Comments on: Press Freedom in America

By: Jerry

Jerry — Tue, 06 Jul 2004 10:33:05 +0000

By the by, our Constitution guarantees freedom of the press only to those of the American press. ;)

Foreign so-called journalists are welcome here no more than other citizens and their rights under Our Constititution are limited to those we specificially bestow on them.

The fact they’ve had the luxury of near equality with the rights of our own press for years does not mean it’s a right to which they are in anyway entitled.

By: Jerry

Jerry — Mon, 14 Jun 2004 15:58:33 +0000

I suspect the U.S. explanation is a simple “9-11” change. I believe you have elsewhere noted what a pain it is now to get a visa.

Besides, most video game players are a little weird. Reporters who cover such things may well be rather suspicious in their demeanor. ;)

And finally, I once was an American newspaper journalist. Everyone I worked well, plus self, were a pretty shabby looking lot. Following 9-11 I can think of several old friends who today would be vacationing at Guantanamo Bay.

By: Bernie Goldbach

Bernie Goldbach — Wed, 26 May 2004 06:51:29 +0000

The Irish authorities were looking for a work permit and would not honour valid NUJ Press credentials in lieu of it. As things unfolded, entrance to the EU via Heathrow was much simpler as the immigration authorities there respected the NUJ card in conjunction with my American passport. I’m not contending that (1) Irish authorities can refuse leave to land when they think they believe a work permit is required of a person and (2) the US treats journos with a heavier hand than European immigration officials.

At the end of a little snag, I simply returned to Kilkenny through another door. Subsequently, I’ve walked through Irish immigration without a bother. On one occasion, I wasn’t even asked for a passport. They saw my Brown Thomas bag and assumed I was local.

By: Dervala

Dervala — Tue, 25 May 2004 09:12:29 +0000

I may be misunderstanding, Bernie, but were they looking for a proper press visa, or for a residency permit? It must have been difficult to claim to be a visitor with the local voting card and local IDs!

I think what’s catching the European journalists off-guard right now is that these are brief reporting trips with no intention of staying—and the US has never questioned that before. That’s why they’re blithely telling immigration officials all about their “holiday” plans.

By: Bernie Goldbach

Bernie Goldbach — Tue, 25 May 2004 04:26:42 +0000

It’s not just the States where this repressive line of immigration control exists. I had a proper PRESS card from the National Union of Journalists, my local voting card, and photo ID from several Irish entities but was refused leave to land in Ireland after showing all of them to Irish immigration. It seems that journos are not proper tourists, even if they claim to be on holiday.