The Des Moines Register reported that one of its journalists was arrested in late May while covering a George Floyd protest. The reporter, 24-year old Andrea Sahouri, was covering a demonstration that turned to looting at a mall when a Des Moines police officer pepper-sprayed and arrested her.
The paper recently reported some 150 names were signed to a petition asking the charges be dropped.
The Shop Talk panelists say some police officers and some demonstrators try to prevent journalists from reporting, which then prevents the public from gaining knowledge of what is happening. The panelists say the bad actors are trampling on First Amendment rights.
Shop Talk is a weekly panel discussion about journalism issues. This week’s program featured Will Buss, who teaches in the Department of Broadcasting and Journalism at Western Illinois University and advises the student editors at the Western Courier, the students at student radio station The Dog, and the WIU chapter of the National Association of Black Journalists; Rajvee Subramanian, who teaches in the Department of Broadcasting and Journalism at Western Illinois University; and TSPR News Director Rich Egger.
