrested while covering protests for racial justice are rising nationwide. [...]
Vermont Press Association Executive Director Mike Donoghue and ACLU Vermont Senior Staff Attorney Lia Ernst serve on the New England First Amendment Coalition. The two reviewed the main points that councilors must be aware of regarding the state Open Meeting Law.

Ernst reminded the council that the Open Meeting Law makes public agencies accountable to the public pursuant to the state Constitution.

“What we always encourage whether it’s a question under the Open Meeting Law or the Public Records Act is in case of doubt always err on the side of more openness, more accountability, more transparency. These two laws are absolutely critical to the functioning of our democracy and we applaud the council’s interest in learning this information and hopefully applying it going forward.” [...]
MORE FOI & FIRST AMENDMENT NEWS


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COVID-19


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Connecticut

Police Transparency


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Maine





Massachusetts





New Hampshire





Rhode Island

Police and Protests


Free Speech, License Plates


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Vermont

Burlington, Open Meeting Law


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