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| John Hughes, President, National Press Club |
EMPERORS OLD CLOTHES
Editor’s
note: Editor's Note: Just received this letter from the President of the National
Press Club. It is sad that any political party would takes steps to
stifle media access to its convention. If history is a teacher then today
it is reminding us one of the first move of totalitarianism is to eliminate or
harass freedom of the press. This proposed move by the RNC is an attack
on the first amendment of our Constitution. The media is not perfect but it has
constitutional rights as a representative of the people. Shame on the RNC
for considering such a move.
Mr. Jeff
Larson
Chief
Executive Officer
2016
Republican National Convention
1228 Euclid
Ave., 4th Floor
Cleveland,
OH 44115
October 26,
2015
Dear Mr.
Larson,
The National
Press Club is the world's leading professional organization for journalists. We
fight for a free press worldwide. We strongly believe reporters should have
access to public figures and public information so they can do their jobs,
which are essential in a democracy.
Therefore,
we were disappointed to learn that the Republican National Convention Committee
is planning to charge an access fee to cover the 2016 convention. We believe
the fee amounts to a hindrance for reporters who are trying to cover elected
officials at an event of enormous public interest and importance. In
particular, the fee could be a burden for small or independent news gatherers
that may lack the financial resources of their larger competitors. Something as
basic and fundamental as reporting on elected officials should be accessible to
all journalists regardless of their organization's financial reserves.
We
understand that even in charging a fee, the convention committee still plans to
allow reporters who don't pay into the arena. But the vantage points these
reporters will be given inhibit their ability to gain access to the convention
floor to interview public officials.
We strongly
request that you eliminate the planned fee. Thank you so much.
Sincerely,
John Hughes
National
Press Club President
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