Journalist Protection Act
Sponsored By: Senator Richard Blumenthal
Introduced
Summary
Creates a federal offense for assaults against journalists. This bill would make it a crime to cause bodily injury or serious bodily injury to someone who meets its definition of a journalist, with stiffer penalties when the harm is serious or when the attack is meant to intimidate or impede reporting.
Show full summary
- Journalists and news gatherers: People who meet the bill's two-part definition of journalist gain federal protection while engaged in newsgathering or if targeted to stop reporting. The definition covers employees, contractors, or agents of news outlets and those gathering material for public dissemination.
- Attackers and defendants: Causing bodily injury to a journalist would be punishable by a fine or up to 3 years in prison. Causing serious bodily injury would be punishable by a fine or up to 6 years in prison.
- Federal prosecutors and jurisdiction: The offense applies only to acts in or affecting interstate or foreign commerce and is added as Section 120 of chapter 7, giving federal authorities a specific statute to use when that commerce link exists.
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Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
1 provisions identified: 1 benefits, 0 costs, 0 mixed.
New federal protections for journalists
This bill would create new federal crimes for attacking journalists. It would make causing bodily injury to a journalist a federal offense punishable by a fine or up to 3 years in prison. It would make causing serious bodily injury to a journalist a federal offense punishable by a fine or up to 6 years in prison. The bill would apply when the attacker knew or should have known the person was a journalist and when the act took place while the journalist was gathering news or was meant to intimidate or stop their reporting. It would define who counts as a journalist and what counts as newsgathering. The crimes would apply only to conduct in or affecting interstate or foreign commerce.
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Sponsors & CoSponsors
Sponsor
Richard Blumenthal
CT • D
Cosponsors
Sen. Hirono, Mazie K. [D-HI]
HI • D
Sponsored 5/5/2025
Roll Call Votes
No roll call votes available for this bill.
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