Journalists’ group: House media rules suggest bid to ‘stifle public access’

Photo by Tom Olmscheid, Session Weekly

Someone at the state Capitol is trying to “stifle public access” to legislative proceedings there, says the Minnesota chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists in a new statement this afternoon. Exactly who, an SPJ board member tells the Minnesota Independent, isn’t known. At issue are rules — old, new and not-yet-made — on which media can get floor access in the House of Representatives and who can record what in House committee rooms.

New restrictions on audio and video recording released Friday were apparently retracted Monday after the mainstream media complained, although it’s not clear in what direction the House leadership will take the issues.

“The House should throw this out and start over. This is not workable. I don’t know where this is coming from,” SPJ board member Art Hughes tells MnIndy. “This is effort to orchestrate coverage at the Capitol.”

Hughes says that as a radio reporter he has frequently found himself educating local officials on the finer points of the state’s open meeting law. “I’ve run into cases many times where people don’t want an otherwise public meeting recorded. Especially people in small towns who don’t understand what they were getting into when they were elected.”

Things ought to be different at the Capitol, Hughes says. “In the case of the state Legislature, these guys are pros. They’re big boys and girls. It’s time for them to understand that people don’t just walk in with pens and pads of paper anymore.”

Media access to the House floor and allowing taping in committee rooms should be of concern to the general public, Hughes said. “It’s about public access, especially with nearly $5 billion in cuts to the state government” coming, he said.

Last week, the journalists’ organization came out in favor of online media access to the House floor. On Monday, the SPJ sent a statement about the proposed new rules in response to an inquiry from WCCO-TV. Here is the group’s latest statement, issued this afternoon:

MINNESOTA SPJ OPPOSES HOUSE ATTEMPT TO STIFLE PUBLIC ACCESS

The Minnesota Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists strongly opposes efforts by the Minnesota House of Representatives to limit how the public is allowed into public policy meetings and discussions. The safety of legislators is a valid concern. But curtailing videotaping and other recording methods of those legislators is clearly not a safety threat as Representative Tony Sertich contends.

Make no mistake: these proposed rules are an attempt to shut down oversight of the public process. SPJ recommends the House discard this very flawed attempt to orchestrate press coverage and start over seeking public input to create a fair, open and equitable means of access.