News photographers' group will teach police, other first responders about journalists' right to record them at work

The National Press Photographers Association will instruct police, other first responders and journalists across the country about the right to record police and other officials carrying out their public duties. “At this moment in history it is crucial that the press be allowed to perform its obligation to better inform the public,” NPPA President Katie Schoolov said in a press release.

The program is funded by a three-year, $150,000 grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and a one-year matching grant of $50,000 from the Press Freedom Defense Fund of First Look Media. It builds on an earlier grant from the Society of Professional Journalists.

   
Knight Foundation journalism director Paul Cheung said, “The laws that protect the rights of journalists and other citizens to record public police work are clear, but they aren’t universally known. The NPPA training will help visual journalists do their jobs safely and without interference, while protecting the public’s right to know.”

The annual grant will allow NPPA General Counsel Mickey Osterreicher to provide education and training about photographers’ rights to law-enforcement agencies and journalists. He said it  “will ensure the continuation of NPPA’s critical work that raises awareness of First Amendment rights, so that journalists can continue to provide essential information to their communities, enabling informed choices in support of our democracy.”