US: NUJ solidarity with unions fighting visa restrictions on foreign journalists
The NUJ has joined the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) in condemning the US government’s decision to drastically shorten visas for foreign journalists and fully backs joint union legal action to block it.
From 15 September, US media i-visas which can currently last for several years will be reduced to 240 days, while those for Chinese journalists will be cut to just 90 days.
This means an end to the “duration of status” system, which allows foreign journalists to stay and work in the US as long as they meet eligibility requirements.
On 18 August, several unions in the US, including the NewsGuild-CWA and the National Writers Union (NWU), filed legal action to challenge the Department of Homeland Security’s new rules, which affect not only journalists but also international students and scholars.
The decision has been described by those unions as “yet another attempt to muzzle journalists and the public’s right to know.”
Laura Davison, NUJ general secretary, said:
“These visa rule changes will severely impact the ability of foreign journalists - including those from the UK and Ireland - to work and live in the US, with clear implications for freedom of the press and free speech. These restrictions mark a continuation of a hostile attitude to journalists by the US administration. It follows an attempt last year to defund the US Agency for Global Media, which oversees several US federal broadcasters. We’ve also seen repeated personal attacks from the US President against journalists, including international reporters, simply for daring to do their job of reporting the truth and holding power to account.
“The NUJ backs the unions fighting to block these harmful rule changes to the i-visa and expresses solidarity and support for all foreign journalists working under increasingly authoritarian and dangerous circumstances in the US and around the world.”
Anthony Bellanger, IFJ general secretary, said:
“This drastic reduction in the duration of visas for foreign journalists is deeply concerning for us, the whole journalism community and the public at large. In practice, it will completely reshape the process for i-visa and require foreign journalists to repeatedly apply for visa renewals, thus affecting thousands of journalists and their families.
“We also fear that this new process will affect news coverage and quality journalism by forcing journalists to self-censor out of concern that their i-visa renewal could be denied. International reporting on U.S. affairs will be impacted, ultimately undermining the public's right to know about matters of public interest. We have witnessed many attempts by the Trump administration in recent years to control and restrict journalists' work, and this is another example of that trend.
“We understand that the changes to the i-visa rules are subject to Congressional review before they are scheduled to take effect on 15 September. However, we have little hope that this process will result in any substantial changes.
“Newsguild, the biggest union of journalists in the US and one of our affiliates has also expressed deep concerns, saying that it would affect some of their members too. For us, it is important that newsrooms and global journalists' organisations, including in the US, speak out against these new threats on press freedom. It is a matter of public interest.”
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