Nothing to declare: Why U.S. border agency’s vast stop and search powers undermine press freedom

 

Recommendations: The Committee to Protect Journalists offers the following recommendations

 

Watch the video and read the article from the Committee to Protect Journalist. A link to the CPJ’s recommendations is also available. The infographic chart provided is helpful at providing an overview of rulings on border searches. The CPJ discusses border searches of electronic devices. The CPJ points out that President Obama prosecuted eight individuals under the Espionage Act and A.G. Jeff Sessions has filed indictments in four leak investigations. The CPJ is concerned about border searches for those reasons.

 

1. Is there any evidence provided in the article to suggest that searches of electronic devices at the border have been used to specifically target journalists?

2. Of the investigations related to leaks under Obama and Trump, were any of those investigations involving border searches?

3. Have searches of electronic devices increased in the past few years? By how much?

4. Do you believe searching electronic devices at the border is necessary for national security? If you were in charge of adopting a policy to be used at all international borders would you restrict the warrantless searches of devices altogether, or require some suspicion for a warrantless search, or allow all devices to be searched without any individualized suspicion? Justify your decision.