Trump lawyers argue that journalists are not fully protected by the First Amendment

Daily Kos - The Trump administration argued in court that one of the most basic acts of journalism—soliciting news tips and information from the public—is an act of “solicitation” and therefore is not protected by the First Amendment. The bogus stance came about because The New York Times is suing the Pentagon in response to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s policy that bars news outlets from reporting on classified material with government approval.   As part of ongoing court proceedings between the Times and the Pentagon, the administration argued that the Washington Post’s web-based request for news tips goes over the line by asking readers to “help us report on the Pentagon” and requesting information related to “changes within the Pentagon and throughout the U.S. military.”

The Trump administration has imposed a host of extremist policies throughout the armed services, including banning transgender troops, erasing history, and even ordering Scouting America to embrace bigotry. It’s a basic tenet of journalism to solicit information, which can then be investigated and possibly turned into a news report.