At least 52 media outlets have signed on to a Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press letter of complaint against Attorney General Eric E. Holder Jr., decrying his Justice Department’s grab of phone records from 100 Associated Press reporters.
Among the signers: Atlantic Media, CNN, Cox Media, Forbes, Gannett, The New York Times, Politico, NPR and McClatchy, Breitbart reported.
We’re “stunned” by the act, the letter said, Breitbart reported. We can’t “remember an instance where such an overreaching dragnet for news gathering materials was deployed” by the Justice Department.
The letter charges that the integrity of the entire Justice Department has been put in question. Signers also demand that the Justice Department “immediately return the telephone toll records obtained and destroy all copies” it still maintains. The letter further says the Justice Department should “publicly disclose more information on who has had access to the records,” and advise whether agents have sought other information from media outlets — absent full disclosure.
• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
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