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What Makes a Journalist a Journalist?

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When 2005's G8 summit protests got violent, injuring a San Francisco police officer and immolating a cop car, videographer and blogger Josh Wolf got some of the demonstrations on tape. Prosecutors thought that tape might help them with their case, so they asked him for the outtakes. He refused, citing First Amendment protections as a journalist, though he didn't actually have tape of the attack against the police officer or the vehicle. And he went to jail... for a long time. More than seven months, longer than anyone claiming to be a journalist. He's out now, and on our air. Is a blogger truly a journalist? Josh says yes, the Feds say no. What do you think?

Sarah Handel

11:15 AM ET | 04- 9-2007 | permalink

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BTW, I LOVE it when this guy compares his efforts with Thomas Paine.

And BTW, had he ever sold any articles/video to the local media (I'm in SF) BEFORE this incident?

km
Critic to the Stars

Sent by Kevin A. Madden | 3:48 PM ET | 04-09-2007

Bloggers should definitely fall under the free press protections. Nice interview ;)

Sent by JD | 6:56 PM ET | 04-09-2007

I'm a blogger, and I blog on three (occasionally four) separate blogs. I don't work for any news organization, and no one pays me to blog. However, I do feel that frequently my blogging efforts are indeed works of journalism. Amateur journalism perhaps, but journalism nonetheless. While I'm pretty certain that I haven't written anything which would be of interest to authorities, I would still like to be protected under the first ammendment should that event ever come about.

Sent by jane | 2:25 AM ET | 04-10-2007

Bloggers, indeed ALL people recording events are "journalists", in the truest sense of the word: Keeping a journal. Actually, bloggers are MORE journalists than "embedded" "reporters", who are more properly called propagandists.

Sent by Kangiyuha | 11:50 AM ET | 04-10-2007

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