A Federal Statute?

The Free Flow of Information Act has been through the congressional loop several times, attempting to create a federal ‘shield law’—a nationwide statute to protect journalist’s confidentiality promises in court.  The Act was created in response to the continued lack of a definitive ruling about rights of the press from the Supreme Court.

Remember, if a proposed bill is not passed by the end of Congress’s two-year session, it is considered dead and can be reintroduced at the start of the next session.  The most recent version is the Free Flow of Information Act of 2009:

“An act to maintain the free flow of information to the public by providing conditions for the federally compelled disclosure of information by certain persons connected with the news media.”

- H.R.985, 111^th Congress, 1^st Session, April 1, 2009

It has been passed in the House and is currently on the Senate Legislative Calendar.

Sources

Smith, Kevin. “Struggling to Report: The Fight for a Federal Shield Law.” 2009. http://www.spj.org/shieldlaw.asp

H.R.985, 111^th Congress, 1^st Session, April 1, 2009, P IIB

S. 2831: Free Flow of Information Act of 2006. Govtrack.us: a civic project to track Congress. http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=s109-2831

H.R.985 Free Flow of Information Act of 2009. Open Congress for the 111^th United States Congress. http://www.opencongress.org/bill/111-h985/show

Gomsak, Mark. “The Free Flow of Information Act of 2006: Settling the Journalist’s Privilege Debate.” 45 Brandeis L.J. 597, Spring 2007.

“The Free Flow of Information Act of 2006: A brief analysis by The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press.” http://www.rcfp.org/shields_and_subpoenas/specter.html