The Associated Press seeks clarification from the US authorities over the monitoring of journalists

 

The Associated Press has asked the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for clarification on the use of secret government databases to track international terrorists to investigate the activities of 20 US journalists, including an Associated Press reporter.

In a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mallorcas, Associated Press executive editor Julie Pace urged authorities to explain why Martha Mendoza, a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter, was added to databases during the Trump administration and was identified as a possible classified informant, according to a report by the US Department of Homeland Security. Inspector. General Homeland Security.

This is a stark example of how the federal agency uses its powers to check journalists’ communications. Although the actions mentioned in the inspector general’s report were taken during the previous administration, this practice has been described as common.

The Associated Press stressed that the Department of Homeland Security’s investigation of American journalists, as well as congressional staff, shows that the federal agency created after the September 11, 2001 attacks “is using its formidable capabilities against American citizens.”